Up the River (1930)
3/10
Early Ford talkie ruined by missing footage/soundtrack
15 December 2019
Unfortunately, the only print of this film that survives is missing quite a bit of 1-2 second frames and soundtrack continuity errors... I have the "Ford At Fox" Region 1 DVD, and I believe this is the only print known to exist... A warning comes before the film starts saying something like "Taken From The Best Available Sources"... dialogue is frequently interrupted by abrupt lapses and spoken words cut off in mid-sentence...

It almost makes the film too frustrating to finish... it's worth sitting through anyways for Spencer Tracy and Warren Hymer's performances, and to see an early supporting role for Humphrey Bogart, but "Bogey's" performance is largely forgettable... and Claire Luce is utterly wooden as the object of "Bogey's" affection.

It's hard to recommend this film otherwise... unless you are a John Ford completest.

3.5/10
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