Hideously silly dialog just makes the Caucasian actors in Chinese get-up in this thriller about Tong wars in San Francisco look all the more ridiculous, starting with the execution of a traitor by the titled "hatchet man" (Edward G. Robinson, no less!) and his promise to the friend he's been ordered to kill that he'll look over his daughter and marry her when she is of age. None other than Loretta Young is the grown-up daughter, with Robinson now a respectable businessman and the Tong pretty much gone, even though the head man (Dudley Digges in a ridiculous role) is still roaming around in his Fu Manchu get up like nothing has changed. When local rackets demand protection money from the Chinatown businesses (this is "Little Caeser"/"Public Enemy" era still), King Tong demands revenge and Robinson must pull his hatchet out of storage. Wife Loretta falls in love with the bodyguard Robinson has hired to protect her and when they are discovered, Robinson's reaction causes him to be drummed out of the Tong forever.
Played oh, so seriously, this leads to even more melodramatics when Robinson discovers that his cheating wife has been turned into a prostitute in China and heads there to rescue her. This leads to a confrontation with a Madame Gin Sling like character and a horrifying plot twist involving Robinson's hatchet. The melodrama of this pre-code drama is like something out of a cheaply made serial and all the talent in it seems wasted because of the ridiculous words coming out of their mouths. Even if you can get past the evil stereotypes and the fact that Robinson doesn't even come close to looking Asian let alone sound Asian and that even with over-the-top eye make-up Young too is obviously an all-American girl, this movie truly takes bad taste to a new level. At least with Myrna Loy in "The Mask of Fu Manchu", you knew she was going for camp even though it was obvious she hated the part.
Visually, this movie is gorgeous to look at, but it lacks the subtlety of Von Sternberg's "Shanghai Express" and Capra's "The Bitter Tea of General Yen", even with the great William Wellman directing. Of course, Willie Fung is present for a bit part (as he was in most of the movies which featured the dark side of the Asian culture) and Blanche Frederici, the plump character actress who often wore men's clothing to portray stereotypical butch women, makes the most of her small part as Young's companion. Watch at your own risk, and keep your eyeballs in front. You may end up seeing out of the back of your head from rolling them too much.
Played oh, so seriously, this leads to even more melodramatics when Robinson discovers that his cheating wife has been turned into a prostitute in China and heads there to rescue her. This leads to a confrontation with a Madame Gin Sling like character and a horrifying plot twist involving Robinson's hatchet. The melodrama of this pre-code drama is like something out of a cheaply made serial and all the talent in it seems wasted because of the ridiculous words coming out of their mouths. Even if you can get past the evil stereotypes and the fact that Robinson doesn't even come close to looking Asian let alone sound Asian and that even with over-the-top eye make-up Young too is obviously an all-American girl, this movie truly takes bad taste to a new level. At least with Myrna Loy in "The Mask of Fu Manchu", you knew she was going for camp even though it was obvious she hated the part.
Visually, this movie is gorgeous to look at, but it lacks the subtlety of Von Sternberg's "Shanghai Express" and Capra's "The Bitter Tea of General Yen", even with the great William Wellman directing. Of course, Willie Fung is present for a bit part (as he was in most of the movies which featured the dark side of the Asian culture) and Blanche Frederici, the plump character actress who often wore men's clothing to portray stereotypical butch women, makes the most of her small part as Young's companion. Watch at your own risk, and keep your eyeballs in front. You may end up seeing out of the back of your head from rolling them too much.