| Big Jim McLain | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Edward Ludwig |
| Produced by | Robert M. Fellows John Wayne |
| Written by | Richard English (story) James Edward Grant Eric Taylor |
| Starring | John Wayne Nancy Olson James Arness Alan Napier Veda Ann Borg |
| Music by | Paul Dunlap Art Lange Emil Newman |
| Cinematography | Louis Clyde Stoumen Archie J. Stout |
| Editing by | Jack Murray |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
| Release date(s) | August 30, 1952 |
| Running time | 90 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Big Jim McLain is a 1952 political thriller film starring John Wayne and James Arness as HUAC investigators hunting down communists in the post-war Hawaii organized labor scene. Edward Ludwig directed.
The film has developed something of a cult following due to a perceivedly now-campy red scare theme. In some European markets the film was retitled as Marijuana and dispensed with the communist angle, making the villains drug dealers instead. This was achieved entirely through script changes and dubbing.
Its publicity slogan was: "He's A Go-Get'Em Guy for the U.S.A. on a Treason Trail That Leads Half-a-World Away!"
House Un-American Activities Committee investigators Jim McLain and Mal Baxter come to Hawaii to track Communist Party activities. They are interested in everything from insurance fraud to the sabotage of a U.S. naval vessel.
After receiving useful information from a reporter named Briggs, the agents begin searching for Willie Nomaka, a party treasurer, who allegedly has experienced a nervous breakdown and has been seeing Dr. Gelster, a psychiatrist. The doctor's secretary, Nancy Vallon, is helpful as well. She is a widow; McLain asks her on a date, and a romance develops.
Nomaka's landlady, Madge, assists in the investigation, flirting with McLain. Nomaka's ex-wife also helps him. He is eventually found to be staying in a sanitarium, heavily drugged and unable to speak.
Party leader Sturak gives orders to Dr. Gelster to get rid of him. Gelster also kills McLain's partner, Baxter, by mistake with an injection of truth serum.
As the investigators close in, Sturak attempts to make Gelster confess to his party membership so the case can be closed and so others can continue their nefarious work. Their meeting is interrupted by McLain who instigates a brawl. Police arrive to place party leaders under arrest, but ultimately he and Nancy Vallon see them plead the Fifth Amendment and go free.