I Take This Oath (1940)

The trials and tribulations of a group of newly sworn-in police officers.

Director:

Sam Newfield

Writers:

William A. Ullman Jr. (original story), George Bricker (screenplay)

Stars:

Gordon Jones, Joyce Compton, Craig Reynolds

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Gordon Jones	...	Steve Hanagan
Joyce Compton	...	Betty Casey
Craig Reynolds	...	Joe Kelly
J. Farrell MacDonald	...	Insp. Tim Ryan
Veda Ann Borg	...	Flo
Mary Gordon	...	Mrs. Eileen Hanagan
Robert Homans	...	Mike Hanagan
Sam Flint	...	Uncle Jim Kelly
Guy Usher	...	Police Captain Casey
Brooks Benedict	...	Burly
Edward Peil Sr.	...	Police Sergeant Riley
Budd Buster	...	Jones

Storyline

Steve Hannigan, joins the police force as a rookie after his father, a veteran policeman, has been murdered by a bomb placed by racketeers. Steve intends to find the gang-leader responsible for his father's death. He frequents gangster hangouts, searching for a clue, and starts to neglect his Police-school classes, where he is training under the supervision of his sweetheart's father, Captain Casey. He temporarily loses his police badge, but continues his quest.

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Plot Keywords:

police | police badge | sweetheart | racketeer | gangster | 

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Taglines:

A Romantic and Exciting Melodrama of the Metropolitan "Rookie" Bluecoats

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 May 1940 (USA)

Also Known As:

Police Rookie

Company Credits

Production Co:

Producers Releasing Corporation (PRC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

67 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This was the first release from PRC.

User Reviews

Corny in the extreme

First: I would never call this a film noir. It's a lackluster movie about police officers and criminals. It came out several years after its genre had died off.

The officer father of the hero speaks with a thick brogue. His loving wife never gets out of the kitchen unless she's at church.

Joyce Compton is the female lead. She plays a police officer's daughter in love with the main character. She got lots of work but was immortalized as Dixie Belle Lee in "The Awful Truth." Here, she wears bangs and has plucked eyebrows, a la Claudette Colbert. There are several reaction shoots of her that seem spliced in.

The movie has several goofs. In one, a b-girl sidles onto a bar stool. She's meant to be hot stuff. And indeed, she is played by the always attractive, often naughty Veda Ann Borg. But her behind seems to bang into the edge of the stool before she alights atop it. I suspect this was shot in one take.

If the print were better, it might be worth watching. But it is undistinguished. The acting never gets beyond adequate. And the plot holds few surprises.