User reviews

This predecessor of The Petrified Forest (criminals on the lam change the lives of assorted characters at an isolated lunchroom) shows its origin as a Broadway play, but it's faster moving, less pretentious, and a lot less talky than the better known movie. The large cast is wonderful, especially the great Aline MacMahon; their characters well defined; and the direction and cinematography are crisp and professional. It's well worth the hour it takes to watch it.

A fine example of minimalist film-making, this Warners B-pic offers a proto-feminist scenario delivered with some swell precode attitude. Two sisters (one world-weary, the other innocent) run a service-station-cum-caravansary on an isolated desert highway. Every passerby kids them about how dull and lonely this existence must be, but in the space of one night they serve host to a pair of criminals on the run, a couple of gold-diggers on the way back from Reno with their swag (and with a wise-guy chauffeur), plus a large family of Mexicans on the way to a fiesta.

The main thrust of the film is melodramatic, as even in their isolation the women cannot avoid mistreatment by treacherous men. However, it's also filled with neat little comic bits and clever wisecracks. Director Mervyn Le Roy creates plenty of atmosphere with few resources, and the cheap-jack desert-palms backdrop (with the Mexican father tenderly serenading his family in the background) sticks in the memory. Le Roy uses an almost slow-motion tracking shot to great effect to show the hallucinatory influence of an ex-lover on the older sister as he intrudes into this sweaty environment. And it's pretty clear that there's a lot of casual sleeping around going on -- a lot of the jokes and situations probably wouldn't have survived the censors if this were a more prominent picture (and definitely not a year later). But the picture never flaunts its raciness -- sex is just part of the fabric of life.

Though consistently enjoyable, the movie never builds up enough intensity to be classed with the immortal second features like Detour (though the climax does pack a punch). Surprisingly, the two leads never really click. Aline MacMahon and Ann Dvorak were always marvelously idiosyncratic in supporting roles, but here the former's baroque style seems overdone for the milieu, and the latter doesn't have much opportunity to vent her repressed passion (maybe the censor trimmed that bit). Overall, though, the performances from the many familiar faces are excellent, my particular favorite occurring in the opening scene featuring Edgar Kennedy as the henpecked spouse of Jane Darwell.

Definitely worth seeking out for aficionados (but hard to find). Some might compare it to The Petrified Forest, but it gives me a bit of an offbeat Shack Out on 101 vibe, too.

Heat Lightning was an early work by George Abbott, written and directed by him in 1933 it had only a run of 44 performances in that anemic Depression Era season on Broadway. It was not the best work Abbott was ever associated with, but I'm sure he was grateful that Warner Brothers bought the screen rights in those cash strapped times.

It stars Aline McMahon and Ann Dvorak as a pair of sisters running a filling station, automobile camp out in the American west, very similar to the one Bette Davis and her family was running in The Petrified Forest. They're both a bit antsy being stuck out in the desert without the attention of the male of the species. But McMahon's been around the track a little too often and she tries to steer Dvorak right.

The guy who gave her that ride a few times is Preston Foster and he's shown up with pal Lyle Talbot. On the lam as it turns out, but the sisters don't know it. Foster's putting the moves on Dvorak and McMahon ain't having any of that. Truth be told she's got a bit of a yen still left and the desert isolation ain't curing the yen.

Some other characters pop up in this drama, a pair of would be divorcées heading for Reno with their 'chauffeur' played by Glenda Farrell, Ruth Donnelly and Frank McHugh. Also at the beginning Edgar Kennedy and Jane Darwell are a married couple going west. I wish we could have seen more of them. In fact I'm surprised that Jack Warner didn't recognize a good potential comic team there and made more films with them.

As you can see there are a lot of similarities to The Petrified Forest, but I think that even with the tragedies that befall both Humphrey Bogart and Leslie Howard there, The Petrified Forest is a more optimistic play. Bette Davis does get her chance to leave and see the wider world. Not quite what happens here, but I can't say more.

