Son of the Gods (1930) stars Richard Barthelmess as Sam Lee, an amiable college student, with a good supply of disposable cash. Sam plays polo, and is frequently requested to fund his classmates when they run out of money. One evening, he is approached by Kicker (Frank Albertson); he and Bathurst (Claude King) have a double date planned, only a third girl arrived with their dates, and now they have insufficient funds. Would Sam loan Kicker a few dollars? Better still, would Sam join them, and squire the extra lady? Though at first reluctant, Sam agrees. All is well on the drive over; the girls like Sam, and he is shy, but friendly. When the group arrives at the restaurant, the young ladies retreat to the powder room to fix their faces. A few minutes later, a restroom attendant asks Kicker to come to the ladies' room. The women are in a furor - how DARE he inflict that CHINAMAN on them! Sam might ask them to dance! It is repulsive, and they want to leave NOW. The young men refuse to bring them home, but finally agree to get them a cab. And then they have to tell Sam. He's not surprised; he's been through this before. Though it is hard to fathom why no one questions Sam Lee's parentage (he certainly does not have physical features that would lead one to believe he is of Asian descent), it is equally hard to believe that Sam's race is so important. And, while Sam is Asian in all but color, he is also generous, kind, loving nature, and noble of spirit. Yet, he is abused by every woman he meets (save one) and is literally flogged because he is of another race. The single exception to this is Eileen (Mildren Van Dorn), who acts as secretary to Lee Ying (E. Alyn Warren), Sam's father, and who regards Sam as a brother.
As Robert Osborne said in his commentary on TCM, some moments in the film are "cringe-worthy". The reaction of Allana Wagner, played with vehemence by Constance Bennett, is certainly offensive to modern audience, but it is also apparent that it is intended to be repugnant to the audience of 1930. Of course, it's clear that we are supposed to feel for Sam BECAUSE he is pure of spirit, not a "coolie" This TCM Article discusses the attitudes present in the film in more detail.
We were particularly impressed with Richard Barthlemess in this film. His conversations in Chinese were quite convincing, and he is able to make Sam likeable without becoming saintly. Barthlemess had already played an Asian man in Broken Blossoms (1919); in that film, he was in full Asian makeup, and had a more tragic end. Also quite good was Mildred Van Dorn; while her Irish accent comes and goes, she is able to make Eileen an appealing character. Van Dorn only appeared in 15 films (between 1929 and 1934), 8 of which are shorts. She died in 2004 at the age of 93. We also have a brief appearance by Dickie Moore as Young Sam. Though we generally like Constance Bennett, she is rather histrionic in this part. We're not really supposed to like Allana, but Bennett's over-the-top performance is a bit hard to take. Next time, we'll be back with another film from the 1930's.
Heroes for Sale is nearly unrelenting in the intensity
of pain that the character of Tom Holmes (Richard Barthelmess) goes
through. A soldier in the first World War, who is severelywounded in an
enemy action, he ends up addicted to morphine when his German doctor can
only relieve his pain rather than remove the shrapnel in his body. He
returns to America to find that his fellow soldier George (Grant
Mitchell) has been given awards for bravery for leading the action in
which Tom was injured, while George hid in a foxhole, paralyzed with
fear. George attempts to help his friend, as much out of fear of being
revealed as anything else, until Tom's addiction becomes known, at which
point Tom is fired from his bank job and put into a rehabilitation
center.
Cured of his drug problem, Tom starts over, marries
(Loretta Young as Ruth), becomes successful, only to have everything
taken away from him yet again. He loses his job, his wife, his son and
finally ends up one of the depression homeless, primarily because he
refuses to live upon the pain of his fellow man.
William Wellman
never lets up in this story. Just when you think Tom will make it,
something else happens to him. Richard Barthelmess is wonderful as Tom.
We felt for him at every moment. He had had a remarkable career in
silents, which continued into the 1930's, finally petering out
(unfortunately) in the 1940's. We had previously seen him in Only Angels Have Wings, and looked forward to seeing him in a lead role; he was not a disappointment.
Unlike the previously discussed Midnight Mary, Loretta Young plays an innocent girl in Heroes for Sale, someone who loves her husband and son
with her whole heart. Young is quite good in what is really a small part.
Besides Barthelmess, though, the other actor of real interest is Aline MacMahon as Mary Dennis. Of particular note is a
scene during which she realizes that Tom has feelings for Ruth. Watch her face -
Aline MacMahon will break your heart.
Ms. MacMahon began her career in 1931, and continued working until 1975. She had started on Broadway, appearing in The Madras House in 1921 - she would continue to work on the New York stage until 1975. She spent her film career in supporting roles, like Trixie Lorraine in Gold Diggers of 1933 and Mrs. Murray in The Search. Married once (from 1928 until her husband's death in 1975), she retired in after completing For the Use of the Hall. She died in 1991, aged 92.
Here's a scene with the always wonderful Aline MacMahon and Richard Barthelmess:
Next week, we conclude this particular precode set with Wild Boys of the Road.
