kidboots Only in an obscure poverty rower (Majestic Pictures, who are not above promoting possibly their most famous production with "The Vampire Bat" posters outside a cinema where two of the stars just happen to be talking), could you find a wealth of names to warm the cockles of a pre-code lovers heart. There is beautiful Geneva Mitchell, a Follies beauty who made a career of walk through parts in early talkies, slinky Evelyn Brent (who looks absolutely stunning in this movie), sweet Mary Brian who had been a star but was now falling on leaner times, matinée idol Neil Hamilton who had been a silent star for D.W. Griffith, had co-starred with Norma Shearer and was soon to settle into character parts and cute little Buster Phelps who had played the little boy in "Three on a Match". Even annoying Inez Courtney who seemed to be in every other early talkie musical had an unbilled part as, what else? - an annoying telephonist!!!But wait - there's more!!! Louis Calhern (wrongly spelled in the credits) is the first to appear as Christopher Bruno, President of Continental Importers/Exporters, but really a racketeer who is in the middle of planning the demise of pesky D.A. Henderson, who is on the brink of exposing a giant stock market fraud. Henderson leaves behind a beautiful wife (Mitchell), a cute kid (Phelps) and a crime fighting buddy, Andy (Pat O'Brien), determined to clear Henderson's name. In the great tradition of pre-code political exposes Henderson has been shown as leading a double life but of course it's not true. Another person wanting to clear things up is new D.A. Lionel Houston (Hamilton) but unfortunately his fiancée is Diane Cromwell (Mary Brian looking far more fetching as a brunette than as a blonde) and her father, unknowingly, is in it up to his neck thanks to his greedy partners.With phrases like "the public be damned" this was a film "plucked from the headlines" and the stock market crash of 1929 was still vivid in the memories of the movie going public. This was a movie worthy of the fast paced, topical Warners studios. Meanwhile Andy is looking up assorted cronies including Salvatore (J. Carroll Naish) who was in the apartment where Henderson was killed but claims he wasn't the killer. Andy is then led to Carlotta Lamont (sultry Brent) where he starts to weave his charm (?) even though she is Salvatore's girl, Bruno's girl - actually anybody's girl!!!With all these top stars giving their all, especially Calhern with a very natural performance, this definitely doesn't have the look of a cheap movie. Majestic had a short life, finishing up in 1935 and also being responsible for 1933's ahead of it's time "stream of consciousness movie "The Sin of Norah Moran". Definitely worth a look regardless whether you find it in the "Horror Classics" pack.Highly Recommended.

Athanatos The general idea of this film is a good one: In the run-up to the Great Depression and stock market crash, and then in their throes and wake, high-level executives have been cutting corners and cooking the books at a financial firm, first trying to get rich and then trying to hide their titanic losses. A city district attorney gets wind of the fraud, and is murdered to halt his investigation. The murder is made to look like the work of a jealous mistress, bringing scandal upon his name. But the new district attorney and a journalist who is his close friend don't believe the conclusions of the police, and set-out to uncover the truth.But the execution is very poor. This story is full of holes, of pieces that don't really fit, of loose ends.The story hangs upon people being even less communicative than the typical lack-wits of real-life. For example, this district attorney has basically told no one, in his office or amongst his confidantes, which firm he has been investigating. Eventually a scrap of paper turns-up amongst his effects; but beyond that he seems to have kept no records beyond whatever he might have carried on his person when he was killed.An initial scene shows a process of repeatedly subcontracting a crime through a series of middle-men, each passing on the job for half of what he receives, so that the immediate perpetrator receives on 5% of the initial payment. Yet it is a sudden and completely unexplained short-circuiting of that intermediation which allows the journalist to develop an idea of who would be the immediate perpetrator. Since the fellow who originally took the assignment gets few of the benefits of intermediation, he might as well have pocketted its cost.The journalist, in any case, collects sufficient evidence to establish the identity of the immediate perpetrator. But he doesn't give the evidence or information to his friend the new district attorney. (Perhaps by way of an explanation, the journalist does make the insulting insinuation that the new district attorney might participate in the cover-up for personal profit, but the journalist could have talked to the police as well.) Instead, the journalist kidnaps the perpetrator. It's not clear where and how the journalist keeps the fellow.With the perpetrator removed, the journalist then continues his investigation, and basically learns nothing more. The story is just spinning its wheels as far as he is concerned. The district attorney, in the mean-time, gets a couple of notes-ex-machina, without which his investigation is utterly inert.Finally, we learn that the some of the killers have been stringing the journalist along, to find out what he knows. Amongst them are the fellow whom he kidnapped, who has escaped as mysteriously as he was being held. Under threat of death, the journalist is persuaded to summon the district attorney, so that the killers can dispatch them both. But the district attorney becomes conveniently suspicious of behavior for which an innocent explanation could easily be produced, and the day is saved.Meanwhile, the highest official of the financial firm has learned of the fraud, and commits a murder-suicide so that insurance can repay the missing funds. Too bad for the investors in the insurance firm, but apparently: policies for many millions of dollars were written on the lives of just two executives; the insurer didn't grasp the problem of moral hazard, and write the policies to exclude payment in the event of suicide; and the insurer is sufficiently solvent to make a huge payment, even while the rest of the financial structure seems to be in crisis.The wife of the previous, murdered district attorney is ecstatic that her husbands name has been cleared. Perhaps she looks forward to telling him about it when he gets home.BTW: This movie is amongst those that perpetrate the notion that "blanks can't hurt you", which notion killed Jon-Erik Hexum. And what Vanderbilt said in full was "The public be damned! I'm working for my stockholders."

ReelCheese An obscure dramatic thriller that captures and loses the viewers interest like a seesaw. Pat O'Brien is a hard-nosed reporter who gets a little too close for comfort to the story of a lifetime, a massive corporate scandal. With a District Attorney already killed for knowing too much, O'Brien rightfully fears the new D.A (Neil Hamilton) also has a bullet with his name on it. Can our reporter hero piece it all together for the hapless law enforcement authorities before it's too late?While there are many moments of interest in "The World Gone Mad," it seems there are almost as many pointless scenes with no purpose other than to ruin the flow. It's also overly complex at times. Still, even if one doesn't cut this one the slack it deserves for being made in 1933, it's not all that awful. The performances are good, particularly from O'Brien and Hamilton. But a little further editing would have helped. By the way, I nominate this one for the "Title That Bears Little Resemblance To The On screen Product" Award.

Vampenguin Not really sure what to say about this one, aside from I didn't like it much. The actors were all fine, there were a few laughs here and there. The ending wasn't too bad, but I suppose after the mess of a plot that came before it, that's not a huge feat. Half the time you have no idea what's going on, and by the time you might have a clue, you don't care anymore. This plods along at a pace most snails would be ashamed of, and I found myself fighting to stay awake the whole time. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind a slow-paced movie, so long as it keeps your attention. This doesn't. Overall, is this a good movie? No, not really. Could it cure insomnia? I wouldn't be surprised.3.5/10