By Doug Gerbino
The
Warner Archive has released four more pre-code gems as their latest entry in
their FORBIDDEN HOLLYWOOD series (Volume
7). These films are deliciously delightful to view. When this series was
started by M-G-M/UA video in the 1990s, I collected them on laser disc. When
they went out-of-print I paid some premium prices to get used copies. I was
thrilled when Warner Home Video started releasing them and now that Warner
Archive has continued to do so, I’m
happy to know that these otherwise neglected films will continue to be
available through the burn-to-order market. This being Volume 7, one can see
that there is a market for this genre, and I look forward to further entries in
this valuable series. The bulk of the films released thus far under the
FORBIDDEN HOLLYWOOD series have been from the WARNER BROS. & FIRST NATIONAL
STUDIOS and nobody did pre-code films any better. Cagney, Robinson, Blondell,
et. al. sizzled in these gritty, ripped-from-the-headlines films. There are the
occasional entries from M-G-M that came close, but pre-code was WARNER
BROS./FIRST NATIONAL’S stock in trade. The films in this volume are wonderful
examples.
THE
HATCHET MAN (1932) Stars Edward G. Robinson and Loretta Young in Max Factor
Asian makeup. Robinson plays Wong Low Get, a hatchet wielding hit man for a
warring San Francisco Tong (clan). When the film opens, I sniffed at the bad
makeup job they gave Robinson in typical 30s Hollywood fashion. I felt that the
racially stereotyped taping back of the corner of Caucasian eyes must be one of
the reasons these films are pre-code. But, Robinson is such a great (and underrated)
actor. He brings depth to a role that would have been one-dimensional in any
other actor’s hands. And what hands they
are! One of my cinema gurus – Tom Dillon, The Sage of 20th Street – once
pointed out to me that Robinson is always using his hands. Not just flailing
them, but utilizing these appendages as true masterstrokes of physical emoting. Robinson
is always fascinating to watch. His physical movements do not distract – they draw
you in. As the hatchet man for his tong crime family, he is sent to execute his
oldest and most trusted friend. When he arrives to carry out the hit, his
uneasiness with his assignment is made all the more difficult by the fact that
his friend understands and forgives him for what he has to do. The intended victimtells him that he is
leaving him his money and his young infant daughter to raise and eventually
marry. Fast-forward twenty years and this little girl has grown into Loretta
Young. As Sun Toya San, Young does not pull off the Asian makeup as well as
Robinson. Young is married to Robinson
only out of a sense of duty for she loves another, Harry En Hai played by evil
Leslie Fenton. When Robinson discovers this, his initial fury turns to
resignation and he allows Young to leave with her lover. Later, Robinson finds
out that Fenton has sold Young into white slavery and before you know it, he’s
back wielding his infamous hatchet. A run-of-the-mill San Francisco Chinatown potboiler
is raised a few notches by by Robinson’s moving performance. We can all name
the great pictures and roles he has been in (LITTLE CAESAR, DOUBLE INDEMNITY,
ALL MY SONS), but it is little throwaways like this that demonstrate what a
powerful performer he was. William Wellman directs. (First National &
Vitaphone)
SKYSCRAPER
SOULS (1932) This is the M-G-M entry in this volume. As I said above, M-G-M’s
forays into the pre-code genres were classy in comparison with Warners/First
National’s gritty, gutter-based
storylines. This was the studio’s pre-code version of their recent all-star
film GRAND HOTEL from the same year. Warren William stars as David Dwight,
president of the Seacoast Bank, which is the main tenant in this newly opened
skyscraper building. William will stop at nothing to eventually gain sole
ownership of the building. The actor
made for a charming, debonair leading man from the 30s who was known as the
poor man’s John Barrymore, complete with pencil-thin moustache. He was adept at
playing lovable, charismatic society men as well as ruthless scoundrels. In
this film he blends all of these traits and crafts a character you find
yourself rooting for, but don’t know why. He is a womanizing robber baron who
tramples over anyone who gets in his way. e William could do this and get you
to like him because his charm overcomes the natural ruthlessness of the
character and almost inspires you to want to emulate him. Tapping into our
hidden desire for power was part of the naughty appeal in these Depression era
films. This film abounds with swindles, scandals, adultery, murders and
suicides. Actress-turned-gossip-columnist Hedda Hopper plays William’s wife who
doesn’t really seem to mind that her husband is sleeping with anything that
moves, so long as he pays for her high maintenance life style. Maureen
O’Sullivan plays the young, naïve secretary who is the latest object of
William’s desires, all to the distress of William’s long suffering personal
secretary, played by Verree Teasdale. And what good is a film set in a
skyscraper without a jumper? Who is it? Get the set to find out. The art deco
sets are as much characters in this film as are the actors. You will notice
that the film opens with the first of many matte shots of the Dwight building
standing out against the New York skyline towering over the neighboring Empire
State Building in all its art deco glory. The interiors (by M-G-M art director
Cedric Gibbons) look like Radio City on crack! You know…as I think of it…I
guess watching Margaret Dumont snorting coke is more shocking then seeing Joan Blondell waking up with Jimmy
Cagney…Maybe M-G-M pre-codes are
dirtier… Directed by Edgar Selwyn (M-G-M)
EMPLOYEES’
ENTRANCE (1933) This is one of my all-time favorites and I had secured a copy
back in the VHS era. Thus, the film’s release on DVD delighted me. I believe it
best represents the freedoms of the the pre-code genre. Warren William andLoretta
Young are again teamed in the leading roles. William plays Kurt Anderson, the
General Manager of Monroe’s Department Store in Manhattan. His motto is:
“Smash, or be smashed!†He is basically the same character he played in
SKYSCAPER SOULS, but in a cheaper suit, on a lower floor and in a lower-paying job.
