He Was Her Man (1934)

Dan Curly sends two hitmen to kill double-crossing Flicker Hayes, who retreats to a small village with ex-prostitute Rose to hide.

Director:

Lloyd Bacon

Writers:

Tom Buckingham (screenplay), Niven Busch (screenplay),

Stars:

James Cagney, Joan Blondell, Victor Jory

Cast

Complete credited cast:
James Cagney	...	Flicker Hayes, aka Jerry Allen
Joan Blondell	...	Rose Lawrence
Victor Jory	...	Nick Gardella
Frank Craven	...	Pop Sims, aka Jim Parker
Sarah Padden	...	Mrs. Gardella
Harold Huber	...	J.C. Ward, Curly's Hitman
Russell Hopton	...	Monk, Curly's Hitman
Ralf Harolde	...	Frank 'Red' Deering
John Qualen	...	Dutch, Santa Avila's Cabbie
Bradley Page	...	Dan 'Danny' Curly
Samuel E. Hines	...	Gassy
George Chandler	...	Highway Service Station Counterman
James Eagles	...	Whitey, the Driver (as James Eagle)

Storyline

Flicker Hayes informs the police after he sets up two men to be caught in a phony robbery attempt, because they were responsible for his going to prison. Dan Curly escapes, but the other kills a policeman and goes to the chair, so Dan wants two hitmen to get Flicker, who plans to leave the country. But he meets down-and-out Rose Lawrence, an ex-prostitute looking to hitch a ride to a small fishing village in the south to marry a Portuguese fisherman, and Flicker decides it would be a nice place to hide. After he seduces Rose, Flicker stakes her to a bus ticket and goes with her. But he's been spotted by Pop Sims, who follows them and reports Flicker's whereabouts to Dan. Meanwhile, Rose falls in love with Flicker, who is unaware that the hitmen are coming to kill him.

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Plot Keywords:

fisherman | portuguese | frame up | gangster | prostitution | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 June 1934 (USA)

Also Known As:

Without Honor

Filming Locations:

Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Vitaphone Corporation, The, Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

70 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Soundtracks

"On San Francisco Bay"
(uncredited)
Music by Gertrude Hoffman
Played during the opening panorama of San Francisco

User Reviews

Interesting change of pace

Although James Cagney once again appears as a disreputable underworld figure, there is in this portrayal no strutting, twitching, snapping, or pushing people around. As a double-crosser on the run from his former cohorts, he maintains an extremely low profile - yet the menace he represents surfaces in a smirk here, a sly smile there, a barely poised but ever watchful presence with the potential for violence - perhaps the quietest Cagney criminal you will ever see.

Joan Blondell also plays a familiar type, the down-on-her-luck girl who will trade her charms for money, but here, too, the approach to the part is much more subdued than what we find in her wisecracking gold-digger roles. World-weary, somber, reflective, resigned: there is no contradiction in her projecting a streetwise yet vulnerable woman who, though still young, has seen too much of life.

If the two stars don't exactly set off sparks (as each did playing opposite others), they give solid, honest performances - as does Victor Jory in a key supporting role. This film does not deserve to be forgotten.