"We Who Are About to Die" is a 1937 film starring John Beal, Ann Dvorak, Preston Foster, and J. Carrol Naish.
John Beal plays John Thompson, an engineer who quits his job at an airplane plant in New Mexico after an argument with his boss. He and his fiancée Connie want to move to California.
En route to get his paycheck, some criminals kidnap him and take his car. They go to John's old job in his car, and one of them is wearing his coat, and enter the payroll office. The paymaster is killed, and a child is run over as the gang escapes. They dump the car.
John is released, but he doesn't stay released for long. The police arrest him for murder and robbery. He is found guilty and winds up on Death Row.
Connie convinces a detective (Preston Foster) who actually helped put John away that he didn't do it, and begs him to try to dig up more evidence. As he starts to go over it, he finds discrepancies.
This is a good pre-noir from RKO. There is a harrowing scene where the prisoners act up and the guards use tear gas on them. There is also a beautiful scene where a priest promises a Chinese man about to be hanged that he will see that his body is sent home to his ancestors.
Some of the detection methods used were brand new at the time.
Beal was a stage actor who appeared in many films, and did lots of TV and stage in his sixty-year career. I met him about 30 years ago - a very nice man.
Thanks to TCM, Ann Dvorak is getting probably more attention than she did during her career. She does an earnest job here as a young woman desperate to free her fiancé. Foster is authoritative and tough as the detective.
This film had its gritty moments and lacked the usual stereotypes and clichés. Some melodramatic moments, as was the style at the time. IF you see this on TCM's schedule, check it out.
John Beal plays John Thompson, an engineer who quits his job at an airplane plant in New Mexico after an argument with his boss. He and his fiancée Connie want to move to California.
En route to get his paycheck, some criminals kidnap him and take his car. They go to John's old job in his car, and one of them is wearing his coat, and enter the payroll office. The paymaster is killed, and a child is run over as the gang escapes. They dump the car.
John is released, but he doesn't stay released for long. The police arrest him for murder and robbery. He is found guilty and winds up on Death Row.
Connie convinces a detective (Preston Foster) who actually helped put John away that he didn't do it, and begs him to try to dig up more evidence. As he starts to go over it, he finds discrepancies.
This is a good pre-noir from RKO. There is a harrowing scene where the prisoners act up and the guards use tear gas on them. There is also a beautiful scene where a priest promises a Chinese man about to be hanged that he will see that his body is sent home to his ancestors.
Some of the detection methods used were brand new at the time.
Beal was a stage actor who appeared in many films, and did lots of TV and stage in his sixty-year career. I met him about 30 years ago - a very nice man.
Thanks to TCM, Ann Dvorak is getting probably more attention than she did during her career. She does an earnest job here as a young woman desperate to free her fiancé. Foster is authoritative and tough as the detective.
This film had its gritty moments and lacked the usual stereotypes and clichés. Some melodramatic moments, as was the style at the time. IF you see this on TCM's schedule, check it out.