The Maltese falcon 1931 - The dangerous female

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IMDB rating: 7,5

Director: Roy Del Ruth
Main Cast: Ricardo Cortez, Bebe Daniels, Dudley Digges, Una Merkel, Robert Elliott, Thelma Todd

"The 1941 version of The Maltese Falcon consistently ranks among the greatest American films ever made, but two other adaptations of Dashiell Hammett's novel preceded it. Unlike the 1936 version - Satan Met a Lady, starring Bette Davis - 1931's The Maltese Falcon stays close to the source material, aside from a tacked-on ending that relieves some of the book's cynical severity. The film had a standard feel for a studio production of the early sound period; it arrived in theaters right before the surge of detective movies, as horror and gangster films were falling out of favor. Journeyman director Roy Del Ruth helms adequately enough, and the prolific but lightly regarded bit actor Ricardo Cortez does well with his interpretation of Sam Spade as a saucy womanizer.
To avoid confusion with the 1941 remake, the 1931 Maltese Falcon has been retitled Dangerous Female for television." - www.allmovie.com

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Bureau of missing persons 1933 - Fast paced, excellent B-movie from Warners

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IMDB rating: 7,2

Director: Roy Del Ruth
Main Cast: Bette Davis, Lewis Stone, Pat O'Brien, Glenda Farrell, Allen Jenkins, Ruth Donnelly, Hugh Herbert

"Although claiming to be based on actual cases, this mild crime drama appears to have been derived more from a screenwriter's manual than a police blotter. Newly transferred from robbery to missing persons, glib Butch Saunders (Pat O'Brien) is like the proverbial bull in a china shop at first, but quickly gets the hang of things. In walks pretty Norma Roberts (Bette Davis), claiming to be missing her new husband, whom she accuses of shipping out. Despite being married to nagging Belle (Glenda Farrell), Butch falls in love with the dame, until, that is, he learns the truth. Norma's last name isn't Roberts at all, but Williams, and she is wanted in Chicago for the murder of her boss, Therme Roberts. Begging Butch to cover for her - 'just for a little while. I'll explain everything later' - Norma does a disappearing act herself and makes it look like suicide. But Butch refuses to buy the act and with the help of his boss, Captain Webb (Lewis Stone), the fast-talking cop arranges for a corpse to be lying in state at a local funeral parlor under the name of Norma Williams, hoping to flush out the real Norma. Norma walks right into the trap with another cockamamie story at the ready. But this time, it may just be the truth and Butch becomes determined to clear the lady of murder.
'Bureau of Missing Persons' is a solid B-movie programmer of the type that Warner Brothers did so well, featuring excellent lead performances by Bette Davis (not yet at her full stardom) and MGM stalwart Lewis Stone (on loan-out to Warners) as Captain Webb, the head of the Missing Persons department of New York City's police force. Pat O'Brien, in his cynical tough-guy mode, plays a hardboiled cop who's been excessively violent in his previous assignments, and who is re-assigned to Webb's division. There's a fine scene early on, in which Stone informs O'Brien that the Bureau of Missing Persons is different from the other police divisions ... because they specialise in finding people rather than making arrests.
Bette Davis later claimed to have disliked making Bureau of Missing Persons, but she is fine in it and even gets to change her hair color from bleach blond to brunette within a reel or two. The Warner Bros. stock company is working at a fever pitch this time around and the lines come fast and furious. One of the highlights is Allen Jenkins' remark to sour-faced funeral director Charles Sellon: 'How's business these days? Has the depression bothered you much?'" - www.allmovie.com

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The little giant 1933 - Full of laughs and wonderful moments

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IMDB rating: 7,1

Director: Roy Del Ruth
Main Cast: Edward G. Robinson, Mary Astor, Helen Vinson, Russell Hopton

