Blood Money (1933 film)

Blood Money
Blood Money
Directed by	Rowland Brown
Written by	Rowland Brown; Hal Long (continuity); Speed Kendall (uncredited)
Produced by	Darryl F. Zanuck; Joseph M. Schenck (uncredited)
Starring	George Bancroft; Judith Anderson; Frances Dee
Music by	Alfred Newman
Production; company	Twentieth Century Pictures
Distributed by	United Artists
Release date	November 17, 1933;
Running time	65 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Blood Money is a 1933 American Pre-Code crime drama film directed by Rowland Brown about a crooked bail bondsman named Bill Bailey, played by George Bancroft, with Chick Chandler as crime boss Drury Darling, Judith Anderson as Drury's sister and Bailey's lover, and Frances Dee as a thrill-seeking, larcenous beauty who fatefully catches Bailey's eye. The film was considered to be lost for nearly forty years before reappearing.^[1]

This marked the film debut of Anderson (better known for her next role, housekeeper Mrs. Danvers in the 1940 Rebecca).

Cast

George Bancroft as Bill Bailey
Frances Dee as Elaine Talbart
Chick Chandler as Drury Darling
Judith Anderson as Ruby Darling
Blossom Seeley as Singer
Etienne Girardot as Bail Bond Clerk
George Regas as Charley

Dee, normally cast in wholesome roles, described Talbert in the 2002 Turner Classic Movies documentary Complicated Women as "... a rather weird character, to say the least. She was a kleptomaniac, a nymphomaniac, and anything in between."^[2]

Reception

New York Times critic Mordaunt Hall was unimpressed, writing, "This whimsical little tale of thievery, thuggery and attempted slaughter was mistaken for entertainment by Darryl Zanuck".^[3] He appreciated the skills of many of the actors, but thought the plot lacked logic and characterized the film overall as "flat stuff".^[3]

References

^ "Frances Dee dies; wholesome leading lady of the 1930s and 40s". The Independent. March 10, 2004.
^ Liz Chancellor. "Frances Dee/"A Kind of Grace"". Classic Images magazine. Retrieved July 30, 2010.^{[permanent dead link]}
^ ^a ^b Hall, Mordaunt (November 16, 1933). "Blood Money (1933)". The New York Times.

External links

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[1] "Frances Dee dies; wholesome leading lady of the 1930s and 40s". The Independent. March 10, 2004.

[2] Liz Chancellor. "Frances Dee/"A Kind of Grace"". Classic Images magazine. Retrieved July 30, 2010.^{[permanent dead link]}

[NYT-3] Hall, Mordaunt (November 16, 1933). "Blood Money (1933)". The New York Times.

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