As compared to some of the legendary work George Abbott was associated with on stage Heat Lightning is definitely minor league. Yet it's not a bad piece of work, definitely in keeping with the times. Mervyn LeRoy did a good job in filling the screen and striking a nice balance between the comic and the dramatic. Very typical of what came from the working man's studio.

I was very fortunate to DVR a pristine copy of this many years ago on TCM and I have watched it probably 30 times since.

My dad made several auto trips across the US in the twenties and earlier. Though this was 1934, it provides me with a visual perspective on some of what he may have encountered before there was a national system of highways, or many paved roads for that matter.

My enjoyment of this film comes mostly from the glimpses into early motoring. As a kid in the early fifties I made many a trip from California to Iowa with my folks on route 66. Motoring was not all that sophisticated even in the early fifties and that plays into it as well.

This review/comment is not so much about the finer points of the movie as it is a statement on how enjoyable it is for me because of the time in which it was made.

The fact that there is a great little drama playing out and lots of ventures into quirky personalities and side plots, is just icing on the cake.

After reading several reviews that enjoyed the film, I almost did not write a comment.

However, after reading the one comparing it to a poor man's Petrified Forest, I wanted to say that's just plain unfair.

I, was not around for the New York Times drab review in 1934, like the previous reviewer, but I can form my own opinion. I really liked the movie. Aline McMahon, pulled off the difficult character of playing a woman mechanic/business owner, and Preston Foster played the crook on the lam quite believable for the situation he was in.

I personally wish Ann Dvorak had more of a developed part, I always like her, but sadly hers was the least developed of the several interesting characters in the film. Obviously made on a small budget, it's just unfair to compare this to Petrified Forest. They are not the same film at all.

In many ways, this film reminds me of another Warner Brothers film made just a few years later, "The Petrified Forest". Both are set at isolated gas stations in the desert and both involve gangsters who come there to seek shelter. However, the films are certainly different enough to make it worth seeing them both.

Olga (Aline MacMahon) is a world-weary soul who has chosen to move into the middle of nowhere because she's tired of people. Her sister, Myrna (Ann Dvorak), however, isn't tired of people and yearns for excitement and men-- and the pair couldn't be more different. Into their very dull and predictable lives come an assortment of folks to stay at their gas station/motor court. One pair are a couple of divorcées on their way from Reno after their latest conquest. Another are a pair of crooks on the run from the law. In a coincidence you'll only see in a play or movie, it turns out the boss (Preston Foster) was once Olga's lover! What's next? See the film.

There are two main things going for this film--Foster and MacMahon. Their characters are interesting and the final scene between them is something to see! Unfortunately, Dvorak's role is very whiny and annoying--and the character significantly impairs the film with her overwrought performance. Overall, it is worth seeing but is far from brilliant work from the studio.

Heat Lightning is tied with The Adventure of Robins Hood as my favorite Warner's film. It's always a pleasure to watch Aline MacMahon, but here I think she gives an Oscar worthy performance. She and Preston Foster smolder! Aline's slowly changing attitude is wondrous to behold. Her final scene with Foster is memorable. A lot of the Warner's stock company come and go throughout the film, always giving freshness to their roles. The daytime location and cinematography perfectly capture the feel of the desert. (I live near Tucson.) The night time scenes, although well matched, are shot on a sound stage, and so, are not as effective. But I suppose they were necessary for the lightning effects. This a film that will stay with you. And make you want to watch it again.

In the Mohave Desert, Olga and her younger sister Myra run a gas station with diner in the middle of nowhere. Olga is perfectly happy with the isolation but Myra would like to go someplace, any place. The remote outpost gets a surprising number of visitors over a day's time including two bank robbers. One of them is Olga's former boyfriend Jerry and she knows he's up to no good. Then two rich dames stop by when their driver schemes for a rest.

