John Ford enjoyed sufficient stature by 1930 for the opening credits to read "John Ford's 'Up the River'", although his direction doesn't indicate much interest on his part in the rambling plot; despite plenty of exteriors, and photography of the high standard one would expect from Ford's frequent collaborator Joseph August, it all feels very stagey (according to the credits it had been originally staged by William Collier Sr., who in the film plays 'Pop').
At the time 'Variety' said the film had "No cast names to draw", but in retrospect it's the cast that has maintained the reputation of this little potboiler during the many years that it was lost. Spencer Tracy was starting at the top in feature films by playing the lead, and in their only film together he is supported by a fourth-billed Humphrey Bogart in only his second. Tracy's star quality is immediately apparent (although better exploited three years later in the far superior '20,000 Years in Sing Sing'), but Fox plainly didn't have a clue what to do with Bogart, who was too strange-looking (and sounding) to make a conventional leading man. The most entertaining performance as usual comes from Warren Hymer, while Ford devotees will have fun spotting Ward Bond lumber across the screen a couple of times before getting socked by Tracy in one of many glowering bit parts he was playing at this time.
At the time 'Variety' said the film had "No cast names to draw", but in retrospect it's the cast that has maintained the reputation of this little potboiler during the many years that it was lost. Spencer Tracy was starting at the top in feature films by playing the lead, and in their only film together he is supported by a fourth-billed Humphrey Bogart in only his second. Tracy's star quality is immediately apparent (although better exploited three years later in the far superior '20,000 Years in Sing Sing'), but Fox plainly didn't have a clue what to do with Bogart, who was too strange-looking (and sounding) to make a conventional leading man. The most entertaining performance as usual comes from Warren Hymer, while Ford devotees will have fun spotting Ward Bond lumber across the screen a couple of times before getting socked by Tracy in one of many glowering bit parts he was playing at this time.