The Frame

Moving from Germany’s idea of a socially-conscious film to a prime example of 1930s Warner Bros. example of a social problem film. Paul Muni plays an initially optimistic and energetic young man who struggles to find a job during the depression. Eventually, down on his luck, he ends up unwillingly involved in a robbery and sentenced to the chain gang. He eventually manages to escape from the brutal system, change his name and start a new life, only to have the police discover who he is years later and force him, now a hugely productive member of society, back into the chain gang. It’s all a bit overwrought and about as subtle as an anvil, but if the dichotomy between the severity of the crime and the severity of the punishment was really as broad as it’s painted here, then it was a real social concern.
Above Average