8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
FASCINATING BARTHELMESS PRE-CODER., January 29, 2003
This review is from: Heroes for Sale [VHS] (VHS Tape)
A war veteran becomes in turn a drug addict, a millionaire and the central figure in a labour dispute. During WWI, Lieutenant Roger Winston is assigned to capture a German prisoner. Overcome by fear, he hides in a foxhole while Tom Holmes (Barthelmess), another soldier from the same town, carries out the mission. On the way back Tom is struck by a shell and Roger slyly returns with the prisoner: Roger is promoted and decorated for bravery. Tom's life is saved by the Germans, but he becomes a morphine addict to relieve his pain...An interestingly realistic film - with a less than believable storyline - it nevertheless gives viewers a glimpse of the nearly forgotten vastly underrated Richard Barthelmess. The man was a fine actor who had a unique magnetism rarely seen on film. BREADLINE was the film's working title: Wellman - the director - used real hoboes for the hobo scenes & real laundry workers for the laundry scenes. 2O year-old Loretta Young and Aline MacMahon are fine in their roles.
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Realistic, Gritty Drama from the 1930's, November 9, 2000
This review is from: Heroes for Sale [VHS] (VHS Tape)
There's nothing sugar-coated in this movie! Silent film star Richard Barthlemess appears as a WWI veteran who endures a narcotic addiction, rehabilitation, career advancement, marriage, parenthood, wealth, labor riots, death, prison, a "Red" scare, police scare tactics, and homelessness. Loretta Young portrays his wife, and the wonderful actress Aline MacMahon appears as his most loyal friend. She raises his son when he's wrongly imprisoned, and is the executor of his accumulated wealth, which he requests she use to run a soup kitchen for the poor. Her performance is beautifully understated, and her love for him shines through.
Although this movie is from the early 1930's, the topics and problems Barthlemess faces could come right off the newspaper headlines from today. This is an interesting social commentary, and certainly worthy of your time.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
American version of "Les Miserables", January 8, 2012
This review is from: Heroes for Sale [VHS] (VHS Tape)
"Heroes for Sale" (1933) is really 2 films for the price of one. The first is a tale about heroism in the face of battle, where a soldier combats his morphine addiction when he returns to civilian life, working for the coward who took credit for his heroic exploits on the battlefield. Part 2 concerns the fight for worker's rights in the light of the expansion of machines, and in general deals with the plight of the depression. The two stories are united by the central character played by Richard Barthelmess (1895-1963).
Barthelmess was one of the brightest stars of the silent screen and was nominated for the very first Oscar for his performances in "The Patent Leather Kid" (1927) and "The Noose" (1928). He made a few talkies in the early 30s ("Dawn Patrol", "Show of Shows") but gradually stopped making films and lived off his investments. In this film he gives his usual earnest performance, showing his roots in silent films.
Loretta Young (1913-2000) plays Barthlemess' wife in Part 2. Young won an Oscar in 1948 for "The Farmer's Daughter" as was nominated in 1950 for "Come to the Stable". She won 3 Emmys for "The Loretta Young Show" 1953 to 1961. The 20 year old actress is so fresh and lovable in this early film it's hard to realize that she was already a veteran of nearly 50 films.
Aline MacMahon (1899-1991) plays Mary Dennis who works in her father's soup kitchen and helps Barthlemess as a good friend. MacMahon was known for his wise cracking demeanor and was popular in the 30s and 40s and nominated for an Oscar as the Chinese mother of Katherine Hepburn in "Dragon Seed" (1944). She gives her usual great performance.
Robert Barrat (1889-1970) plays a "Red" who invents a machine that revolutionizes laundry work. He appeared in more than 100 films and such classics as "The Life of Emile Zola" (1937), "Captain Blood" (1935), "Union Pacific" (1939), and "They Were Expendable" (1945). He's best remembered for his role as Chingachgook in "Last of the Mohicans" (1939). He is a hoot in this film adopting a Germanic accent and playing the "Red" as a buffoon.
Charley Grapewin (1869-1956) plays Pa Dennis, the owner of the soup kitchen. He made over 100 films between 1900 and 1951 and is probably best remembered as Uncle Henry from "The Wizard of Oz" (1939) and Grandpa Joad in "The Grapes of Wrath" (1940).
Look for Ward Bond in an uncredited role as a hobo named "Red". Also check out the hoboes which include some real life homeless people, and the laundry workers who aren't actresses, but real workers.
William "Wild Bill" Wellman (1986-1975) directs. Wellman was nominated 4 times for an Oscar, winning for Best Writer in 1938 ("A Star is Born"). He was nominated for an Oscar and a DGA for "The High and the Mighty" (1954). Among his notable films were "Wings" (1927), "Public Enemy" (1931), "Beau Geste" (1939), "The Ox Bow Incident" (1943), and "Battleground" (1949).
The struggles of the returning WW 1 vets were fodder for many films - "J'accuse" (1919), "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" (1921), "The Big Parade" (1925), "Lucky Star" (1929), "Broken Lullaby" (1932), "Farewell to Arms" (1932), "The Lost Squadron" (1932), "Three Comrades" (1938), "The Roaring Twenties" (1939), and even dealt with in a Laurel and Hardy comedy "Block Heads" (1938).
This is a strange film - in some respects it is an American version of "Les Miserables" with Barthelmess in the Jean Valjean role and society as the relentless Inspector Javert. In other respects, it is an early version of "The Grapes of Wrath". It hits you hard with its Warner Brothers "torn from the headlines" realism but there is a sentimentality running beneath most of Wellman's great films, and here it is like a strong current, assuring us that all the troubles and tribulations placed in front of our hero will only spur him on to greater (moral) achievements.
Bottom line - a great film for fans of Warner Brothers 30s real life films,
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