Jack Mack Movies
This routine film catalogues what happens to a teen's life when he is wrenched from an easy existence in affluent, East Coast suburbia and dropped into the lean, mean streets of a downscale L.A. suburb. James Spader is Morgan Hiller, displaced with his parents and brother when his father loses some of the wealth to which they were accustomed and the family moves to California. Morgan soon attracts Frankie (Kim Richards), the girlfriend of Nick (Paul Mones), a high school tough who does not appreciate Frankie's change of heart. The antagonism between Morgan and Frankie mounts as they both approach a high-noon showdown. Aside from some musical numbers which seem to have wandered in from another film about teen singers and dancers, the story is compelling and the film is notable for one of the early performances of Robert Downey in a subsidiary role. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Spader, Kim Richards, (more)
- 1937
Seasoned newsreel cameraman Bob Adams (John Wayne) is assigned to cover the rebellion in the fictional Arab country of Samarai. Samari is chock full of tribal unrest, and in order for Adams (Wayne) to get footage of rebel leader El Kadar (Charles Brokaw), he must fight his way through a neverending stream of arms smugglers, agents, throat-cutting tribesmen, and a love affair with Pamela (Gwen Gaze), the beautiful daughter of a Colonel. Eventually, Adams gets his pictures, but not before he manages to save his brother Don (James Bush) and all of the British troops stationed in Samari. I Cover the War was directed by Trem Carr and also features actors Don Barclay, Pat Somerset, and Sam Harris. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Wayne, Gwen Gaze, (more)
- 1936
Impressed by the popularity of radio program about the exploits of legendary safecracker Jimmy Valentine, advertising man Gary Howard (Roger Pryor) posts a huge reward for anyone who knows the whereabouts of real Valentine, who is technically still a fugitive from justice. Following a lead, Howard ends up in a small town, where it appears as though Valentine has been living a respectable pseudonymous life as the town banker (played by Robert Warwick, coincidentally the star of the 1915 film Alias Jimmy Valentine!) Just as Howard is about to "expose" the banker, another old duffer steps forth to claim that he's Valentine. By now, Howard has fallen in love with banker's daughter Midge (Charlotte Henry), so he decides to let sleeping crooks lie. The last-minute introduction of villainous gangsters adds some life to this laid-back yarn. Return of Jimmy Valentine was remade (and significantly improved upon) in 1942 as Affairs of Jimmy Valentine. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Roger Pryor, Charlotte Henry, (more)
Lost in the Stratosphere is one of three Monogram vehicles for James Cagney's look-alike brother William (later a successful producer). Inspired by the U.S. Army's recent experiments with atmospheric balloons, the film stars Cagney and Edward Nugent as inveterate practical jokers Cooper and Wood. Their friendship cleft in twain by the arrival of pretty Evelyn (June Collyer). The climax occurs when one of the boys' pranks misfires, sending both of them aloft in a fragile weather balloon. By the time they've managed to land the darned thing, they've become heroes. The film's laughable special effects (one can see the process-screen clouds "bleed" through the actors) are counterbalanced by the overall energy and enthusiasm of its stars. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Cagney, Eddie Nugent, (more)
- 1934
An above-average Monogram programmer, Red Head stars the gorgeous Grace Bradley as a good-hearted photographer's model. After she is involved in a scandal, Bradley is persona non grata until she meets sympathetic playboy Bruce Cabot. Cabot marries Bradley, hoping that his wealthy father (Berton Churchill) will try to buy Bradley off and thus allow her to get back on her feet financially. Instead, the father offers Bradley a great deal of money if she will force the lazy Cabot to take a job. Cabot comes to like his new blue-collar existence until he discovers the deal Bradley has made with his father. All is forgiven when Bradley reveals that she never accepted the money and that she truly loves the now-industrious Cabot. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bruce Cabot, Grace Bradley, (more)
- 1934
Columbia Pictures workhorse Lambert Hillyer was both writer and director of Men of the Night. Bruce Cabot plays Kelly, a Hollywood detective, assigned to capture a holdup gang. While dallying with carhop Mary (Judith Allen), Kelly jumps to the hasty conclusion that the girl is somehow tied in with the crooks. Acting on this misapprehension, he nearly gets both Mary and himself killed by the villains (headed by Charles Sabin, a stage actor who never quite clicked in films). Ward Bond, a mere supporting player in 1934, goes into his comedy-relief mode as Cabot's dimwitted partner. Men of the Night ran 58 minutes, just long enough to fit comfortably on the bottom half of a Columbia double bill. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bruce Cabot, Judith Allen, (more)
- 1934
In this drama, a fighter's fiancee refuses to marry him until he can overcome his insane jealousy. He does and they marry. The jealousy resurfaces when he finds his wife and her boss in a hotel room. He goes mad with rage and kills her boss. His wife is blamed for the killing. Just before the verdict is announced, the guilt-ridden man confesses and himself receives the death-penalty. Time passes and his finally hour arrives. He asks the attending priest to offer him a 10-count. Just as the priest hits nine, his voice becomes that of a referee and the boxer is seen slowly awakening from being knocked on conscious during a fight. The whole story was but a dream. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nancy Carroll, George Murphy, (more)
- 1934
Filmed between the original Thin Man and the first of its sequels, Evelyn Prentice re-teamed William Powell and Myrna Loy as another husband-and-wife team knee deep in a murder mystery. In this one, Powell is John Prentice, a prominent lawyer with an eye for women other than his own wife. His latest interest is Nancy Harrison (Rosalind Russell, in her film debut), a client accused of manslaughter, whom Prentice successfully defended. Loy plays John's wife, Evelyn, who loves him but is hurt by his inattention and the loneliness that ensues. This leads her to engage in a flirtation of her own, with a charming writer (Harvey Stephens). The writer, however, is interested in Evelyn only for what he can get out of her and threatens to blackmail her. In a panic, she shoots him and runs away, discovering later that he has been found dead and that another woman, Judith Wilson, has been accused of his murder. Hoping that his expert legal skills will the innocent woman her acquittal, Evelyn convinces her husband to take on Wilson's defense. As the film progresses, Evelyn feels increasingly pressured to admit that she is responsible for the man's death. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Myrna Loy, William Powell, (more)
- 1931
This first of three talkies bearing the title Lover Come Back stars Constance Cummings as Connie, a super-efficient stenographer. Connie would willingly forsake her career if office manager Tom Evans (Jack Mulhall) would propose, but he barely knows she's alive. When Tom marries Vivian (Betty Bronson), the disenchanted Connie weds Tom's boss Yates (Jameson Thomas), a bore and a pest. Things straighten themselves out when Tom finally realizes that Vivian is the wrong girl for him (indeed, she's the wrong girl for anyone). Star Jack Mulhall is afforded the opportunity to sing a forgettable ballad called Cigarette, proving that he was an ideal silent film actor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Constance Cummings, Jack Mulhall, (more)
- 1930
In this heartwarming drama, an amiable department store worker gets more than he bargained for when he accidentally slips a $10 tip he'd received into the hands of a nurse looking for donations to an orphanage on the way to the bank. By doing this, he unwittingly committed himself to supporting one of the orphans. As he rather likes the nurse, and his new boy, he takes on another job to fulfill his obligation. He finds himself quite happy with the situation until a wealthy man steps forward claims that he believes the boy is his grandson. He promptly adopts the lad. The distraught clerk then plots to kidnap the youth to get him back. Instead he proves that the boy is not related to the millionaire and regains custody. Then to make it all official, he proposes to the nurse, she accepts and a happy family is born. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