I like the chaos of people keep showing up at this little place. I would like the filming to take place in the openness of the desert. It could have been epic in cinematography. I would also like for a more epic shootout. The story builds up so much possibility. It's almost anti-climatic but there is a bit of poetry in its execution. I really like the width of characters in this movie, even with some of side characters. From the first bickering couple to the two female hitchhikers, this movie is filled with great characters. I would love to see this remade with more noir touches.

Nice, noir-ish 1934 quickie, with a highly likeable Lyle Talbot in the lineup, no less. The switch from location shooting to stage settings is a bit jarring, but no less so than most TV shows of the 1960s and 1970s, which went from on-site filming to a fake backdrop, sometimes within the same scene (from Gunsmoke to Mannix to the Wild, Wild West). And the sets, while not convincing, are quite artistically conceived, with a memorable heat lightning effect. The swift pacing is rather remarkable for the era, and Aline MacMahon gives a mesmerizing performance, though her character seems to shift from weak to iron-willed a little too casually. But that's where the swift pacing makes any doubtful character motivation irrelevant--the viewer is too caught up in the fascinating, nonstop story (laced with comedy bits which have held up amazingly well). Lyle Talbot makes a superb wimpy sidekick, though a couple of times he seemed to be on the verge of laughter. A gem!

If you like a subtle and mature superbly acted drama with just enough humour to keep it light, you should enjoy this. Although an awful lot happens, the action somehow manages to seem inconsequential compared with the oppressive mundanity of the desert.

This film has a very modern feel to it. Set in an isolated oasis in the Nevada desert there's little to tie it down to a particular time - were it not for the old cars, it could be now. The other thing which makes this timeless is the acting, specifically that of Aline MacMahon whose character is the focus of this film. Being from the 'method school' her characterisation is much more natural than was typical in the early thirties. It's an outstanding performance.

She plays Olga who runs this little 'service station' isolated from the outside world, isolated, as we'll discover, from something in her past. We never quite find out what led her here, dragging her reluctant and resentful sister along and that's one of the things which makes this so intriguing. Whatever it was, she's not going to let it happen to her sister whom she keeps a tight rain on which in her sister's mind means stopping her having any fun.

She's content hiding from the world where her only interaction with people is with the strangers passing through. She's content hiding from who she was, hiding from being a woman until a sinister face from the past re-enters her life. When her mask slips, we perhaps get an idea of why she abandoned that former life.

It's totally addictive viewing but at the time you're not sure why. When it's over you realise that it's one of those pictures that you will always remember. Although the skies are bright and clear, the atmosphere is as thick as soup infused with something undefined but dark and dangerous. Its unrelenting oppressive heat permeates through the screen into your own world, you can taste the desert yourself - such is the brilliance of LeRoy's direction.

Interesting drama which bristles with pungent, often very amusing dialogue. Two sisters (a homely, bossy man-hater and a restless younger beauty who likes to kick up her heels) battle amongst themselves while running a filling station/diner/motel in the California desert; a pair of casual-acting bank robbers stop in one afternoon on their way to the border, one of whom knows the elder sister very well. Adaptation of Leon Abrams and George Abbott's play ran into trouble with the Catholic Legion of Decency in 1934--one presumes over the frank talk and implications of man-woman intimacy--yet the most surprising thing about this piece is the fact Aline MacMahon's plain, resentful Olga has a romantic past at all! Possibly conceived at one point as a lesbian, the character of Olga (who trades in her head-bandanna and dungarees for make-up and a frilly dress) is the story's central focus, and yet she doesn't emerge as a convincing, fully thought-out creation. The material goes noticeably soft at the halfway mark to accommodate Olga's actions, making the censorship stories even more ridiculous in hindsight. Still, the film has a quick pace and a lively cast, colorful patter between the guests, and a satisfying finish. **1/2 from ****

Grease monkey Aline McMahon (as Olga) runs a "Service Station and Auto Camp" in the California desert, with help from attractive little sister Ann Dvorak (as Myra). Ms. MacMahon takes care of gas and gaskets (outside), while Ms. Dvorak serves cold beer and Coca-Cola (inside). MacMahon has sworn off cabarets, after a bad relationship - but, innocent Dvorak wants to go out and have fun. There are opportunities in the middle of the desert, as frequent travelers abound.

