Sworn Enemy

Robert Young, Florence Rice, and Lewis J. Stone star in "Sworn Enemy," a 1936 MGM B movie.

Though not a superstar in films, before he became one in TV, Robert Young played a variety of roles in movies. His likable personality served him well, and he is very good here as Hank Sherman, a young man who goes undercover to get evidence against Joe Emerald, the head of a protection organization (Joseph Calleia). His first effort fails miserably when instead of a shooting a cop, he shoots his partner and is thrown out of the group. So he tries again, this time by replacing his brother, killed by the mob, as the manager of a fighter (Nat Pendleton).

Very good and exciting film, with a gay undertone that possibly went over the head of the 1930s audiences. The mob boss, Emerald, is crippled and, from his treatment of Florence Rice's character, has no use for women. When he brings Hank into his deco steam room, it's filled with Greco-Roman friezes of nude men. He more or less tells Hank that he lives vicariously through fighters, which is why he wants Hank's client. An interesting twist on what could have been just a formulaic mob story.

The excellent finale takes place in said steam room, where detectives are searching for hidden files.

Dark film, noirish, albeit before noir, and intriguing. Recommended.

"Sworn Enemy" could have been a very good film, but the script is a bit rough. With a small re-write it could have been very good.

When the story begins, Hank Sherman (Robert Young) is doing what many men were doing during the Depression...looking for work. He finds a job working for a produce company loading trucks but his excitement is shortlived when a group of thugs from 'the Protective Association' demand he pay them $10 a month...or else. When he refuses, they beat the snot out of him. The owner sees this and chases away the thugs...and offers Hank a job as his chauffeur. The pay is good and he'll be able to go back to night school to get his law degree...and so he's a happy guy.

What follows is long, complicated and confusing. First, Hank's out of work, second he's a chauffeur, third he's working on becoming a lawyer, fourth he's an undercover agent for the District Attorney, fifth he's a boxing promoter. Do you get my drift? Good writing could have streamlined this and made Hank more realistic.

On the positive side, the film has plenty of action and some exciting moments. But they aren't enough to make this exactly a must-see picture.

Hank Sherman (Young) is out of work until he lands a job with Eli Decker's (Hinds) firm as a warehouse worker. Soon after he's hired, thugs approach him and tell him that he has to pay them a weekly amount for "protection." When he refuses, the thugs beat him up, an event that Decker sees and tries to break up. Decker hires Sherman as his chauffeur and soon Decker's secretary Peg Gattle (Rice) and Sherman become close. Decker is determined to clear out the protection racket headed by Joe Emerald (Calleia). At this time, Peg Gattle's father, "Doc" Gattle (Stone) is released from prison where he spent 12 years after being framed by Emerald. "Doc" provides information about Emerald that he gleaned while in prison to the District Attorney. Both Sherman and Peg Gattle become agents for the District Attorney and Sherman also becomes the manager of boxer "Steamer" Krupp (Pendleton). Pendleton plays his usual likable doofus – but hey – he does it so well that it's fun to watch. The rest of the movie is about the effort to find Emerald's hidden stash of incriminating documents and cash. Other reviewers have rightly commented on the strange steam room scene with its frieze of nude Greek athletes. That this is indicative of gay undertones may or may not be so but the scene in context makes little sense. I find it unlikely that a big time racketeer would find it necessary to explain to a small time boxing manager (as he thought Sherman was) why he wanted to have a fighter under contract. And while the ending is exciting, Peg Gattle's transformation into a gun moll type is hard to swallow. That said, all of the actors are so good that this movie is highly entertaining. It was also nice seeing Leslie Fenton in a role where he wasn't a slime ball (although no one could play that type better than he).

For the most part, this is a competently made (great sets, and the editing is particularly crisp) but uninspired melodrama about a steadfast Average Joe standing up to the racketeers who have wronged him. But I have some advice -- don't give up on it too soon (as I nearly did).

The opening 50 minutes are pretty much seen-it-all-before, middle-of-the road MGM stuff, but suddenly in the last reel things perk up immensely. First, we have a beautifully designed and psychologically poignant scene explaining the chief villain's desire to back an up-and-coming fighter. This is followed by the movie's real knock-out punch -- Florence Rice, up to this point the stereotypical pretty-and-loyal girlfriend, agrees to help infiltrate the mob by auditioning as a chorus girl at their club. She adopts the guise of a sexy champagne-swilling dame keen on seducing the crime boss. Although she expresses slight reluctance at first, one surmises that she secretly revels in being such hot stuff in her sexy new togs. Soon, a couple of sips of bubbly have her diving into her role so enthusiastically that the sequence is absolutely jaw-dropping (she flashes a lot more cleavage and leg than you would expect in a post-code movie.) These two scenes turn the movie on its ear, revealing a fascinating subtext of perversity and hidden desire.

Afterwards, the action climax is hurried and sloppy, but it uses a plot device that would later turn up to much more nerve-wracking effect in an Anthony Mann noir.

A young man; Hank Sherman (Robert Young) is determined to avenge the murder of his influential benefactor by crime syndicate boss Joe Emerald (Joseph Calleia). With fine acting by Young, Louis Stone, Samuel Hinds and Joseph Calleia; along with the feminine charms or Florence Rice all add greatly to this films enjoyment. Although the movie is pretty much into the 1930's MGM type of formalistic film making, i.e. overcoming huge odds to catch the bad guys: it's filled with enough twists and turns to keep you guessing. We are told early in the film who the villain is: the object is to find out where he (Emerald ) is hiding his cash and records, in order prosecute him for income tax evasion. MGM's production here was slick and filled with quality actors. I would rate the film's entertainment value as high.