This early John Ford ‘Talkie’ has a fair share of knockabout charm to it in between the laborious dialogue-heavy dramatics typical of this transition period. (Dialogue director Andrew Bennison is a likely culprit for the deadly pacing,) Edmund Lowe, who seems unrelated to his ultra-Italian family, is part of a gang of jewelry thieves who get sent to fight in WWI rather than face burglary charges. He comes home a hero and establishes a successful night club/speakeasy, but still loses the girl of his dreams to a WASPy type. Years later, when that girl finds her child kidnapped, Lowe is the man she turns to for help. It’s all faintly ridiculous, but you can see how effective it must have been at the time (and still occasionally is) during a few closely staged shoot-outs, tight car chases thru city streets and in some timeless service comedy stuff (look for Ward Bond) & ethnic gags that still hit their marks. If only the actors would pick up their cues!
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