While discouraging Dvorak, MacMahon has second thoughts about the male gender after old flame Preston Foster (as George, but MacMahon still calls him "Jerry") chances by the station, with "peeping Tom" pal Lyle Talbot (as Jeff). The pair are on the lam, after a bank heist and double-murder. MacMahon covers for Mr. Preston, when the sheriff comes looking for the crooks. MacMahon seems ready to re-succumb to Preston's masculine charms, but may want to reconsider… Everyone pretends to be hot, but Mervyn LeRoy's "Heat Lightning" is all subtest, and no steam. The cast is fun, though.

***** Heat Lightning (3/3/34) Mervyn LeRoy ~ Aline MacMahon, Preston Foster, Ann Dvorak, Lyle Talbot

A flop George Abbott play gets a very respectable Warners filming in this 1934 B, which is boosted by two of the strongest women then on the lot, Aline MacMahon and Ann Dvorak. They're sisters, one butch and practical and the other feminine and yearning, running an out-of-the-way garage/cafe/hotel in the Southwest, not far from the Mexican border. Warners contract players keep dropping in, from Glenda Farrell to Frank McHugh to Ruth Donnelley, but bad news enters in the form of Preston Foster and Lyle Talbot. Dumb luck puts them there, in the first of a couple of unlikely coincidences, for it turns out Foster, generally an uninteresting actor who's unusually heated and virile here, had a long-ago tryst with MacMahon, and now he and Talbot have just robbed a bank and killed a couple of clerks. A short movie, it's a little light on plot but soaked in convincing studio atmosphere, with the titular heat lightning going off in the distance, and firmly steered by Mervyn LeRoy. MacMahon, "one of the screen's few perfect actresses," as film historian David Shipman had it, sinks her teeth into a meaty part and says more with an eyebrow than most actresses could say with pages of dialogue, and Dvorak is appealing in a somewhat hackneyed part. The rest of the Warners stock company do their usual things: Donnelley is haughty, Farrell flirty, McHugh the comic relief. But that's not to say they're unwelcome.

I agree with the last reviewer, this is definitely a time capsule of the early days of motoring cross country, particularly in the desert. And what a tale.

10 Plus Stars, for the cast alone.

The dynamic Warner Brothers roster of guest stars is worth a look. Popular character actress Aline MacMahon goes solo here, playing Olga, a struggling young woman who runs a filling station in the middle of the desert with her sister, Myra (well played by Ann Dvorak).

This story, based on the play by Leon Abrams, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Greg Abbott (DAMN YANKEES), is way ahead of its time, focusing on women in business, a rare thing back in the day, and quite realistic. Beautifully filmed at Lancaster, CA, a remote area back in the day.

Olga, a jack of all trades, still has her hands full operating a gas station and all the people problems that come with it. A terrific story within a story, co-starring big tough guy Preston Foster, Lyle Talbot (as Jeff), comedian Frank McHugh, and not to forget Glenda Farrell and funny Ruth Donnelly as Mrs. Ashley.

The gang's all here. Yes, this film WAS banned by the National League of Decency. Case in point, Foster leaving Olga's room, buttoning his coat and saying a few interesting comments.

Outstanding direction by the master, Mervyn LeRoy, who had previously directed the classic Marie Dressler comedy/drama TUGBOAT ANNIE.

Thanks to Warner Brothers, now on remastered dvd and blu ray. A must for 30s classic film collectors. Also thanks to TCM for rerunning this diamond in the rough which has been re-discovered.

