That strong voice and clear diction should have made him a big star in talkies, bigger than the silent screen. It's sad what happened to Neil Hamilton who went from an A list player gradually down to some really horrid B flicks. I mean they could have done a Walls of Jericho like arrangement. White was very effective in her role though I think for propriety's sake her sending Hamilton out of her room was a bit much even for 1930 audiences to follow. I have to say these two think fast on their feet and Hamilton decides to not expose Alice White the sister. After that both Hamilton does show up and the sister of the slain officer shows up claiming to be Hamilton's wife. Then Robinson gets wise and the cop is bumped off.
But the police get wind of it and have a cop gain entree to Robinson's gang by posing as Hamilton. He's got a job to do and need's some out of town talent so he imports Neil Hamilton sight unseen. It was the film immediately proceeding his breakthrough and forever identifiable role as and in Little Caesar.
#Chicago 1930 trailer movie#
Robinson certainly showed what the movie going public were destined to see in The Widow From Chicago. You'll wonder why Little Caesar is famous after seeing this terrific gangster film.Įdward G. Earl Baldwin's script has plenty of sparks left, and Polito takes the shootout in the dark to a new level when a spotlight is introduced: not only being shot at, but everything its prowling eye touches gets killed. Slug's smugness melts, however, when Mullins returns the girl's key only to discover the key is to Slug's girlfriend's apartment. Frank McHugh's got a fine bit as one of Dominic's hentchmen 'Slug', and advises his fellow thug, Mullins, to give up the girl he can't get along with. Neil Hamilton handles his role as Swifty Dorgan with effective menace, and Polly goes from being on the spot in Dominic's office to being in a spot behind her own (now locked) door. The excitement's just beginning, Swifty is only too happy to go home with his 'wife'. By the way, Polly embraces her 'husband' whispering "go along, I'm on the spot". It's bravura filmmaking, and Cline keeps it coming. Will she make a break for it? Will Swifty confront her? Your mind races as the camera holds on that door. Slightly ajar, we watch it in anticipation while Dominic meets Polly's 'dead' husband. When Dominic goes out to meet him, we are left with a great insert of the edge of the office door. But she becomes trapped in his office when the 'widow's husband returns from the dead. Robinson) as the widow of a dead associate of the gang. The avenging Polly, masquerades to mob boss Dominic (Edward G. The scripts' powerful counterpoints and wit are enhanced by director Edward Cline's smart pacing and Sol Polito's brilliant photography. The clever script puts a smile on your face just as Jimmy waves at his sister, Polly from the street, and becomes a drive-by shooting victim. Are they married? The question remains unanswered until just before Jimmy, the precinct's newbie detective, leaves for work. We are introduced to Polly (Alice White) and Jimmy (Harold Goodwin) as new tenants by the neighbors' gossiping. I adore her no-apologies-for-pert, straight-ahead style that was the antithesis of 'real' actors who rolled their R's and eyes at every opportunity. However, I must preface my commentary by acceding to a predilection for Alice White's performances. Worth a look.Īnd I'll support that conclusion. Co-stars include Frank McHugh, Harold Goodwin (as the brother), Betty Francisco, Brooks Benedict, and Anne Cornwall and Dorothy Mathews as the dance hall babes. Hamilton is also solid as the undead gangster who returns to cause problems for White. Although White was not an actress in the way Bette Davis or Joan Crawford were, she's got a great screen presence and holds her own here in scenes with the great Robinson. Although the setting is a nightclub, White does not do a musical number (perhaps cut from the final print?) as she usually does in her talkies. Although she masquerades as a floozie she's really a pretty smart cookie as she leads to police to her brother's killer. Smart dialog and solid story here with White in a slightly different role. Now she's out to track down her brother's killer. In reality she's the sister of the cop who was tracking Hamilton. She shows up in his club looking for work and claiming to be the widow of a gangster (Neil Hamilton) who was killed when he jumped off a train in an attempt to escape the cops. He plays a nightclub owner and bootlegger she plays the widow. Alice White stars in this 1930 crime drama that also boasts an early starring role for Edward G.
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