6,000 Enemies

I'm intrigued that Paul Kelly and Tom Neal are both in the cast of '6000 Enemies'. Kelly and Neal both had prolific careers in tough-guy roles, but they are now remembered largely for the fact that, in real life, both of them (separately) did prison time for manslaughter. The fact that '6000 Enemies' is a prison movie lends an air of irony to Kelly's and Neal's presence in this film. As it happens, though, they have no scenes together.

'6000 Enemies' has a premise fairly similar to that of the Howard Hawks film 'The Criminal Code', but it takes that premise in a different direction. Steven Donegan (Walter Pidgeon) is a tough D.A. who has shown no mercy to the thousands of criminals he has sent to prison. Racketeer Joe Silenus (Harold Huber) frames Donegan on a bribery charge; for good measure, Silenus has also framed pretty Anne (Rita Johnson) on an embezzlement charge. Donegan has urged no mercy for convicted criminals, so now that he is (falsely) convicted he finds himself on the receiving end of the same tough sentencing policy. Donegan and Anne are sent to the respective his'n'her hoosegows, but it's clear they're going to end up as each other's ball-and-chain.

Disbarred D.A. Donegan finds himself doing hard time in a penitentiary where all the other convicts want to kill him. (Hence the film's title.) The scenes of prison life are even less realistic than usual for prison movies from this period. The movie climaxes with a prison break (I shan't tell you if it's successful), but at this point all credibility has long since gone over the wall. In a small role as a petty thug, Frank Lackteen briefly displays his famous cheekbones and swarthy complexion. Esther Dale gives her usual "I've seen it all, dearie" performance. I'm always glad to see Nat Pendleton, Grant Mitchell and Raymond Hatton, but their performances here are more lacklustre than usual for these fine character actors. Paul Kelly has very little to do here, and Tom Neal even less: the irony of their presence in this prison flick far outweighs their actual performances. I'll rate '6000 Enemies' only 3 points out of 10. Better make that 6,001 enemies...

Walter Pidgeon, Rita Johnson, and Paul Kelly star in "6,000 Enemies" from 1939.

Pidgeon plays Steve Donegan, a very successful DA who is framed by a mobster, Selenus (Harold Huber) and himself sent to prison for 11 months. It's unfortunate because of the 6,000 crooks in Alcatraz, he has put about 2,000 there, and they're happy to see him.

His time there is rocky. He spends time in solitairy confinement, and when he's released, he finds out the doctor (Kelly) has set him up in a prize fight with another inmate. Donegan did prize fighting as a younger man, and the doctor figures he will earn some respect among the inmates.

Also, while there, Donegan meets a woman (Rita Johnson) that he put away. She claimed she was framed by Selenus - and having had the same experience, Donegan believes her and promises to help.

A wild ending. Some good scenes, with top acting from everyone.

Walter Pidgeon is a tough and honest D. A. He gets framed for bribery, convicted and sent to prison, while his brother, John Arledge works to figure out who framed him. Pidgeon has other problems, to wit the many convicts whom he convicted and sent to the pen.

MGM frequently claimed they produced no B movies, but this one has all the hallmarks, including direction by the always competent George Seitz, and camerawork by John Seitz. That's not to say it didn't have the MGM gloss on it, and the sequence in which Pidgeon earned the respect of his fellow cons by getting into the boxing ring with Nat Pendleton and being pounded into unconsciousness has a crowd of hundreds dressed in prison greys watching the fight; let's just say that an MGM programmer had the budget of an A picture at Columbia or Universal, and showed the money on the screen.

MGM'S 6000 ENEMIES (1939) bears a passing resemblance to Warner Brothers EACH DAWN I DIE (1939) without the star power of James Cagney and George Raft. Stalwart crime fighting citizen is unjustly framed and put behind bars. Proves himself to the "Cons", gets the goods on the guilty and brings them to justice, wins the girl, fade out. Oh, forgives the society that imprisoned him destroyed his career that leads to the death of his brother. Does not even give a thought to filing a lawsuit. Did I mention that this is also a fantasy.

The most interesting thing about this film is seeing the way MGM handles such a subject. Or how differently they handled it nine (9) years earlier. THE BIG HOUSE (1930) is a gritty, realistic and tough depiction of prison life. THE BIG HOUSE is a dirty and very unpleasant place to be in. The inhabitants of this prison are scum with little or no saving graces. They will turn on you with the least provocation and on the flimsiest of motives.

By the time of 6000 ENEMIES things had changed. The 1934 Production Code was being enforced and at MGM Irving Thalberg was gone and with him the driving force of creativity and risk. L. B. Mayer preferred every picture to be as clean and sanitized as Dr. Kildare's instruments. No studio embraced 'The Code' more then MGM. If you were looking to stretch the envelope it better be at another studio and this film is a perfect example of that. Even the dirt looks clean and as for the gangsters you get the feeling all they need is career counseling. Even when they brought in a hi-powered actor like Edward G. Robinson (for other films) who knew how to play gangsters the results were still tepid. So there is little that Walter Pidgeon could do but fulfill his contract in a pedestrian role. Thankfully for him better days were ahead.

Relentless prosecutor (Walter Pidgeon) is framed for bribery and sent to prison. Once there, he is faced with thousands (!) of criminals he put away. He finds unlikely help from a woman (Rita Johnson) he prosecuted. Pidgeon discovers she, too, was framed and has to face that the justice system is more flawed than he originally believed.

Excellent 'B' movie from MGM. A fast-paced, tough crime drama with a colorful cast backing up Pidgeon that includes Grant Mitchell, Nat Pendleton, Harold Huber, Guinn Williams, and Paul Kelly (no stranger to prison). Arthur Aylesworth is fun as a creepy old lunatic Pidegon is forced to sleep next to. It's one of those movies where convicts are mostly an alright bunch of guys and, even if they hate your guts, they will learn to respect you if you show how tough you are. Yeah, it's far-fetched but still entertaining. It's barely over an hour so there's no excuse not to check it out.