A Man Betrayed (1941)

. . . that A MAN BETRAYED actually refers to Marion Mitchell Morrison's Dear Old Dad, cruelly dumped by Ma Morrison as he lay dying in an age when the Scandal of a "Broken Home" usually marked a boy for Life. The future "John Wayne" was so traumatized that he insisted that his former school chums begin calling him "Duke," after the mutt of a family he no longer wished to call his own. When he was old enough, Fido embarked on a film career in roles consistently unmasking the mercenary Black Hearts of the Greedheads, such as those whom did in his Pa. Then, at the apex of his career as the Socialist Robin Hood investigative cowboy Stony Brooke (eight wonderful flicks), Dogman fell into the Evil Clutches of American Fascist Propagandist Director John Ford. With A MAN BETRAYED, filmed after a few months under Ford's Bad Influence, Rex flip-flops his screen personae 180 degrees, marrying into the Fat Cat Family that has just slaughtered his Best Friend Johnny (as Rin Tin Tin himself sold out to the Rich People Dark Side that had swallowed "Oh, My Papa" whole in Real Life not so long before).

Well here's a John Wayne film you probably never heard of and it actually turned out fairly entertaining in my estimation. For old time movie fans there are a wealth of references to other pictures but you have to be paying attention. My summary quote was spoken by the picture's understated heavy Tom Cameron (Edward Ellis), and it immediately brought to mind the 1936 film "Bullets or Ballots" starring Edward G. Robinson with an assist from Humphrey Bogart. Cameron's right hand man, portrayed by Ward Bond, seemed to be modeled on Lon Chaney's Lennie character in "Of Mice and Men", another film preceding this one by a couple of years. I was a little baffled by that in as much as Cameron seemed to be running a pretty tight political machine and Floyd the Spider (Bond) seemed like a loose cannon most of the time.There was another cool scene right after Lynn Hollister's (Wayne) impromptu radio pitch for the Cameron political organization which he did with feigned sincerity. Outside the station, a waiting doorman proclaimed to Hollister and Sabra Cameron (Frances Dee) that "It was pretty good, but I still prefer Gene Autry". Autry was going great guns for Republic Pictures at the time, so it made a lot of sense for them to plug one of their main stars. Interestingly, while Wayne's character manhandled his female co-star by placing a checkered tablecloth over her head and popping her over his shoulder, Autry put a leading lady over his knee for a spanking in at least a couple of his Westerns.Another reason I can chalk up for enjoying this picture had to do with the place names. There really is a Spring Valley located about thirty miles north of New York City, that being Hollister's home town. Not far from Tarrytown actually, mentioned by Marlon Brando in "On the Waterfront", a place he didn't like because the crickets made him nervous. Both locations today are a far cry from being small country towns, much like Newburgh, where the editor of The Globe was about ready to retire to and grow the biggest asters. Newburgh was actually named America's best small town in 1960, but you wouldn't know that today either.Played with about equal parts drama and light humor, I see the movie doesn't resonate a whole lot with other viewers here so I guess I'm a little outside the mainstream on this one. But like I say, it was some of the little things that kept me focused on the story besides the main idea of election tampering that eventually brought down the corrupt politicians with Hollister's help and Boss Cameron's sudden change of heart and mind.

In 1941 Republic Pictures goes out on a limb to broaden the range of its biggest commodity, John Wayne. A weak experienced lawyer, Lynn Hollister(Wayne) will attempt to take on big-city crime and corruption. Tom Cameron(Edward Ellis) is a highly successful political figure, but is suspected of being a heavy handed crook. Of course, seemingly above any overt suspicion, Hollister's job is not going to be an easy one. Making things a bit harder, Lynn finds himself with a strong attraction to Cameron's lovely daughter, Sabra(Frances Dee).Audiences weren't immediately thrilled, but the saving grace is the Duke does get the chance to put his dukes up! A strong, well rounded cast also features: Wallace Ford, Harold Huber, Edwin Stanley and Ward Bond.

This movie starts off quite excitingly with arresting camera movement, atmospheric photography, intriguing situations, odd characters and elliptical dialogue. Mind you, the dialogue doesn't always work. The attempts to be flippant and yet at the same time stress an underlying menace and tension, don't always work, but it's a game attempt to do something a bit out of the ordinary. One of the chief problems lies in the acting: Edward Ellis and Harold Huber are magnificent but the stooges provided for them cannot come up to their level. This is particularly true of Joseph Crehan who is most unconvincing as a corrupt newspaper editor. The way Crehan plays him makes you wonder how an idiot like that could land a job running a hot dog stall, let alone a newspaper. Due to the dictates of budget and speed, director John H. Auer is forced to work with second-rate character actors unwilling or unable to bring out the depths in their lines. Admittedly, nothing could rescue the later stages of the movie when the script delivers a disappointing climax so that Wayne can get the girl. Still, Huber's death is arrestingly staged. Wayne plays with a light romantic charm that is reasonably appealing, despite the fact that it is often at odds with the atmosphere. If Wayne meant it as a contrast, his efforts don't quite come off. However, Miss Dee makes a fetching heroine, though Ward Bond seems a little out of character as the lunatic brother. All told, some good direction by Auer helps this often otherwise routine town-in-the-grip-of-the-crime-syndicate melodrama. U.K. release title: Citadel of Crime. Also known by its USA reissue title: Wheel of Fortune.