GManfred A worthy effort that is spoiled by a false ending. I always felt that John Garfield was one of Hollywood's best actors, but here he is not challenged and given a role well within his ability. He doesn't have to extend himself and I thought his part was unworthy of his great talent. Jennifer Jones was miscast, Gilbert Roland was better (disregard Maltin), and Pedro Armendariz was excellent.All that said, I kept waiting for some suspense and it came in small doses. The movie was anticlimactic - forgivable, since it was based on historical fact, but maybe a little embellishment was in order. And so, it was a movie which promised adventure and excitement but did not deliver, and in the end lapsed into an unwelcome Hollywood ending. It had some soaring and poetic dialogue but needed 'rewrite', a favorite Hollywood byword, to 'punch it up'.

blackwedge I just saw the Movie, "We Were Strangers" on Get TV this morning. Loved it. I am sure it will be on re-runs again. My Grandfather was very good friends of Gilbert Roland. My Grandfather looked very similar to Gilbert Roland and when they used to walk the streets in California, they turned heads. I still have a few pictures with my grandfather and Gilbert together. I loved that song, I was humming it all morning long. Hehe. I play guitar and the Uke and going to learn it. I should have recorded the Movie for reference. The shooting scene was classic. All in all they did their part in putting this movie together. Great Acting. Remember the poor cubanos and their plight of corrupt governments. Thx John Huston

David (Handlinghandel) The idea of a movie about a revolution: Yes, that is John Huston. The casting: Well, to some degree, it may have been out of his hands. But it's a really crude, uninteresting movie. And that despite John Garfield (who is quite good) as its male lead)! Actors in community theater are taught that if play is translated or is otherwise taking place in a country where English is not the primary language, accents are unnecessary. Worse than unnecessary: They make no sense, as we are hearing what the people are saying in their language as translated into our (if we speak English.) Here, everyone except Garfield speaks with a thick Spanish accent. Garfield is playing an American.It's heartening to see Ramon Novarro given work in the late forties. He and Gilbert Roland sound fairly realistic. And Pedro Almandariz, as the villain, does not sound fake. He is also very good.That leaves Jennifer Jones. Here is an actress whose talents were far too often ignored or squandered. She was a charming comedienne; yet she was often cast in heavy, intense movies.She is the star of what may be my favorite Lubitsch film, though it's an atypical one: "Cluny Brown." And she is hilarious, as a blonde, no less, in Huston's own "Beat the Devil." I can't imagine gong to a theater in 1949 with a date and having to sit through this. It is hard enough to watch on DVD.on DVD.

blanche-2 Though directed by John Huston, written by Huston and Peter Viertel, and starring Jennifer Jones, John Garfield, Pedro Armandariz and Gilbert Roland, 1949's "We Were Strangers" is a largely unknown film. It is, however, an important one in the history of Hollywood as it was bankrolled by Sam Spiegel for Huston's new production company. Impressed with Huston, Spiegel went on to bankroll "The African Queen." Commercially unsuccessful at the time of its release, the story concerns the White Terror of the Fascist government in Cuba from 1925-1933. When her brother, a member of the resistance, is killed, China (Jones) joins the fight to overthrow the government. A plan is concocted by Tony Fenner, an American born in Cuba who is posing as a talent agent. The idea is to assassinate a high-ranking official and then set off a bomb at the funeral, killing the top people in the government.The best scene in the film is between Jones and Pedro Armendariz, who plays a secret policeman, Ariete. He is deeply suspicious of Fenner and is sure that China is his lover. While the revolutionaries hide outside in the rain, he eats and bullies, threatens, and flirts with China, who is terrified but tries to keep calm. A taut, excellent scene. All of the acting is excellent - Jones, wearing darker makeup and sporting an accent, is very good as well as beautiful. Garfield does a good job as Fenner, and Gilbert Roland is a standout. The last 15 minutes of the film are very exciting, with the last scene being poetic but failing to be upbeat, which was perhaps the intention. It's a downer.A very good movie that for some reason didn't get everyone in it in trouble and accused of being a Communist - surprisingly, Garfield's appearance in the movie had nothing to do with his eventual blacklisting. I guess "We Were Strangers" was too obscure.