IRON MAN (1931)

 

Robert Downey Jr. does not appear in this film. This is a 1931 production from Universal, directed by Tod Browning. I was inspired to seek it out by my recent reading of DARK CARNIVAL, a biography of Browning. IRON MAN was made between DRACULA and FREAKS, and, as one would expect, it doesn't come anywhere near matching the notable aspects of those two features. 

Lew Ayres plays lightweight boxer Kid Mason, who has lost his most recent bout due to his refusal to listen to the advice of his manager/mentor George (Robert Armstrong). After hearing of his latest defeat, Kid's sultry & ambitious wife Rose (Jean Harlow) leaves him. The Kid then goes on a winning streak, and he gets a shot at the world title. Rose pops back into his life, sensing that he's going to make the big time. The Kid wins the title, and he and Rose move into a swanky apartment and start living the high life. George tries to warn Kid that his wife is unreliable and untrustworthy, but the young boxer has to find out things the hard way. 

In DARK CARNIVAL, authors David J. Skal and Elias Savada state that IRON MAN "is the most perfunctory of Browning's talkies" and that is a very apt assessment. The picture was the last in a three-film contract Browning had with Universal, and it appears he was just going through the motions. IRON MAN is ostensibly a story about boxing, but there's very little in-ring action, and what there is of that is mostly made up of stock footage. The movie is very talky, and very static, and there's not much energy to it. 

At this time Universal was building up Lew Ayres to be a big star, due to his leading role in ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT, but the studio did him no favors when it came to IRON MAN. Ayres is totally miscast as a supposedly tough boxing champion. His Kid Mason is a very lightweight fighter--he looks as if he couldn't last a round with anyone--and the character acts hesitant and unsure throughout most of the film. It's hard to take Ayres seriously in the role when Jean Harlow looks better built than he does. 

Lew Ayres and Jean Harlow in IRON MAN

Speaking of Harlow, her cleavage is the most standout part of this film. Her Rose is the typical bad girl who is greedy, cynical, and caustic. As soon as she shows up, you just know she's going to cause the Kid trouble. Harlow more than fills the requirements of the part, but you get the feeling she wasn't too happy playing someone who was so cheap and disagreeable. 

Robert Armstrong comes off way better than either Ayres and Harlow. He carries the film, and he has so much charisma one wonders why he isn't doing the boxing instead of Ayres. 

There isn't much of a supporting cast in IRON MAN, but I do need to point out Mike Donlin, who plays a small role. Donlin was a well-known Major League baseball player in the first two decades of the 20th Century, and he got into the entertainment industry after marrying a stage actress. Tod Browning had a major baseball connection of his own--his uncle was Pete Browning, a legendary 19th Century batting champion. 

IRON MAN will be of interest to film geeks due to its combination of Lew Ayres, Jean Harlow, and Tod Browning, but it isn't very entertaining. The print I watched of the film appeared to be edited slightly. According to DARK CARNIVAL, there was a scene which showed Jean Harlow getting punched in the mouth by the man she's having an affair with--but that wasn't in the version I saw. My guess is that IRON MAN was cut after the Production Code was strengthened to allow it to be re-released. Might an uncut version of this movie be released on home video someday?? Maybe, but I have a feeling that Disney/Marvel might have something to say about that. 

SONNY AND JED

 

SONNY AND JED (also known as LA BANDA J. & S., among a number of other alternate titles) is a bizarre 1972 Euro Western directed and co-written by Sergio Corbucci. I would describe the movie as a combination of BONNIE AND CLYDE and the TRINITY films. 

Naive prairie girl Sonny (Susan George) becomes infatuated with the vulgar and brazen bandit Jed Trigado (Tomas Milian). The two maintain a chaotic relationship while committing crimes and avoiding the reach of a vindictive lawman named Franciscus (Telly Savalas). 

Once again Tomas Milian plays a crazy peasant bandito, but this one is on a different level than the actor's other performances. Jed Trigado is as vicious, uncouth, foul, and unappealing as you can get. The man has no redeeming qualities whatsoever, other than protecting and feeding a poor Mexican village from time to time. If it wasn't for Milian's considerable screen presence Jed would be very hard to take, but the wide-eyed Sonny is absolutely smitten with him, even though Jed treats her worse than an disobedient pet. 

Susan George was one of the most put-upon actresses of her generation, when one considers what she went through in movies like FRIGHT, STRAW DOGS, and this one. Sergio Corbucci does not (surprisingly) take advantage of George's enticing looks--as Sonny she spends almost all the film dressed in ragged men's clothes that are far too big for her. (There is one scene in which Sonny is taking a bath, but she's discreetly covered in suds.) Not only is George de-glamorized here, she's also knocked around more than Curly Howard in a typical Three Stooges short. Jed physically (and verbally) assaults Sonny multiple times, and she's also beaten up by Telly Savalas and a group of prostitutes. Despite this level of degradation, Sonny carries on regardless, refusing to back down to anyone almost out of spite. 

Needless to say, 21st Century viewers of SONNY AND JED would find the leading lady's predicament problematic, to say the least. (I can only imagine what those audio commentators who go on about "gender norms" and "agency" would say about this movie.) I assume that Sergio Corbucci thought the audience would be amused by Sonny and Jed's antics, or at least come to understand why they can't get away from each other, but I for one didn't think the couple was very appealing. Instead of being rebellious, the pair come off as lazy reprobates. (Case in point: after Sonny and Jed get married, they rob the priest, and then take off with the collection box.) 

Telly Savalas brings his usual bravado and his own considerable screen presence to the role of Franciscus. This could have been just another quirky spaghetti western villain, but Telly makes the man stand out, and he even makes the viewer understand why he's so determined to catch Jed. (I have to admit I was kind of rooting for Franciscus to succeed.) About halfway through the story Franciscus is blinded, but this actually makes him even more menacing. 

Among the supporting cast are such Euro Cult figures as Herbert Fux (LADY FRANKENSTEIN) and Eduardo Fajardo (DJANGO). Mention must be made of a couple of actors who appear in this film that had connections with Telly Savalas. Gene Collins fought alongside Telly in KELLY'S HEROES, and Victor Israel was the train baggage man who lets loose the creature in HORROR EXPRESS. 

I also need to mention Ennio Morricone's soundtrack for SONNY AND JED. The music is reflective and melancholic, at odds with the goofiness onscreen. Morricone gives more dignity and depth to Sonny and Jed than the actors or the situations do. 

Sergio Corbucci made some of the best Euro Westerns of all time, but SONNY AND JED is one of his lesser efforts. It's hard to appreciate the dopey criminality of the title pair, and the Old West presented here is muddy, cold, and depressing. I had seen SONNY AND JED a couple of times, but the visual quality was terrible for each viewing. The movie is now available on Tubi, and their version is at least much more watchable. SONNY AND JED needs a proper Region A home video release.