Pocketful of Miracles
Director: Frank Capra
Year Released: 1961
Rating: 3.0
Gangster with a heart of gold (Glenn Ford) juggles his career, his potential marriage to a lounge singer (Hope Lange) and an elderly street mongrel (Bette Davis) who he superstitiously believes is the source of all his good luck in this buoyant if improbable comic book comedy - the last of Capra's career. The interaction between the amazing supporting cast (including E. E. Horton, Peter Falk and Thomas Mitchell) is so pitch-perfect that I wasn't all that bothered by Davis' whimpering and teary eyes (she isn't given all that much to do except look sad) or Capra's signature ploys for emotional resonance. Ford was one of the most underrated - and today, under appreciated - greats.
