Tough Guys Collection (Warner Bros.)
Picture: C+
Sound: C+ Extras: B Films: B
In the Classical Hollywood era, each studio had its
specialties and at Warner Bros., not only did their pioneering work in sound
bring on the Musical, but it also especially for them helped make the Gangster
genre and its reactionary Police Procedural film with singular “voice of God”
(read authority) films possible. Many
mistake Howard Hawks original Scarface (1932) as a Warner production,
when it was actually Howard Hughes through United Artists. However, outside of endless B-movies and a
few projects at other studios, Warner was the home of such action-packed
fare. The Tough Guy Collection
collects six key films from the 1935 through 1940 that shows the evolution of
the films through the upswing of sound, The Depression, peak of the studio
system and arrival of World War II.
In this new set, each DVD is loaded with extras meant to
simulate a trip to theaters at that time and also each offer expert audio
commentary by a film scholar on the history of the film, its content and its
players. The six chosen for this set
are:
G Men (1935)
This is one of the great early propaganda films and was
part of an early movement of sound “hero” films that absolutely extended to the
Serials with cowboys, space men and the occasional comic book superhero. Government agents were included. The film is a well-rounded model of the
reactionary “good vs. evil” dichotomy with James Cagney playing the “good
gangster’ as the head of the title characters out to bust organized crime. Only because of this did the censors allow
the film to get away with what would have been banned otherwise. It is always interesting.
Extras include a newsreel, 1935 bloopers reel, three
live-action shorts (Bobby Jones Golf short #11, Bob Hope in The Old Grey
Manner and a how-to morality guide for Hollywood), Buddy The Gee
Man Looney Tunes cartoon/black & white, trailer for this film &
Devil Dogs Of The Air and solid audio commentary track by Richard Jewell.
Bullets Or Ballots (1936)
This is a film that where it was not as easy to figure out
where to with the “good vs. evil” dichotomy, making it the most interesting
film in this DVD set with the highest amount of interesting moments. The title does holds out the possibility of
an America that could function well, but those pesky bullets are likely to get
in the way. Edward G. Robinson is on
the road from bad to good, but with new competition for bad by rising star
Humphrey Bogart, this will not be smooth sailing. Joan Blondell is also a plus this film where the numbers racket
is key. William Keighley directed Seton
I. Miller’s screenplay and cinematographer Hal Mohr’s work is a plus.
Extras include a newsreel, 1936 bloopers reel, radio
version of this film with Robinson, Bogart & Mary Astor, two live-action
shorts (Bobby Jones Golf short #10 and George Hall & His Orchestra Musical
Short), I’m A Big Shot Now Technicolor Merrie Melodies cartoon,
trailer for this film & The Charge Of The Light Brigade, new Immigrant’s
Hero featurette and solid audio commentary track by Dana Polan, who excels
at his love for film with terrific and very entertaining observations about
Hollywood in general and the genre in particular. It is our favorite of the six in this set.
San Quentin (1937)
Pat O’Brien is the prison guard with a heart of gold
dealing with all the inmates in the title location, including a standout
(Humphrey Bogart) who will either wise up or get worse. Ann Sheridan co-stars in this interesting
early prison film with some great sequences and still-decent production
values. One of the better films here,
it holds up pretty good almost 70 years later.
Extras include a newsreel, 1937 bloopers reel, Broadway
Brevity live-action short The Man Without A Country, Porky’s
Double Trouble Looney Tunes cartoon/black & white, trailer for this
film & Kid Galahad, new Welcome To The Big House featurette
and detailed audio commentary track by Patricia King Hanson.
A Slight Case Of Murder (1938)
I was never the biggest fan of this film, though Lloyd
Bacon’s directing of this Gangster Murder Comedy is not bad. Edward G. Robinson is even good in it, but I
never thought the Damon Runyon co-written play for which it is based has always
been too stagy for its own good.
However, the work of supporting actress Margaret Hamilton is a big plus,
one year before Wizard Of Oz and not prominently noted in the cast
listing. The film is still a classic of
its time and is funnier when you think of the films in the genre up to that
time.
Extras include a newsreel, Oscar®-nominated live-action
short Declaration Of Independence, new Prohibition Opens The
Floodgates featurette, The Night Watchman Technicolor
cartoon, trailer for this film & The Dawn Patrol and celebratory
audio commentary track by Robert Sklar.
Each Dawn I Die (1939)
Another prison film, James Cagney plays a man sent to
prison for a crime he did not commit, while George Raft is the head hoodlum ion
and out of the prison who can either help or destroy him. It is grittier and darker than San
Quentin, making for yet another on of the very long list of 1939 classics,
Classical Hollywood’s peak year. Both
men give fine performances in a film that pulls few punches and is one of the
better films in the set. Jane Bryan,
George Bancroft and Victor Jory also star.
The title is a good one too.
Extras include a newsreel, 1939 bloopers reel, radio
version of this film with George Raft & Franchot Tone, live-action A Day
At Santa Anita short, Each Dawn I Crow Technicolor cartoon,
Oscar®-nominated cartoon Detouring America, new Stool Pigeons
& Pine Overcoats: The Language Of The Gangster Film featurette, trailer
for this film & Wings Of The Navy and well-spoken audio commentary
track by Haden Guest.
City For Conquest (1940)
Cagey surfaces in this boxing and corruption film where
boxer Danny (Cagney) plans on punching his way to wealth and going legitimate,
but it will not be that simple as that.
A really good Cagney with a strong cast, along with some enduring
production values, makes this a great way to round out this DVD set. Ann Sheridan, Arthur Kennedy, George Tobias
& Elia Kazan (before his landmark directing work) are the main cast and
Anatole Litvak’s directing makes this often riveting.
Extras include a newsreel, 1940 bloopers reel,
Oscar®-nominated live-action short Service With The Colors, Stage
Fright Technicolor cartoon, new Molls & Dolls: The Women Of
Gangster Films featurette, radio version of this film with Alice Faye &
Robert Preston, trailer for this film & The Fighting 69th and
typically joyous audio commentary track by Richard Schickel. James Wong Howe, A.S.C., is also one of the
cinematographers on the film.
The 1.33 X 1 image on all six films look good for their
age, all in black and white, showing once again that Turner Entertainment’s
restoration efforts (esp. when they abandoned laughable colorization) have paid
off. The Dolby Digital 1.0 on the films
is not bad either, though Slight Case has some major issues, while the
audio commentaries are all 2.0 Dolby.
Live action short subjects, animated cartoon shorts and the rest of the
extras are also in Dolby 1.0 Mono sound, though Each Dawn I Crow
is 2.0 Mono.
This is a solid collection of the earliest films in the
genre in a way only Warner could have made.
Since they were the studio most willing to deal with the subject matter,
they became the biggest groundbreakers, a legacy that continues to this
day. The films are all Warner, without
any RKO or MGM productions in the bunch, though they have all of those classics
as well. These were star-driven
vehicles the studio backed up strongly and their endurance is a testament to
Warner at its best. Though none are at
the peak of any of the genres they cover, The Tough Guy Collection has
must-see basic filmmaking that resonates today.
- Nicholas Sheffo
