Pre-Hayes Code Morality Flick **Spoiler**

Don't forget the girlfriend, the waitress at the diner. Apparently she had lots of boyfriends with all the railroad men coming through. I didn't get the impression she played tiddly winks with them.

The fact that she never got punished or ostracized for having sex outside of marriage was another Hayes code no no. And she was a drinker too. The horrors.

No two persons ever watch the same movie.

For all the reasons that you mention above, this movie is thoroughly DESPICABLE. It left a sour taste in my mouth. I'm not a huge fan of censorship or the pre-production code in general, but the ending to this movie was disgusting.

A very strange movie to make during The Great Depression, I think.

Astor and Withers characters were boring and unlikable, and the supporting cast (Blondell, Cagney) was more interesting than the main cast.

COME NOT BETWEEN THE DRAGON AND HIS WRATH

Just want to clarify -- it was Bill White who was the philandering, hard drinking fellow and Jack was the hard working man married to Lily.

Cast:
Grant Withers ... Bill White
Mary Astor ... Lily Kulper
Regis Toomey ... Jack Kulper

True, I agree that the film would have been made differently in the Production Code era, ie, we would probably have seen a lot more comeuppance for the drinker/philanderer. However, I think there is another way of viewing the story, and although it is only one opinion/interpretation, I thought I would post it here.

I see Bill and Jack as being foils to one another throughout the whole movie. As you mentioned, the movie begins with Bill as the loose and unethical one, and Jack as the straight-edged worker. What happens though (as I see it) is, Bill and Jack sort of begin to switch places and move in opposite directions. After the romantic incident between Bill and Lily, Bill suddenly becomes rather upright and responsible, ie, first wanting to be honest about the whole incident to Jack, and then, once realizing that he'll not tell Jack, deciding to be unselfish and to leave his new love for her rightful husband. Bill shows a kind of accountability at the end of the film as well; not only does he feel that he deserves punishment for what he did, but he also tries to stand up for Jack and save his life (when Jack is trying to kill himself).

Jack does kind of the opposite after the romantic incident happens. He gets angry and heated up, picking a fight with Bill. True it was rough on him being lied to by his wife, and being sort of abandoned by his friend; all the same, he became kind of over-aggressive and impulsive when he began fighting Jack - a contrast to what he was in the beginning. Then he seems not to want to forgive Bill. Then he seems to get the idea that his life isn't worth living. There's no denying that what happens to him is unfair, only still, the way he behaves after the romance is very unlike the steady character we saw before.

So if you look at it like this, it almost plays out like a story of tragedy/fate - Bill sort of gets rewarded in the end because he learned from a big mistake and became a lot more accountable for his actions. Jack, on the other hand, although it is unfortunate, sort of lost his head after the incident (symbolized by blindness), which results in the possibly God-driven tragedy of his passing.

And that is simply my personal interpretation, hope it was a good read. :)
I don't mean to challenge you that the film would have been made much differently later, because I do certainly agree about that.

You have Bill and Jack switched.

Isn't this the way life works? Just because you're good and moral and have values does not make you exempt from life's crap and unfairness .


.;*We Live Inside A Dream*;.