Viewing tip: GABRIEL OVER THE WHITE HOUSE

September 17th, 2008 at 09:30am Will Pfeifer

One of the strangest — and most entertaining — political movies ever made airs tonight at 11 on Turner Classic movies. It’s not on DVD, so if you want to catch it — and you really should — set your DVR now.

GABRIEL is the story of Judson C. Hammond (the late, great Walter Huston) a political hack who gets elected to the highest office in the land. During his first days in office, Pres. Hammond smashes his car while joy riding and winds up in a coma. While out of it, he’s visited by — well, by something that the movie never quite makes clear. The title suggests it’s an angel, but frankly, the guy might just be losing his mind. But the cause doesn’t really matter — what matters is the startling effect it has on Hammond, his presidency and the world.

Hammond awakens suddenly, possessed with a fervor he’s never had before. He unites protesting WWI veterans in an “army of the unemployed,” executes gangsters by firing squad and threatens the other nations of the world to act peacefully — or else. GABRIEL OVER THE WHITE HOUSE is a twisted fantasy about what a president could accomplish if he didn’t have to worry about the Constitution, Congress, the Supreme Court or the will of the American people. Financed by William Randolph Hearst (who knew a little something about power) and produced just before FDR took office, it’s a fascinating, fast-paced look at how desperate the country was in the early days of the Great Depression.

By the way, if you happen to miss tonight’s showing, GABRIEL airs again on TCM at 5 a.m. Oct. 11 and 2:15 p.m. Nov. 25.

Entry Filed under: Viewing tip, Classic movies