It All Came True

A hood (Humphrey Bogart) on the run from the law hides out at a boarding house, which he soon converts into a nightclub.

It All Came True is an entertaining comedy that works thanks to great performances from Ann Sheridan and Humphrey Bogart.

Sheridan, who has top billing, shines in a charismatic performance that never feels too broad or over-the-top. She’s feisty, but levelheaded, and easy to root for. While there isn’t a whole lot of chemistry between her and her love-interest, second-billed Jeffrey Lynn, she still works. Indeed, if it’d been, say, William Holden, instead of Lynn as her love-interest, the film could have really clicked.

Thankfully, Humphrey Bogart’s there to save the day. He plays the same tough-guy gangster role he’d been playing at Warner Brothers for years, and it pays off. By playing the part straight, he brings just the right comedic touch to the role as a hard-boiled mobster who’s totally out of his element when confronted with the kindly matrons who run the boarding house.

At 97 minutes, the film does run a bit long. Some of the Sheridan-Lynn scenes could be trimmed as the spark between them just isn’t there, but for the most part this is a pretty lean film that manages to straddle both the gangster and comedy genres. That’s no small feat, and why It All Came True is worth a look from fans of Bogart, Sheridan, or Warner Brother’s gangster genre.