Blood Money (1933 film)

Blood Money is a 1933 American Pre-Code crime drama film directed by Rowland Brown about a crooked bail bondsman named Bill Bailey, played by George Bancroft, with Chick Chandler as crime boss Drury Darling, Judith Anderson as Drury's sister and Bailey's lover, and Frances Dee as a thrill-seeking, larcenous beauty who fatefully catches Bailey's eye. The film was considered to be lost for nearly forty years before reappearing.[1]

Blood Money
Directed byRowland Brown
Produced byDarryl F. Zanuck
Joseph M. Schenck (uncredited)
Written byRowland Brown
Hal Long (continuity)
Speed Kendall (uncredited)
StarringGeorge Bancroft
Judith Anderson
Frances Dee
Music byAlfred Newman
Production
company
Distributed byUnited Artists
Release date
  • November 17, 1933 (1933-11-17)
Running time
65 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

This marked the film debut of Anderson (better known for her next role, housekeeper Mrs. Danvers in the 1940 Rebecca).

Cast

Dee, normally cast in wholesome roles, described Talbert in the 2002 Turner Classic Movies documentary Complicated Women as "... a rather weird character, to say the least. She was a kleptomaniac, a nymphomaniac, and anything in between."[2]

Reception

New York Times critic Mordaunt Hall was unimpressed, writing, "This whimsical little tale of thievery, thuggery and attempted slaughter was mistaken for entertainment by Darryl Zanuck".[3] He appreciated the skills of many of the actors, but thought the plot lacked logic and characterized the film overall as "flat stuff".[3]

References
  1. "Frances Dee dies; wholesome leading lady of the 1930s and 40s". The Independent. March 10, 2004.
  2. Liz Chancellor. "Frances Dee/"A Kind of Grace"". Classic Images magazine. Retrieved July 30, 2010.
  3. Hall, Mordaunt (November 16, 1933). "Blood Money (1933)". The New York Times.


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