Dr. Socrates

With Paul Muni in the lead, I was expecting something out of the ordinary. However, Dr. Socrates is ordinary. It is a run-of-the-mill 1930's crime drama with Muni's range wasted in a part better suited to Chester Morris or Ricardo Cortez. Barton MacLane and Mayo Methot, on the other hand, are perfect playing parts similar to what they played throughout their entire careers. It's watchable, but not special.

Paul Muni has never made a bad movie or given a poor performance. He didn't crank out movie after movie like so many stars in that era, he carefully picked his roles. This is a terrific picture, Muni plays a doctor who has become a gangster's physician, but not by choice. The gangster is played with gusto by Barton MacLane. A woman who is kidnapped by the gang (Ann Dvorak) is injured and brought to Muni. She and the doctor soon fall in love. But, the gangster wants her, because she could testify against him since she knows what he looks like. Great cinematography but it's Muni's picture all the way. Helen Lowell provides fine support as "Ma".

Dr. Socrates (1935)

*** (out of 4)

Fast moving and tense film from Warner features Paul Muni in the title role of Dr. Socrates, a doctor who becomes the outcast in a small town after he helps a woman (Ann Dvorak) who accidentally got caught up with a gangster (Barton MacLane). Soon the doc and the girl begin to have feelings for one another and he must figure a way to get her away from the gangster. In an interesting bit of trivia, Muni didn't want to have anything to do with this film but agreed to do it if Warner would allow him to make THE STORY OF LOUIS PASTEUR, which would eventually be released the same year and earn Muni the Oscar. There's also a funny joke here where Muni is talking about a book on the life of Pasteur. With that out of the way, the rest of the film is a pretty tense little gem that manages to feature some great performances and a pretty smart story. The movie might not be as respectable as some of Muni's bigger films but I thought there was enough here to easily recommend it. For starters we have Muni delivering an exceptional performance as he perfectly can play the kindness of the doctor but also show off his brains. The doctor being able to think fast on his feet plays an important part in the film and Muni makes us easily believe that he is smart enough to do what happens at the end. He also has a dry, sarcastic humor that comes off very well and he even delivers a few laughs. Dvorak isn't one of my favorites but she makes an interesting mix with Muni. MacLane isn't one you'd expect to see playing a gangster but he actually does a very good job and makes the character quite memorable with his humor and style of toughness. Fans of Humphrey Bogart will know that he and Kay Francis would remake this four years later in the bizarre KING OF THE UNDERWORLD. Bogart has another connection to this film as his first wife, Mayo Methot, plays the gangster's mole here. While this film is a lot smarter than many of the dramas from the studio, it also contain enough gunplay to please fans of their gangster pictures. The ending has one machine gun after another making for quite a big bang to go out on.

1930's stars Paul Muni and Ann Dvorak star in this small town drama from Warner Brothers. Doctor Cardwell (Muni) had lost his wife in a car accident, and because he felt responsible, it has affected his practice, and his state of mind. and when rough tough crime boss Red Bastian comes to him for help, Cardwell has some decisions to make. Mayo Metho is in here as Red's moll... she was Humphrey Bogart's wife for a time; didn't end well for her.. she died of alcoholism at 47. only made 28 films, acc to imdb. the awesome Grady Sutton is in here as (uncredited) grocery store clerk. Sutton made "Flying Trapeze" with WC Fields the same year, and would go on to make a bunch more with him. good career move! this one has the usual bank robbery, the getaways, and even a couple boy meets girl, boy chases girl stories. unfortunately, Doc wants to be the good guy, but keeps getting in deeper with the wrong sort of folks. no big surprises, but it's pretty good. Muni only made 30 films, and this was early on in his career.

Muni was just biding his time between "important" roles when Warners made a deal with him to do this little crime melodrama, after which they would let him do one of his pet projects. So here he is as the man whose constant reading of books causes the townspeople to label him "Dr. Socrates," a name that seems to fit the soft-spoken, easy going doctor that Muni plays in a minor key.

Instead of overwhelming the screen in his usual manner, he lets BARTON MacLANE give a vivid, scene-stealing performance as Big Red, a criminal wounded in a bank holdup who needs the doc's care and promises to send him more customers if he'll put a lid on treating him, instead of reporting him to the police. Fortunately, MacLane has some of the best lines in the script and ends up being the most interesting character in the whole story.

ANN DVORAK is young and pretty as the hitch-hiking woman who accepts a ride from MacLane's gang and ends up being suspected of being a gang member when the gang pulls a bank robbery and she's seen fleeing from the scene. When she's hurt, she ends up in Muni's care and the rest of the story is rather predictable but entertaining.

As the N.Y. Times said: "A pleasant enough melodrama" about a doctor who unwittingly gets mixed up with the mob. It's a trifle with a better than average script and some nice performances from the Warner contract players.