... must have been filmed around Joshua Tree or Lone Pine.. unfortunately, no locations listed as of March 2010. Warner Brothers shortie... but TCM host Robert Osborne mentioned that the Catholic League wanted changes made, so I wonder if the original play was longer or even naughtier. Also loved seeing Frank McHugh & Aline MacMahon... McHugh was toned way down for this part...he's funnier and louder in some of his other roles; MacMahon was the big star of this one.... as one of the female mechanics (sisters) that run the gas station ( one comes REAL close to being lesbian, whether or not that was the intention)... Jerry, her ex says: "you're right... you changed plenty!" and when Myra goes out with a guy, her sister Olga gives her hell when she gets back. When the folks in the car insist it'll take a "darn good man" to get the radiator cap off, Olga opens it, no problem. Fun, quick story, even if i'm not really sure what we learned.. I thought it had a lot in common with Key Largo, but lesser known actors in this one. and years earlier. Very Good!

Sisters Aline MacMahon and Ann Dvorak run an auto stop out in the middle of the Mojave Desert, with the nearest town 26 miles away. Miss MacMahon seems busy and contented. Miss Dvorak wants boys and excitement. She think so, anyway. When Miss MacMahon's old lover, gangster Preston Foster shows up on the run from a bank robbery and murder, various threads and other peoples' stories get tangled for a night.

It's from a play co-written by George Abbott, and the sets likely used for several plays for several seasons on Broadway. It's far less philosophical, poetic and pretentious than THE PETRIFIED FOREST, which is the show that jumps to mind, but it ultimately becomes a bit of a Woman's Problem movie, carried on the capable shoulders of Miss MacMahon. There's plenty of performers to help her, including Glenda Farrell, Frank McHugh, Ruth Donnelly, Jane Darwell, Edgar Kennedy, and Chris-Pin Martin.

If you can get over the unlikely pairing of ALINE MacMAHON and PRESTON FOSTER as former lovers and stand the desert heat at a motor court stranded in the middle of nowhere, you may be able to accept some of the melodramatics of HEAT LIGHTNING.

Nevertheless, I have to agree with The N.Y. Times when it summed it up as: "Drab melodrama with occasional flashes of forced comedy." The forced comedy is supplied by RUTH DONNELLY and GLENDA FARRELL as two rich dames being chauffeured by FRANK McHUGH, and in an early scene, JANE DARWELL and EDGAR KENNEDY as a bickering married couple who stop by for car repair and a coke. Otherwise, it's pretty dreary stuff, with Foster trying to con McMahon and her sister (ANN DVORAK) out of some money in their safe.

The downbeat ending only emphasizes the dreariness of the plot which seems to go nowhere fast.

Heat Lightning (1934)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Sisters Olga (Aline MacMahon) and Myra (Ann Dvorak) run a small gas station in the Arizona desert where they fight about the youngest sisters wants when it comes to a different life. Throughout the day a wide range of people stop by the shop including a couple thugs (Preston Foster, Lyle Talbot) who are wanted for killing a couple men and one of them has a past relationship with Olga. This crime picture from Warner certainly isn't among their best but the nice cast and short 64-minute running time makes it a nice little gem as long as you don't go in expecting too much. The first starts off with quite a bit of innuendo around the older sister Olga and her constantly putting men down. The way she dresses, talks and acts, it really does seem like this could have been shown during TCM's look at gay and lesbian images in early Hollywood. Her behavior is explained as the film goes along but that is certainly one thing that really jumped out. For the most part the characters really aren't all that interesting and the only reason one would pay close attention to them is because the studio cast some very familiar faces and especially to those who enjoy their "B" movies. Both MacMahon and Dvorak are good in their parts of the battling sisters and both Foster and Talbot could play heavies in their sleep. The four have some pretty good scenes together and especially MacMahon and Foster when it comes to talking about their past. The cast also includes Glenda Farrell playing a sexy idiot, Frank McHugh her driver and we even get Ruth Donnelly and Edgar Kennedy in small bits. The screenplay is full of the typical stereotype characters you'd expect in a film like this but the most disappointing thing is that not much happens throughout the running time. The movie is certainly leading up to final showdown but nothing ever really happens and there just aren't enough twists or turns to keep any sort of drama going. The movie does include a terrific looking set as I thought the diner was good enough to offer up some terrific shots and especially those where the camera just looks around the insides and there being windows everywhere. This allows one to get a 360-look around the place. Some pre-Code elements add to the fun but the main draw here are the actors.

