An Exercise In Nonsense

Admirable film.

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

It is the rare film indeed that is so hard hitting that it actually creates a sea change in real life--be it in social mores, politics or the law--but such a film indeed was 1932's "I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang," a picture that has been a Top 10 favorite of this viewer ever since I first saw it on television around 40 years ago. Since that time, I have seen it well over a dozen times, including theatrically, and it never fails to wow and impress. Based on the autobiography of Robert Elliott Burns, entitled "I Am a Fugitive From a Georgia Chain Gang," the film changes the lead character's name but otherwise hews fairly closely to the facts of the case.In the film, Paul Muni stars as James Allen, a WW1 vet who, back in civilian life, aspires to become a civil engineer. He tramps around looking for work until he is innocently duped into participating in a robbery at a roadside hamburger stand. After a railroaded kangaroo trial, Allen is sentenced to a 10-year stretch in a Southern chain gang, where he gets to witness firsthand the abominable treatment that the prisoners there are subjected to at the hands of the warden and the sadistic guards. After months of sledgehammer toil under the hot sun, Allen makes his escape and hightails it to Chicago, where he eventually becomes a successful and productive member of society, working as a respected engineer. But trouble soon looms, when his secret is found out by the manipulative Marie (played by the great '30s actress Glenda Farrell), who blackmails him into marriage. That marriage is as happy as might be imagined, until Allen cannot stand it anymore, and after meeting the sweet and kindly Helen (Helen Vinson), demands his freedom from the shrewish Marie, who promptly turns him in to the authorities. Allen, now an undeniably reformed citizen, is given an offer by those authorities: go back to the chain gang and serve out a token term in exchange for a full pardon. But once back on the brutal chain gang, Allen learns that he might just be back there for good, and realizes that another escape might be his only way out....A bit of personal history here: It has been a good 20 years since I have seen this particular film, the earliest film on my Top 10 list, chronologically, and I DO need to see it again, and soon. But the last time I saw it, back in the mid-'90s, was a memorable viewing. At the time, I was working at a NYC ad agency and was kind of sweet on a fellow coworker there, a very pretty lady named Cynthia. Cynthia, by the way, was a lesbian who happened to have a boyfriend; a very tough nut to crack, I'm sure you will agree. (Boy, do I know how to pick 'em!) After work one night, I took her to a viewing of "I Am a Fugitive" at one of NYC's many revival houses; if memory serves, it was the (now long defunct) Thalia Soho. Cynthia was not overly enthused with my choice of film for the evening, but as the picture progressed, I could tell that she was really getting into it; indeed, by the film's end, she was literally on the edge of her seat. And who could blame her? The film is as tense, as brutal, as exciting and, often, as thrilling as can be, and Allen's two escape attempts from the chain gang constitute some of the most gripping moments in 1930s cinema."I Am a Fugitive" was directed by Mervyn Le Roy, shortly before he went on to helm the truly wonderful '30s musical "Gold Diggers of '33," and his work here, as might be expected, is just terrific. And that Paul Muni! My goodness, what a fantastic bit of thesping he offers to his audience in this film! Muni, it seems, met and discussed the role of James Allen with Robert Elliott Burns prior to the film's shooting, in an effort to re-create the real-life man as closely as possible, and his work here is simply aces. Deservedly nominated for an Academy Award that year, Muni ultimately "lost" to Charles Laughton for his work in "The Private Lives of Henry VIII," and I for one think that Muni was robbed (he WOULD get that Oscar three years later for his work in "The Story of Louis Pasteur"). As mentioned above, after the November 10, 1932 release of "I Am a Fugitive," the public was awakened to the full horror of the chain-gang system, and reforms were called for and later implemented. There would be an endless number of films to come that decade depicting convicts and their life in various penitentiaries and criminal institutions, but few films before or since were as scathing in their indictment of the modern-day penal system as Le Roy's was in 1932. Capped by one of the most famous lines in cinema history, "I Am a Fugitive" is doubtless as powerful a cinema experience today as when it was first released 85 years ago. And, oh...trust me: You will never get that haunting chain-gang work song out of your head!

This movie was very well made and was surprisingly enjoyable for me to watch a second time. Both the first and the second time this movie gave me emotions all throw out it. There was tons of times that the movie had my heart racing wondering if the main character would be alright in the end or not. This movies main character played by Paul Muni was a very likable and well acted character who always had me rooting for him to be happy in the end. Most of the characters in this movie were likable or not likable depending on what kinda character they were trying to portray and well acted except for one in particular that I hated in this movie.Rev. Robert Allen played by Hale Hamilton was my least favorite character and thats saying it in a nice way. Every time this character was oh screen I cringed from the moment he started talking. The way Hamilton portrays this character is terrible in my option and I'm not sure if that is the way the film makers wanted him to be like but I absolutely hate it. It just takes me out of the movie and over all brings this movie down a little bit in quality in my option. Now I'm not saying I can do it any better because I am terrible at acting but if I was the director or the casting director I would have either told him to act differently or just casted someone else. I also do not know whether or not Hamilton was like this in all of his movie or if they picked him because they liked that character portrayed that way or not. I don't know if that is the case or not but regardless it is my only really major complaint about the movie. It has a very interesting way the story is told and a interesting ending. Over all I would definitely recommend this movie.

These older movies continue to surprise me. I really didn't think this movie would be able to capture my attention but I was proved wrong. "I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang" had a great plot that was able to make the viewer see what the director wanted them to see. This really showed the harsh reality of the chain gang and made me wince at the horrors of the time. I was really invested in the plot with great effects like the loud cracks of whips and the excitement and panic if being chased by hounds. I also enjoyed how at the end of the movie he blew up a bridge, something he enjoyed building, in order to try and escape towards freedom. This movie did exactly what its intentions were by making me, the viewer, hate the chain gang punishment.

The introduction of sound films in the late 1920s opened the door for many more possibilities in terms of storytelling. Also, it increased an actor's ability to portray a certain character.For example, on the first day of his job at the factory after returning from war, Paul Muni's character, James Allen hears explosions coming from bridge construction outside the building. When he jumps, it shows that he may be it may indicate that he is experiencing after effects of the war. Also the fact that he is so interested in this indicates that what he really wants to do is be in construction and create things, rather than working in the factory.Another excellent use of sound is when he escapes the chain gang, and he can hear the bloodhounds in the distance on his trail, but when he hides under the water they barking of the hounds becomes muffled or goes away completely.