Two Against the World (1936)

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

William C. McGann

Writers:

Louis Weitzenkorn (play)
Michael Jacoby (screenplay)

Release Date:

11 July 1936 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Martha Carstairs was charged with murder twenty years earlier. Now, as her daughter Edith is about to be married to Malcolm Sims Jr....

Plot Keywords:

Suicide | Secretary | Writer | Gunfire | Bartender

Cast

Humphrey Bogart	...	Sherry Scott
Beverly Roberts	...	Alma Ross
Linda Perry	...	Edith Carstairs
Carlyle Moore Jr.	...	Malcolm Sims Jr.
Henry O'Neill	...	Jim Carstairs
Helen MacKellar	...	Martha Carstairs (as Helen McKellar)
Claire Dodd	...	Cora Latimer
Hobart Cavanaugh	...	Tippy Mantus
Harry Hayden	...	Dr. Martin Leavenworth
Robert Middlemass	...	Bertram C. Reynolds (as Robert Middlemas)
Clay Clement	...	Mr. Banning
Douglas Wood	...	Malcolm Sims
Virginia Brissac	...	Marion Sims
Paula Stone	...	Miss Symonds
Robert Gordon	...	Herman Mills (as Bobby Gordon)

Also Known As:

One Fatal Hour (USA) (TV title)
The Case of Mrs. Pembroke (UK)

Runtime:

64 min | USA:56 min (Turner library print)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:TV-G (TV rating) | USA:Approved (PCA #2071)

Company:

First National Pictures

Trivia:

The play, "Five Star Final," opened on Broadway in New York City, New York, USA on 30 December 1930 and closed in June 1931 after 175 performances. The opening night cast included Arthur Byron, Berton Churchill and Allen Jenkins.

Movie Connections:

Remake of Five Star Final (1931)

Soundtrack:

Shine On, Harvest Moon

Handsome Bogart, Lousy Acting

This cheapo remake of the terrific Five Star Final suffers from terrible acting. Humphrey Bogart stars as the manager of a sleazoid radio station that is desperate to boost sagging ratings. The owner decides to have a series of morality plays written about a famous murder case from 20 years ago. So they hire the fake preacher (Harry Hayden) to track down the murderess, who was acquitted and has been living quietly under a fake name. The preacher arrive on the daughter's wedding day, but the ruthless radio station refuses to back off exposing the mother and ruining their lives.

Bogart is always good. Hayden is good the the slimy preacher, and Henry O'Neill is good as the father. Everyone else is just awful. Helen McKeller wins no sympathy (crucial for the role), Linda Perry is a lousy actress, Beverly Roberts is OK but always looks old, Claire Dodd and Hobart Cavanagh have no parts, Carlyle Moore is a dud as the boy friend, Virginia Brissac is miscast as the society mother, Robert Middlemas overacts as the station owner.

This one comes in under an hour but is a pale copy of the original which boasted dynamic performances by Edward G. Robinson, Aline MacMahon, Frances Starr, and Boris Karloff. But it's always worth watching Boagrt.