I was in junior high when I first read Stephen Vincent Benet’s THE DEVIL & DANIEL WEBSTER. It is one of a handful of stories that I have never forgotten. The trial scene between Daniel Webster and Mr Scratch (a New England term for the Devil) and the jury of long dead souls fired my imagination as few stories at that time had. I even read Benet’s magnum opus JOHN BROWN’S BODY as a result (it was in my parent’s library) but the effect wasn’t quite the same. Shortly after reading DEVIL, I ran across the film version on morning TV back when local stations ran old movies and game shows instead of DR PHIL and the like.
It was called ALL THAT MONEY CAN BUY which is a key phrase that the Devil uses in the story. I was completely blown away as I had never seen B&W photography like that and the trial scene was everything my imagination had conjured up (and that’s saying something). Walter Huston as Mr. Scratch may be the finest incarnation of the Devil ever captured on film. His performance would later influence such French movies as CARNIVAL OF SINNERS and BEAUTY & THE DEVIL.
I didn’t know it at the time but the version I first saw on TV was heavily cut (from 107 to 85 minutes). This wasn’t done for commercials but because the film had been cut by its studio (RKO) for re-release in 1952. The 16mm print I saw in college was essentially the same. Movie books had told me there was a longer version but I never saw it until this Criterion release came out in 2003. I quickly acquired it and cannot believe that it has taken me this long to write a review of it.
Truth of the matter is I thought I already had and when, after watching it again recently, I went to read the review and couldn’t find anything. So here it is. Not only is the DVD a visual revelation, but it comes with a wealth of extras including alternate footage, background photo galleries, essays, and Alec Baldwin reading the original short story. The plot is simple, a variation on the Faust legend. A farmer sells his soul to the Devil for prosperity and good luck for a period of 7 years. When the time is up and he wants out, he gets noted statesman Daniel Webster to defend him in an infernal trial. For those who don’t want the DVD, it’s available on streaming from various sites but beware the quality.
The Capsule Critic 