Boulder Dam

"Bolder Dam" is a lot faster paced and more action oriented than many 1930's films. Solid acting, snappy rat-tat-tat dialogue. ("I'm a civil engineer." "Well, you might be an engineer, but you're certainly not civil.") But what was most surprising was the Shirley Temple-like optimism of the Depression-era characters, although with a more adult perspective. The men who work at Boulder Dam are all very proud of their jobs and what they're building, despite the fact that they're at constant risk of getting killed on their unsafe job site.

There are constant reminders that the 1930's were a different world than today's. When the lead character applies for a job at the dam, the application form has a space for Color. He casually writes "W". There were no visible "B's" in the workforce during the movie.. And, of course, no women. Also, watch in awe as the lead actress invites a strange man to sleep in a bed with her 10-year-old son. (No funny business, needless to say.)

Sadly, Ross Alexander - the very capable lead actor in this film - shot and killed himself less than a year after this film was released. Reportedly, word of his homosexuality had been getting out, and the studio executives didn't want to deal with it, so they quit hiring him.

Anyway, the unique 1930's perspective, combined with.some nice dialogue and strong acting, make this a film worth watching.

The movie's first part is gritty and cynical, the sort of qualities that defined Warner Bros. of the time. Rusty's got a chip on his shoulder and because of that ends up joining thousands of other unemployed guys, except the cops are looking for him on a murder charge. These passages are riveting. At the same time, we don't so much identify with the surly Rusty as we wait to see what happens to him as he hops freights and stays in hobo jungles. A sense of the Depression-era 1930's is vividly conveyed in these scenes.

However, once Rusty meets up with Ann (Ellis), the movie settles into a more conventional love story, with construction of Boulder Dam as a background. The construction scenes are pretty well done, a mix of real footage of the dam, plus process shots for the more difficult staging. Also, we see how public works projects of the 30's, like the dam, were used to put lines of men back to work, perhaps a lesson for our own recessionary times.

I'd never seen Alexander before. Despite his slender frame, he manages to convey the needed amount of grit and toughness, though his Rusty is not particularly likable, an interesting departure from most movies. But it's really tall, blonde Ellis who impressed me. She projects a lot of no-nonsense personality right out of the Warner Bros. stable of tough dames (Blondell, Farrell, et. al.). Ellis had the talent and looks for bigger things, but mysteriously dropped out of sight at decade's end (IMDB).

All in all, the movie remains an interesting little slice of history that deserves more cable showings than it's had.

This mid-depression era film shows the hardscrabble nature of the 1930s. I felt the dirt in my own teeth while watching these dust caked characters struggle through life.

Ross Alexander is at home as the wisecracking jerk. My only complaint about his performance involves how believable he is as a changed man with that same dill-weed pompous twit showing through. Both Ann and Rusty Joe are attractive and believable, even when Joe starts making like Spiderman...I'm buying it.

The best part of this film is the depression era banter. There are several references I can't explain. I see film dialogue and music lyrics as lagging indicators of language in culture. The thirties and forties were replete with what was then hip, lingo. Here are my favorites from this film.

Top ten gaudy banter from "Boulder Dam":

10. Rusty- I got yellow and pulled a sneak.

9. Rusty- (to his boss) Wasamatter sweetheart, did I forget to kiss you goodbye?

8. Rusty- Don't forget, it's the old mezuma you're working for. (money?)

7. Ann- I'm liable to put some wrinkles in that pan of yours.

6. Lacy- If you don't I'll tip my mitt and send you over the road. (squeal?)

5. Rusty- Listen sister, put it on the cuff will ya and I'll pay ya when and if. (there's an interesting fill-in-the-blank)

4. Rusty- I had dames figured out the same way as I had booze, they were great when the laughs were going on, they were a headache the next day.

3. Pete- Every time that geek rolled over last night, he sandpapered my neck with his chin. (score one for the kindergartener)

2. Rusty- Thanks for the flop and the grub, I'll put it down on the books. (I love this line, Ann had to go some to beat it)

1. Ann- Butter yourself with embarrassment and forget it. (I'm determined to work this one into my own conversations)

Smoking ritual:

Two smoking references are worth mentioning. When Lacy sees Joe smoking next to his gas truck, he says, "In a hurry?" an odd reference the flammable possibilities. Later, when Ann and Joe are imagining their perfect dream home, Joe visualizes "lots of ashtrays."

Fired from his job, arrogant Detroit mechanic Ross Alexander (as L.B. "Rusty" Noonan) accidentally kills his boss in an ensuing scuffle. Now a "Wanted" man, Mr. Alexander changes his name to "Joe Callahan" and heads west where "Boulder Dam" is nearing completion. Along the way, he gets a lift from curvy blonde Patricia Ellis (as Ann Vangarick). She turns up in Las Vegas as blues singer "Eve La Tour". Alexander moves in with Ms. Ellis' immigrant family of five, and gets a job working on the dam...

Alexander and Ellis are mutually attracted, but co-worker Lyle Talbot (as Harry Lacy) threatens to uncover Alexander's secret past. Of course, Mr. Talbot is also interested in Ellis. It's an old story, without much new to spark the plot. However, his studio was successful in presenting Alexander as a leading man, albeit in a role not entirely suitable. The added attraction is some location footage of Boulder Dam (aka "Hoover Dam"). A mishap at the dam's construction site gets a good "special effects" treatment.

***** Boulder Dam (3/7/36) Frank McDonald ~ Ross Alexander, Patricia Ellis, Lyle Talbot, Eddie Acuff

When the story begins, Rusty (Ross Alexander) is a real angry and unlikable jerk. When his boss rides his butt because his work has been shoddy, Rusty gets into a fight with him...decking the boss. Unfortunately, Rusty's blow also killed the guy...and he soon takes it on the lam hoping not to be arrested for manslaughter.

Through the course of his avoiding the law, Rusty happens to come into the Las Vegas area and gets a job working on Boulder Dam* (which was completed in the mid-1930s). However, through it all, he remains a cynical jerk. Is there any hope for Rusty growing up and acting human?

This is a B-movie from Warner Brothers, though it's a bit long for a B at 70 minutes. But like other Bs, it stars a couple lesser actors of the Day...Ross Alexander and Patricia Ellis. Both are fine here...and are aided by a variety of excellent character actors. As a result, it's better than most Bs...and worth seeing.

*Boulder Dam was to have originally been called Hoover Dam...but the Democratic Roosevelt administration changed the name to Boulder, since Hoover was a Republican. However, a few years later, Congress changed the name back to the original 'Hoover' designation and it's known by this name today.