Blood Money

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Blood Money

1933

1h 5m

Crime

Drama

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Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

80%

Tomatometer

5 Reviews

83%

Popcornmeter

500+ Ratings

Corrupt bail bondsman Bill Bailey (George Bancroft) holds some enviable sway among the political elite and criminal underworld of Los Angeles. His clout begins to weaken, however, when he falls for Elaine Talbart (Frances Dee), a wild, wealthy young socialite who is herself infatuated with a bank robber (Chick Chandler). Bailey pursues Elaine, only to become lost in a maze of violence, kleptomania, perversion, racketeering and betrayal -- and then he discovers there's nothing but dead ends.

J. R. Jones

Chicago Reader

Rowland Brown directed only three movies, but if this 1933 crime melodrama is any indication, he had a masterful sense of story and a surprisingly jaundiced wit.

Jul 14, 2022

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Eileen Jones

The Jacobin

Liveliness, dark humor, irreverence for authority, savvy politics, and an adult ability to look directly at an infinitely corrupt world without flinching.

Aug 26, 2023

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Paul Rotha

Cinema Quarterly

The high-spot climax... is in the true Griffith tradition and as old as cinema itself, but because of its grand cutting and use of sound, gets across on a modern audience better than anything else of its kind that I have seen this year.

Feb 3, 2021

Full Review

P.S. Harrison

Harrison's Reports

It is true that this situation is suspensive, but it does not put the picture over, because the thought of blowing up a human being to pieces is not entertaining.

Oct 8, 2020

Full Review

María Luz Morales (Felipe Centeno)

La Vanguardia (Spain)

George Bancroft is, in his genre, an indisputable prestige. [Full Review in Spanish]

Feb 29, 2020

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Audience Member

Enjoyable pre-code crime drama, with several songs by vaudeville legend Blossom Seeley.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

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Audience Member

another great pre-code melodrama

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/25/23

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Audience Member

Fascinating pre-code. It's a gritty underworld drama with a great starring turn from George Bancroft. But it's true gem is Frances Dee. Dee was normally cast as the good girl, so she was breaking type in a big way to play the masochistic klepto with a craving for men who liked to treat her rough. She clearly enjoys herself, and gives the film a huge spark.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/24/23

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Audience Member

Not so great of a movie this early in the morning.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

02/10/23

Full Review

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Rowland Brown

Director

George Bancroft

Bill Bailey

Frances Dee

Elaine Talbart

Chick Chandler

Drury Darling

Judith Anderson

Ruby Darling

Blossom Seeley

Singer

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Synopsis

Corrupt bail bondsman Bill Bailey (George Bancroft) holds some enviable sway among the political elite and criminal underworld of Los Angeles. His clout begins to weaken, however, when he falls for Elaine Talbart (Frances Dee), a wild, wealthy young socialite who is herself infatuated with a bank robber (Chick Chandler). Bailey pursues Elaine, only to become lost in a maze of violence, kleptomania, perversion, racketeering and betrayal -- and then he discovers there's nothing but dead ends.

Director: Rowland Brown
Producer: Darryl F Zanuck
Screenwriter: Rowland Brown
Production Co: 20th Century Pictures
Genre: Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Runtime: 1h 5m