Docks of San Francisco (1932)

Barbary Coast, San Francisco. The gangster moll Belle gets deeply entangled with gangsters led by her boyfriend Vance. The professional writer John Banning understands why Belle got ... See full summary »

Director:

George B. Seitz

Writer:

H.H. Van Loan (story and screenplay)

Stars:

Mary Nolan, John Davidson, Marjorie Beebe

Cast

Cast overview:
Mary Nolan	...	Belle
John Davidson	...	Vance
Marjorie Beebe	...	Rose Gillen
Jason Robards Sr.	...	John Banning (as Jason Robards)
William Haynes	...	Reggie - the Detective
Max Davidson	...	Max Ranovich

Storyline

Barbary Coast, San Francisco. The gangster moll Belle gets deeply entangled with gangsters led by her boyfriend Vance. The professional writer John Banning understands why Belle got involved with these criminals. Banning tries to help her get out of that seedy life. However, It is not easy. A lot of action and violence ensues before Belle eventually succeeds.

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Plot Keywords:

gangster | waitress | cafe | violence | racketeer | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 February 1932 (USA)

Also Known As:

Docas de S. Francisco

Filming Locations:

International Film Studios - 1339 Gordon Street, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ralph M. Like Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

64 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This film is one of over 200 titles in the list of independent feature films made available for television presentation by Advance Television Pictures announced in Motion Picture Herald 4 April 1942. At this time, television broadcasting was in its infancy, almost totally curtailed by the advent of World War II, and would not continue to develop until 1945-1946. Because of poor documentation (feature films were often not identified by title in conventional sources) no record has yet been found of its initial television broadcast; its earliest documented telecast in the New York City area occurred Saturday 19 August 1950 on WATV (Channel 13).

User Reviews

A decent plot but sub-par otherwise

This is a lower grade film – what people refer to as a poverty row production. It has a second tier of actors, none of whom perform very well. The direction is spotty in a very poor quality film. The only thing going for the film was its plot. It's just enough to keep one's interest. The film has some intrigue and good action in a couple of places. This is crime drama that could make a very good remake with a better cast, better direction and better production quality.

The lead actor in "Docks of San Francisco" is Jason Robards Sr. He had a long career in films and TV, though he never reached the level of success of his famous son, Jason Robards, Jr. The lead actress in this is Mary Nolan who had begun acting under her real name, Mary Robertson. She had a scandalous relationship early in her career, and a wild life with drugs and an abusive relationship – all of which helped her quick demise on stage and screen. She died in obscurity at age 42 from cardiac arrest.