I present to you two iconic, thoroughly American films by
director William “Wild Bill” Wellman. They were made during the worst days of
the great depression, a time of great moral, political and philosophical
uncertainty and, paradoxically, bourgeoning hope (FDR had just been elected
president). While both of these pictures are fascinating
works of socio-economic commentary, each is, above all, highly engaging and entertaining.
With a total running time of two hours
eighteen minutes for the set (each movie is just over an hour), this can be a
great double feature – and conveniently, they come packaged together on one
DVD, part of TCM’s “Forbidden Hollywood” collection.
Heroes for Sale came first. It tells the story of Tom
Holmes (Richard Barthelmess), an upright, idealistic man who falls victim to a
series of misfortunes, from injury and capture in WWI, to drug addiction,
unemployment, heartbreak, unjust incarceration, and homelessness. At the same
time, he embodies all the American virtues: courage and valor, pluck and
ingenuity, selfless generosity, loyalty, familial love, patriotism and
optimism. Heroes for Sale decries rapacious capitalists, but not capitalism;
lampoons communists, but condemns a class-based legal system; shows us
injustice, while espousing social and moral justice; and realistically
illustrates the plight of the depression-unemployed, while upholding its belief
(or at least Tom Holmes’ belief) in better days to come. 
Barthelmess was a big star of silent cinema and transitioned
with some success to the ‘talkies’. His Tom Holmes is a paradigm of strength,
resiliency and grace, and while his spirit is repeatedly tested, it never
flags. Yet there is a haunted look in his eyes throughout, as if he was snake-bit.
The supporting cast is consistently excellent, especially Aline MacMahon
(Gold Diggers of 1933, Babbitt) as the proprietress of a rooming house/soup
kitchen and, later, the surrogate mother for Holmes’ little boy, and Robert Barrat, as the odd ball ‘German’ communist inventor, Max Brinker, for whom
money is more important than principles.
A young Loretta Young is Tom’s love interest and Gordon Westcott is
credible as the cowardly banking scion, who steals Tom’s wartime honors (Don
Draper-style, but with greater consequence), and whose character is the
antithesis of Tom Holmes’.
Wild Boys of the Road is an affecting tale of
formerly middle class teens who make the gut-wrenching choice to hit the road
in order to ease the burden on their struggling families. Tommy’s father has
died, and his mother can only find sporadic work, not enough to put food on the
table. Eddie’s dad had a good job at the cement plant, until he got laid off;
now the family is facing foreclosure of their home.
As the movie starts, we are treated to a wonderful portrayal
of high school teen culture, circa early 1930s, with open topped jalopies,
casual romances, school dances, and carefree hijinks. When the bottom falls
out, our teen protagonists decide to hop a freight to Chicago, where they’ll
get jobs, and life will be better. It’s a nice dream, but Eddie (Frankie Darro)
and Tommy (Edwin Phillips) soon realize that things are bad all over.
Turns out there are hundreds of teen vagabonds riding the
rails, looking for opportunity, but jobs are non-existent. Riding the rails is a
dangerous business, not to mention the brutal railroad dicks, unsympathetic
police, and conmen eager to take advantage of naïve kids. There are also teen
girls on the road, posing as boys for obvious reasons, one of whom, Grace
(Rochelle Hudson), is befriended by Eddie and Tommy. On the plus side, all
these homeless kids form a community. On the other hand, life is rough.
Eighty years on, we viewers get a terrific bonus: a pretty
realistic view of the great depression from the inside, filmed at the time (and
featuring scores of actual teen hoboes, recruited by Wellman as extras for this
movie). Of course, Hollywood softened it up a bit (the ending, in particular),
but our little glimpse into this world feels real enough.
Most of the cast of Wild Boys of the Road are
unknowns, certainly to us. Doesn’t matter. The picture is absorbing,
fascinating and fun. The ubiquitous Robert Barrat shows up again, this time as
the Judge who must decide the fate of Eddie, Tommie and Grace in the final
scene. (Barrat appeared in a mere 19 movies in 1933!) Rochelle Hudson (Grace) went on to appear in scores of
movies, including Imitation of Life (1934) and Rebel Without a Cause
(1955)(playing James Dean’s mother). Amongst the many teen tramps, you will
recognize the great character actor Sterling Holloway, who eventually appeared
in 180 movies, and is best known now as the voice of Winnie the Pooh!
Director William A. “Wild Bill” Wellman is not a big favorite of film
historians and critics, despite – or perhaps because of - his prodigious
output. He directed over eighty movies over a forty-year career, including some
excellent ones such as Wings (1927)(winner of the first Best Picture
Oscar), The Public Enemy (1931), the first A Star Is Born (1937),
and Roxie Hart (1942). He was not an auteur, and did not have a
signature cinematic style. But he knew how to tell a story, and in these two
films the stories are well worth watching.
The DVD is available
from Netflix, and includes a number of extras, including the original trailers
and commentary. One or the other appears periodically on TCM.
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