"Retiring bootlegger Edward G. Robinson wishes to go straight and has recently become, as he puts it, 'positively crawling with culture'. 'Ever seen anything like that before?' He inquires of former henchman Russell Hopton, proudly displaying a newly obtained abstract. 'Not since I've been off cocaine', comes the deadpan answer. Ah, yes, nothing beats pre-production code Warner Bros. for tough talk or, for that matter, for spoofing its own blockbusters. And a spoof Little Giant certainly is, what with Robinson turning his Little Caesar character upside-down and inside out. That the comedy is still funny today is not only due to Robinson's virile performance but also to writers Robert Lord and Wilson Mizner, who took a topical event, the repeal of the 18th amendment, and created one of the era's livelier parodies." - www.allmovie.com

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Lady killer 1933 - Cagney as a Hollywood gangster

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IMDB rating: 7,1

Director: Roy Del Ruth
Main Cast: James Cagney, Mae Clarke, Margaret Lindsay, Leslie Fenton

"Mae Clarke, in her autobiography Featured Player (1996), claimed that James Cagney and director William Wellman basically created the famous grapefruit incident in The Public Enemy (1931) without her consent and that the viciousness of the attack had shocked her. The scene is, of course, unforgettable and a follow-up inevitable. It came two-thirds of the way through Lady Killer when gangster-turned-movie star Cagney discovers a kittenish Miss Clarke in his bedroom - much to the consternation of his movie-star girlfriend Margaret Lindsay. Despite his newfound sophistication, Cagney acts as he would have in Hell's Kitchen: He drags the unwelcome guest out of the room by her hair! This time, happily, Clarke was in on the gag and she is visibly holding on for dear life to Cagney's wrists. The scene is still startling in its brutality, especially coming in what is really a comedy. And despite this act of physical abuse and a climactic shootout that leaves bodies scattered all over what appears to be Mulholland Highway in Los Angeles, Lady Killer is a comedy and a good one. As always, the Warner Bros. stock company is in high gear throughout and there are especially enjoyable performances by Douglas Dumbrille as Cagney's former partner-in-crime and Herman Bing as an autocratic director of Western movies. Lady Killer is vintage Cagney, throwing virtually every one of his star-making attributes (including one cute reference to his legendary 'grapefruit scene' in 1931's The Public Enemy) into one entertaining 76-minute stew." - www.allmovie.com

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Employees' entrance 1933 - Excellent look at the backstage of a department store

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IMDB rating: 7,3

Director: Roy Del Ruth
Main Cast: Warren William, Loretta Young, Wallace Ford, Alice White

"Warren William plays a high-powered ambitious executive who unflinchingly steamrolled his way to the top without regard for the havoc he left in his wake. As the manager of a Macy-like department store, he constantly browbeats his flunkies into submission, and ends-up driving at least one to suicide. Loretta Young plays the wife of one of William's minor employees (Wallace Ford), with whom the Big Boss has a brief affair during an office party. Eventually William gets his comeuppance, and Loretta is vindicated in the eyes of her hubby. A terrific example of pre-Motion Picture Production Code raciness, Employees' Entrance still causes audiences to gasp at its audaciousness when seen today
Warren William dominates the picture - just as he did in Skyscraper Souls (1932) in an identical role - as the store's completely amoral, conniving, tyrannical manager. He is perfect in the part and it is fascinating to watch a skilled actor portray a thoroughly bad character. As one of the finer actors of the decade, it is indeed a shame that William is all but forgotten today.
The rest of the cast is excellent: Wallace Ford and Loretta Young as a secretly married couple whom William tries to corrupt; Alice White as the store floozy, willing to drop her morals at William's command; Ruth Donnelly as William's no-nonsense secretary; Frank Reicher and Charles Sellon as two old men who respond in very different ways to having William destroy their livelihood; and Hale Hamilton as the store's ineffectual, absentee owner." - www.allmovie.com

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Blessed event 1932 - Lee Tracy as a lost joy of the pre-code era

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IMDB rating: 7,2

Director: Roy Del Ruth
Main Cast: Lee Tracy, Mary Brian, Dick Powell, Allen Jenkins, Ruth Donnelly