"Must be a big help sometimes being like you, Olga. Not having any feeling." "I wouldn't know, Everett."

There's a fair bit of implied sex in this pre-Code film which of course earned the wrath of the Catholic Legion of Decency, but what I think what bothered them just as much was how strong these two women were, living out in the desert and running their own business very capably. Aline MacMahon plays a gal who can expertly fix a car, acts as a mother figure to her little sister, remain stoical about troubles in her past, offer kindness to those who need a place to sleep, get glammed up, have a night of passion with an old lover, and take care of herself with a gun. She's just a fantastic, feminist character, performed brilliantly by MacMahon, the best I've ever seen her.

It's a film that had me from the start, with its setting in the sweltering heat of the desert amidst Joshua trees. As Mervyn LeRoy explained in Take One, the filming was done over three weeks in Needles, California, "where the weather was so hot we could barely breathe," and yet many of the men are wearing suits. In addition to its atmosphere, the film has lots of great characters and a tight, lean story, one that takes place in a single day, and doesn't waste a single of its 63 minutes.

The main story line revolves around two sisters running a filling station and café. The younger one (Ann Dvorak) longs for a more action and plans to sneak out with her boyfriend at night, the older one (MacMahon) has seen enough of men and is content to remain alone. They encounter a string of visitors, two of which (Preston Foster and Lyle Talbot) are criminals on the run from a holdup they pulled in which they killed a couple people. One of the criminals just so happens to have been the lover of MacMahon's character in the past, and he's got his eyes both on her as well as the jewels of other visitors to the desert oasis. "We got our own New Deal comin' up," he says to his buddy, "prosperity is just across the border," paraphrasing FDR.

The supporting characters are people stopping to get gas or their car serviced, including the husband and his domineering wife at the beginning of the film, with a car curiously bearing the Ohio license plate 999 666. There's a guy driving two flirtatious young women (Muriel Evans and Jill Dennett) who are hitchhiking their way to Hollywood, "an old baboon and a couple of tomatoes," as one of the criminals describes them. As the old guy calls the "girlies" back into the car, we find he's a creepy "thigh pincher" who's been harassing them. There is a Mexican family looking for a place to sleep, one of whom sings a lovely song in the evening, accompanied by heat lightning in the distance. Never mind that the father had said in strangely broken Spanish "Comprendo?", the unfounded suspicion that they are thieving "gypsies" are quickly shut down by MacMahon's character, a refreshing moment. Lastly, there are a couple of wealthy divorcees (Glenda Farrell and Ruth Donnelly) trading barbs with one another and vying for the affections of their chauffer (Frank McHugh). As one humorously says against the other drinking, "I know you and your nips. I didn't want you to get tight on me." All of these characters add brightness and energy to the main story.

Sexual tension spilling over into actual sex plays a role with all three women at the top of the billing, though nothing is ever shown. We see MacMahon's old lover leaving her room after the act, buttoning himself up, after she's initiated. Glenda Farrell ends up with McHugh "protecting her" in bed, which her friend remarks is a "funny way with words." We get the sense that both women will be just fine, despite the hanky panky outside of marriage. A little more troubling is Dvorak's character, who returns late after her date with her boyfriend, who dropped her off a bit coldly, despite her calling him honey and asking him to call her. She soon grows distraught, and in an emotional outburst to her sister says, "Why didn't you stop me? I'll tell you - because you were with a man yourself! But you were right anyway!" implying she's had sex too, but now regrets it. With great restraint the film gives us a range in these experiences, centered around women, from being taken advantage of to simply enjoying sex.

Great film, it's an underrated pre-Code gem, and it would make a great double feature with The Petrified Forest (1936).

Only watched this because of the high rating it had. What a mistake! Everything you associate with good movie making hadn't come into being yet, or wasn't in this movie, especially a decent script and decent acting. I'm so over watching them now.