The Public Defender

To most, Pike Winslow (Richard Dix) is just some rich playboy living off Daddy's fortune. However, there is quite a bit more to him than this--he is a crusading masked hero whose calling card announces that he's 'The Reckoner'! And, with his two friends (Paul Hurst and Boris Karloff), they are out to right wrongs.

The film begins with a bank officer getting accused for the bank's shortage of funds--and all the other officers ganging up on him to place this blame. However, Winslow know the man and his family and can't help but think he's being railroaded. So, the Reckoner and his friends go to work--stealing documents from the real crooks that would implicate them.

All in all, this B-movie plays a lot like a very well-written and understated series film--such as Bulldog Drummond, the Saint, the Shadow or the like. But, the film is better written and quite exciting compared to a typical film of the genre. Too bad they didn't make some sequels--I would have enjoyed seeing further adventures of the Reckoner. Of course, given that 1931 also saw Karloff in "Frankenstein", perhaps he just better things to do than appear in more of these films.

If you saw the title "The Public Defender" and thought like I did that the movie is about a government-hired attorney who defends indigent people on trial, then you were as wrong as I was. It's about a vigilante of sorts called "The Reckoner" who steals the incriminating documents of the guilty in order to exonerate the innocent.

The Reckoner is Pike Winslow (Richard Dix) and it's not a secret. He's sorta like Batman without the cape or the fighting and he always leaves a calling card which simply says "The Reckoner" right above the scales of justice.

We learn very early that he works with The Professor (Boris Karloff) and Doc (Paul Hurst) to pull off his jobs. His current job is to find the evidence to clear the name of Eugene Gerry (Emmett King), the secretary and treasurer of Central Realty and Trust Company. He was made the fall guy for the company's failure and he went to prison for it. Pike had a personal interest in this case as Eugene was the father of Barbara (Shirley Grey), a woman Pike was sweet on.

A lot of movies in the 30's dealt with wealthy socialites--their romances, murders, and musings. In "The Public Defender" the Gerry family was a high society family that was dealt a raw deal and went bankrupt. At one point we are shown Barbara Gerry and her Aunt Matilda (Nella Walker) weeping as their family belongings were being sold at auction. Maybe I have a heart of stone, but I could not bring myself to feel an iota of pity for this rich family that was now feeling the constraints of not being rich. They weren't poor, they just didn't have the abundance of wealth they once had, which to me is not pitiable. They didn't deserve what happened to them, but trying to make a rich family the object of sympathy was going to take more than seeing some old items being sold at auction.

Poor rich people aside, I liked the movie. It involved mystery, suspense, and cleverness not unlike a heist movie.

Free on Odnoklassniki.

This is a great early pic from RKO and one of the best! Picture the team of Richard Dix, Paul Hurst, and Boris Karloff as good guys?! They are out to clear the father of Dix's childhood sweetheart who they feel was wrongly accused of some crimes! Dix is great as the crusading hero who goes out of his way to offer his aide to the lovely Shirley Grey. There is plenty of action and mystery as the police try to catch the mysterious figure known as "The Reckoner"!. A mysterious figure who is committing some robberies and is stealing some strange items. This is sort of an early Green Hornet and Shadow type character. You will enjoy the fine performance by Dix. He has some great scenes and some great facial expressions! It was a pleasure to see the trio working together in this film and the ventures they get into! I would recommend this film to all "B" movie and mystery film buffs!! The direction is excellent and we see a great supporting cast with some fine performances also! Get a copy and sit and relax and enjoy this fine early classic!

Taped this Richard Dix film in the early 70's and never realized that Boris Karloff made an appearance in this film. Dix(Pike Winslow) plays a Robin Hood in this film and seeks to correct all the wrong doing of blue collar executives in high places,(which sounds like 2003)who try to cheat people with their share holdings. Pike leaves his calling card, "The Reckoner", which means you are in trouble and will likely go to jail. He has sidekicks, namely Boris Karloff(Professor) who do all the undercover work so Pike Winslow can get them behind bars. A sweet charming and sexy looking young blond girl(or lady like she wants to be called) Barbara Gerry (Shirley Grey) fell in love with Pike when she was 12 and he was 18. Winslow finds out that her father has lost his entire fortune to these crooks and she will be out in the street with her aunt. The acting and film direction is fantastic, all the actors were very professional. This was Shirley Grey's first film debut and Boris Karloff was eager for work and was beginning to be seen in Hollywood, around the time of "Criminal Code" and "Frankenstein". I noticed that Max Steiner wrote the music for his film and was uncredited. This was a great film classic that I was happy I taped years ago and will enjoy for many years in the future. Richard Dix had a great magic in his acting that will live on forever and

ever.

"The Reckoner", a vigilante of sorts, does the things that the police won't do - he brings lying stealing greedy banksters to justice. Considering what's been going on in the country the last three years as I'm writing this, the plot itself should win this one lots of fans.

It's a shame that if Richard Dix is remembered at all it's often for his part in Best Picture winner Cimarron - his hammiest performance - rather than gems like this one. Here Richard Dix plays millionaire Pike Winslow, heir to a large fortune who, though well liked among the wealthy crowd, seems to be a bit of an idler. However, the truth of the matter is that he is "The Reckoner" who - along with two faithful assistants - steals incriminating documents from perpetrators of financial fraud and then does some financial forensic analysis to shine a spotlight on their crimes. The amusing thing here is that Pike's forensic analyst, "The Professor", is played by Boris Karloff. He pulls off the role of the erudite man of letters devoted to the cause of The Reckoner quite well.

I couldn't help seeing the parallels between The Reckoner and Batman here. It would have been nice if, back when Warner Brothers was building deluxe DVD sets, they had put this movie as an extra to one of their Batman DVD releases - Warner Brothers owns the RKO library and therefore this film - plus this movie is unusual for early RKO properties in that it is in a very watchable state already. Highly recommended for anyone who likes an old thriller.