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Touches You

the audience applauded

Thanks for the memories!

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

This is just awful especially coming from a talent like Wellman. Miscasting doesn't even begin to cover the ridiculous sight of Eddie Robinson and Loretta Young as orientals especially against some true Asians in the cast. Robinson although never believable for an instant at least attempts some depth in his characterization but Young is wretched. She's heavily made up but she lets the makeup do whatever acting she puts forth. She could just as well be at the sock hop as an opium den for all the shading she gives her role. I suppose they were trying for something unusual but if they really wanted to do that they would have cast Sessue Hayakawa and Anna May Wong in the Robinson and Young parts. As it is their complete unsuitability continually distracts from the story.The story itself is routine and with the terrible casting this is one old chestnut best forgotten.

The tough no nonsense directorial style of William Wellman put together an exciting and unusual movie from a rather old fashioned play. The picture had a few play dates as "The Hohorable Mr. Wong" before a title change to the more sensational "The Hatchet Man". Edward G. Robinson had replaced John Barrymore as First National's top character actor and proved it with searing portrayals in films like "Five Star Final" (1931), "Two Seconds" (1932), and "The Hatchet Man".1916 in Chinatown, the honorable hatchet man, Wong Low Get (Edward G. Robinson) is given orders to kill Lam Sing Tong (J. Carroll Naish, another splendid character actor) who has been found guilty of murder. They have been best friends since boyhood and Wong swears before Buddha that Tong's little daughter, Toya San, will know only happiness.Sixteen years later, Chinatown has changed and Wong is now a legitimate merchant. Toya San (Loretta Young is simply stunning) has also embraced Western ways - cutting class and going dancing, where she meets Harry Hai (Leslie Fenton), a smooth talking Chinese American. Meanwhile, humbled by Wong's devotion and love, Toya consents to be his wife, even though Wong only wants her hand with love, not duty.Harry is one of the new breed of Chinese hoods ("Boys, just boys" comments Wong, to which Harry gives him a particularly filthy look) who has been hired by Wong to be a bodyguard to Toya after the Tong Wars have been declared. The usual happens and before Wong returns from San Francisco (he has had to settle a score on traditional terms when peaceful methods fail) Harry and Toya are having a torrid affair. Rather than kill both Harry and Toya, which is the Tong duty, he now charges Harry with Toya's happiness and because of his peaceful ways is banished from the Tong. Wong falls on hard times, at last finding a laboring job in the rice fields and it is there that a letter reaches him from Toya. She and Harry have been deported to China, he has been caught selling opium, not only that but he then sells Toya, as a maid, to the local brothel owner. Wong, who is now penniless, works his passage to China off as a stoker - he is determined to find Harry and make him pay, which he does in an absolutely chilling finale!!!J. Grubb Alexander's adaptation is a lot more sensational than the original play. An assortment of fine old villainous character actors were on hand to convincingly play Chinese American roles - Dudley Digges, Charles Middleton, Noel Madison and Tully Marshall. There doesn't seem to be much information about on Art Director, Anton Grot, but he had a mammoth career at Warners from 1938 to 1950. In 1940 he won an Academy Award for his invention of a "ripple machine" which created weather and light effects on water.Highly, Highly Recommended.

Hatchet Man, The (1932) *** (out of 4) Entertaining crime picture has Edward G. Robinson playing the title character, a hit man for a tong gang in Chinatown who must murder his best friend. Before the murder the man gives his daughter to Robinson so that he can marry her when she gets older. Years pass and Robinson and the girl (Loretta Young) are about to be married when another tong war breaks out. Director Wellman knows how to handle this material and does so very well and the film moves very fast and is over before you can blink. The fact that whites are playing all the Asian roles might bother some but nothing ever gets too offensive. Robinson gives a very good, quiet performance even though he's never believable as an Asian. He speaks with his normal voice so there's really never an attempt to come off Asian. Young is also very good in her role, although she isn't given a whole lot to do. I'm not sure if this is wrong or not but in her Asian make up she comes off as one of the most attractive Asian women I've seen. The supporting cast are all fine in their roles with J. Carrol Naish having a bit part. The story is pretty light weight but it remains entertaining through its 74-minutes.

Naturally, the casting of Caucasian actors in Asian roles (see also "The Good Earth," "Dragon Seed," Charlie Chan, Mr. Moto, etc.) is a thing of the past. Casting Edward G. Robinson as a Chinese hit man is equivalent to doing a revival of "Flower Drum Song" with Hugh Jackman and Britney Spears. However, the plot of "The Hatchet Man" is well-thought out and surprisingly respectful of Chinese culture in America. Okay, they're killing each other, but is that any worse than, say, "The Godfather" series as relates to Italian-American culture? At least that don't have the Chinese characters saying things like, "Oh, me velly solly." Plus, the ending (which I won't spoil) is absolutely right and decidedly welcome.