GENTLEMEN’S AGREEMENT
(directed by Elia Kazan, 1947)
****+ (out of 5)
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> Elia Kazan’s take on lingering anti-Semitism in the U.S. rattled a lot of cages when it was released.
. It seems to pull its punches by today’s standards.
. Playing another in a long line of highly moral men, Gregory Peck is an investigative reporter given the difficult assignment to find a new angle on an old story. He struggles with it, until he hits upon the idea of posing as a Jew himself, to get first hand experience of the pervasive problem of insidious anti-Semitism in America. And waddaya know- anti-Semitism does prove to be pervasive and insidious. This charade tests all his relationships, including his romance with Dorothy McGuire who was raised with a (liberal) silver spoon in her mouth, exposing the ugly underneath, even in unexpected places.
. The fine cast includes John Garfield, Celeste Holm, Jane Wyatt, Dean Stockwell and Sam Jaffe. This “statement” film stands the test of time because racism and anti-Semitism stubbornly persists.
– GENTLEMAN’S AGREEMENT also has something to say between the lines about political correctness in America that still smarts today.
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