Black Legion (film)
Black Legion | |
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Directed by | Archie Mayo Michael Curtiz (uncredited) |
Screenplay by | Abem Finkel William Wister Haines |
Story by | Robert Lord |
Produced by | Robert Lord |
Starring | Humphrey Bogart Dick Foran Erin O'Brien-Moore Ann Sheridan |
Cinematography | George Barnes |
Edited by | Owen Marks |
Music by | W. Franke Harling Howard Jackson Bernhard Kaun |
Production company | |
Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
Release dates |
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Running time | 83 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $235,000 |
Black Legion is a 1937 American
The plot is based on the May 1935 kidnapping and murder in Detroit of Charles A. Poole, a Works Progress Administration organizer. Twelve men were tried and 11 convicted of his murder; all were sentenced to life. Authorities prosecuted another 37 men for related crimes; they were also convicted and sentenced to prison, breaking up the Legion. Columbia Pictures had made Legion of Terror (1936) based on the same case.
Black Legion was praised by critics for its dramatization of a dark social phenomenon. It was one of several films of this period in opposition to fascist and racist organizations.[1] Having followed Bogart's breakthrough in The Petrified Forest (1936), a number of reviewers commented that Bogart's performance should lead to his becoming a major star. Warner Bros. did not give the film any special treatment, however, promoting it and Bogart in their standard fashion. Stardom did come with High Sierra in 1941.[2]
Plot
Frank Taylor works in a Midwestern factory and expects to receive a job promotion that has become available. When he is passed over in favor of hard-working Polish immigrant Joe Dombrowski, Taylor joins the Black Legion, a secret organization that drives away immigrants and racial minorities through violent means. Dressed in black robes, Taylor and the Black Legion go on a torchlight raid, driving Dombrowski and his family from their home.[3]
With Dombrowski gone, Taylor receives the promotion, but when the Black Legion leadership forces him to spend time recruiting new members, Taylor is demoted in favor of his Irish neighbor, Mike Grogan. That night, the Black Legion attacks Grogan.[4]
Taylor's co-worker and friend, Ed Jackson, who is married to Grogan's daughter, suspects Taylor is connected to the attacks on immigrants. Jackson mentions his concerns to Taylor's wife, Ruth, who confronts Taylor. When he responds to her with violence, Ruth leaves him. As his Black Legion activities and drinking increases, Taylor loses his job and begins a relationship with Pearl Danvers, a woman of ill repute.[4]
Seeing his friend's life unraveling, Jackson goes to see Taylor to express concern. A drunken Taylor tells Jackson about his secret life with the violent Black Legion. Afraid that his slip-of-the-tongue might prompt Jackson to go to the police, Taylor tells the Black Legion leadership what happened. The leadership orders Taylor to capture and execute Jackson.[3]
Unlike the Black Legion's other victims, Jackson is unafraid and threatens to go to the police. When Jackson tries to escape, Taylor panics and shoots him. Taylor is arrested for Jackson's murder. Ruth returns for Taylor's trial to support him. The lawyer for the Black Legion threatens Taylor's wife and son to stop him from implicating the hate organization, but filled with self-loathing, Taylor tells the truth in court. All of the members of the Black Legion are sentenced to life in prison for Jackson's murder.[4]
Cast
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Production
Black Legion went into production in late August 1936.
Location shooting took place in private homes in the Hollywood area, the Providencia Ranch in the Hollywood Hills and the Warner Ranch in Calabasas.[6] Executive producer Hal B. Wallis had wanted Edward G. Robinson to play the lead role, but producer Robert Lord thought Robinson was too foreign looking, and wanted a "distinctly American looking actor to play [the] part."
Reception
Writing for
Awards and honors
Notes
- ^ a b Jennifer Lynde Barker, The Aesthetics of Antifascist Film: Radical Projection, New York: Routledge, 2013, pp. 64–65
- ^ a b c Tatara, Paul (December 7, 2006). "Black Legion". TCM. Turner Classic Movies, Inc. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
- ^ a b Deming, Mark. "Black Legion (1937) – Archie Mayo – Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related – AllMovie". AllMovie. AllMovie, Netaktion LLC. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
- ^ a b c "Black Legion (1937) – Turner Classic Movies". TCM. Turner Classic Movies, Inc. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
- ^ TCM Overview
- ^ IMDb Filming locations
- ISBN 0192812866.)
- ^ Nugent, Frank (18 January 1937). "THE SCREEN; The Strand's 'Black Legion' Is an Eloquent Editorial On Americanism--'Conflict' Opens at the Globe. At the Globe – The New York Times". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 January 2019.
- ^ Schwartz, Dennis. "Black Legion". Sover.net. Dennis Schwartz. Archived from the original on 12 December 2017. Retrieved 24 January 2019.
- ^ "Black Legion – Movie Reviews and Movie Ratings". TV Guide.com. TV Guide. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
- AMPASwebsite
- ^ Allmovie Awards
External links
- Black Legion at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
- Black Legion at the TCM Movie Database
- Black Legion at AllMovie
- Black Legion at IMDb