"Blessed Event is one of several early-1930s films inspired by the meteoric rise to fame of gossip columnist Walter Winchell - and like most such films, its title is based on a Winchell tag line.
Lee Tracy plays a glib-tongued reporter who is conducting a feud with popular singer Dick Powell (making his film debut). Along the way, Tracy offends a powerful gangster, and in so doing becomes entangled with chorus girl Mary Brian.
The original Broadway stage version of Blessed Event was written by Manuel Seff and Forrest Wilson--and reportedly inspired by the career of Ruby Keeler, who rose to stardom thanks in part to the patronage of a New York mobster.
There never was anyone quite like Lee Tracy, the machine gun-mouthed character actor who managed a brief starring career in pre-Code movies, of which Blessed Event arguably gives Tracy the chance to shine in all his diamond hard glory. Tracy was an odd choice for stardom, a guy who wasn't blessed with male model looks and who had a persona that was perfect for self-centered egoists who don't mind a little love but only if it doesn't get in the way of old number one. It's the kind of character that can be repulsive, but Tracy's total self-absorption and, equally important, his incredible timing and precise delivery of a one-liner make him somehow appealing. He's a force of nature, and one that won't be denied; moreover, he's a peculiarly American one, taking the concept of individualism to an extreme. Tracy also is someone who requires an amoral atmosphere in which to thrive. After the Production Code really came in, the kind of stories, situations and characters that could best contain him lost their power. But Blessed has none of these worries, blithely dealing with unwanted pregnancies, homosexuality and other subjects soon to be forbidden, and allowing the audience to cheer on a go-getter who tramples anyone in the way of getting what he wants. Tracy is perfectly complemented by Roy Del Ruth's rapid-fire direction and by a script that gives him plenty to get his mouth around; his electric chair monologue is really astounding." - www.allmovie.com

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On the Avenue 1937 - Excellent musical with memorable Irving Berlin tunes

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0029345/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
IMDB rating: 6,9

Director: Roy Del Ruth
Main Cast: Dick Powell, Madeleine Carroll, Alice Faye, The Ritz Brothers, Cora Witherspoon, Joan Davis

"One of the more enjoyable backstage musicals of the 1930s, On the Avenue is different from many others in the genre in that it's concerned with a show that has already opened, rather than one that is steaming ahead toward opening night. Avenue also benefits from a script in which the pieces all fall into place naturally; the plot has its holes, but the film has such an amiable feeling that the viewer is willing to overlook them. While the dialogue is not in a class by itself, it has a certain combination of whimsy and winsomeness to it that is quite appealing. Of greater importance, Avenue boasts a first-class Irving Berlin score that includes the infectious 'I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm', the slightly melancholy 'This Year's Kisses', and the beguiling 'You're Laughing at Me'. Avenue is also helped by its solid cast, with Dick Powell providing a smooth sound in the songs and an easy charm in his scenes and Madeleine Carroll creating an imperious rich girl that still manages to win the viewer's heart. Alice Faye is in top-notch form, pouring her creamy tones into her singing and imbuing her character with a combination of vulnerability and sauciness that's quite touching. The Ritz Brothers are given too much screen time for their own good, as is the cringe-inducing Stepin Fetchit, but Cora Witherspoon's breeziness helps to compensate for them. Smoothly directed by Roy Del Ruth, Avenue is a pleasant stroll for musical fans." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/on-the-avenue-v104700/

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Bulldog Drummond strikes back 1934 - Simply the best Bulldog Drummond movie

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0024932/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
IMDB ratings: 7,4

Director: Roy Del Ruth
Main Cast: Ronald Colman, Loretta Young, Warner Oland, C. Aubrey Smith

"This second and final 'Bulldog Drummond' film to star Ronald Colman, finds the famed sleuth in the midst of a sinister plan orchestrated by Warner Oland. Damsel in distress Loretta Young reports that her wealthy and influential uncle is missing, but all those concerned insist that the uncle never existed, and that Young is out of her mind. Drummond suspects that she's telling the truth, and that the uncle's disappearance is tied into political intrigue of some sort or other. Before the rousing climax, Drummond, the heroine, and Drummond's pal Algy (Charles Butterworth) are repeatedly kidnapped, imprisoned, and threatened with certain death. Counterpointing the film's plot twists (a bit too convoluted to relate in full here) is a comic subplot involving the continually interrupted honeymoon of Algy and his frustrated bride (Una Merkel)." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/bulldog-drummond-strikes-back-v86218

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