Charles Judels

A Depression-era family drama built around music. Aging concert violinist Adolph Greig (Al Shean, of the vaudeville team Gallagher and Shean) has sacrificed everything for his art; his son (John Darrow) distrusts him and keeps his own boy from the old man, while Paula (Evelyn Brent) — once Adolph's pupil — is torn between the two generations. Directed by Poverty Row workhorse Frank R. Strayer for Invincible Pictures, it is a sentimental studio B-feature redeemed by its musical sequences and Shean's warm performance. The film's copyright was not renewed; it is in the public domain in the United States.

Drama · Music

Mary (Ava Gardner) returns to her small whistle-stop hometown and reignites an old rivalry between two men who never got over her — bitter, jobless Kenny Veech (George Raft) and slick nightclub owner Lew Lentz (Tom Conway). When Kenny gets pulled into a robbery scheme aimed at Lentz, old jealousy turns to murder. An early starring role for Gardner and a moody small-town noir from Russian émigré director Léonide Moguy, produced by Seymour Nebenzal (M) for United Artists release. The film is in the public domain.

Noir · Crime · Drama