He’s also even more ruthless. He tells both employees and the store’s pompous
board of directors to go to hell whenever his heavy-handed business methods are
questioned. In one of the most memorable scenes he summarily fires a thirty-year
employee on the spot because the employee questions one of his new innovations.
The employee later jumps to his death from a 9th story window out of
shame. When told of the ex-employee’s suicide William answers: “When a man
outlives his usefulness he ought to jump out a window!†This kind of writing
reminded me of Rod Serling’s PATTERNS from 1955 written for KRAFT TELEVISION
THEATER. I am sure Serling must have seen this film and was inspired by it.
William is training an employee who he feels has the fire in his belly to make
it in this “smash, or be smashed†world. The young protégé is shocked at his
view, but William shows him that softness has no place in the cutthroat world
of business. This film puts forth complex questions that must be rationalized and
manages to do it in a concise 75 minutes without a wasted frame. That is the
beauty and wonder of the WARNER/FIRST NATIONAL films. They are tight, taught
and intense. Directed by Roy Del Ruth (First National & Vitaphone)
EX-LADY
(1933) This film stars a young Bette Davis as a free living fashion illustrator
who is “living†with an up-and-coming business executive, Gene Raymond. He
wants to marry her, but she feels that marriage is unnecessary and that matrimony
kills romance. Eventually she gives in and all her premonitions turn out to be
true. Even at this early point in her career, Davis is portraying a character who
wants to stand on equal footing with men. In this film she is a successful businesswoman
who basically does not need a man in the traditional sense, something that
broke with the social mores of the era. This story was a remake of a film from
two years prior; ILLICIT that starred Barbara Stanwyck (another pre-code sex
symbol). WARNERS/FIRST NATIONAL was not
above remaking films within a short
period of time. WARNERS filmed THE
MALTEST FALCON in 1931 with Ricardo Cortez and Bebe Daniels. Five years later
they remade it as SATAN MET A LADY with Warren William and Bette Davis. Then,
five years after that, they filmed the classic version directed by John Huston
with Humphrey Bogart and Mary Astor. In this film, Davis shows the strength of
character that would come to be the earmark of her career. The film is filled
with great pre-code dialog: (Raymond): "I'm
just about fed up with sneaking in...Let’s get married so I'll have the right
to be with you." (Davis): "What do you mean 'right'? I don't like the
word 'right'." (Raymond): "Let's not quibble about words." (Davis):
"No, I'm not quibbling, 'right' means something. No one has any 'rights'
about me, except me." As in most of the WARNER/FIRST NATIONAL films, a lot of
juicy stuff happens in a taught 67 minutes. Once married, Raymond tires (as
Davis predicted) and begins to philander. In order to even the score, Davis
starts her own affair with Raymond’s business rival, played by lovable WARNER
stock player, Frank McHugh. By the end of the story, Davis and Raymond
reconcile…for the moment. Directed by Robert Florey (First National &
Vitaphone)
The
4 films are presented on a disc a piece. THE HATCHET MAN, EMPLOYEES’ ENTRANCE
& EX-LADY include their original theatrical trailers, which are a lot of
fun. It is a study in itself to see how the spicy little numbers were sold to
the public. Image quality is quite good – about the same as you would see on
TCM. Even without digital re-mastering, these films jump out at you and drag
you into an era before purity ran amuck.
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