Dante's Inferno (1935)

Jim Carter moves in on the McWade's carnival concession which shows scenes from Dante's "Inferno". He makes it a going concern, marrying Betty along the way. An inspector calls the ... See full summary »

Director:

Harry Lachman

Writers:

Philip Klein (screen play), Robert Yost (screen play) (as Robert M. Yost)

Stars:

Spencer Tracy, Claire Trevor, Henry B. Walthall

1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Spencer Tracy	...	Jim Carter
Claire Trevor	...	Betty McWade
Henry B. Walthall	...	Pop McWade
Alan Dinehart	...	Jonesy
Scotty Beckett	...	Alexander Carter (as Scott Beckett)
Robert Gleckler	...	Dean
Rita Hayworth	...	Dancer (as Rita Cansino)
Gary Leon	...	Dancer
Willard Robertson	...	Inspector Harris
Morgan Wallace	...	Capt. Morgan

Storyline

Jim Carter moves in on the McWade's carnival concession which shows scenes from Dante's "Inferno". He makes it a going concern, marrying Betty along the way. An inspector calls the amusement pier unsafe but Carter bribes him. The pier collapses, leading to the inspector's suicide, injury to Pop McWade, trial for Carter, and Betty's leaving him. Carter starts over with an unsafe floating casino.

---

Plot Keywords:

psychotronic film | damsel in distress | deception | treachery | safety inspector | 

---

Taglines:

A STARTLING DRAMA OF TODAY - REVEALING THE SECRETS OF ETERNAL HELL! (print ad - Lubbock Morning Avalanche - Texan Theatre - Lubbock, Texas - Feb. 20, 1936 - all caps)

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Certificate:

Passed

Did You Know?

Trivia

Spencer Tracy's erratic behavior on this film helped seal his fate with 20th Century-Fox. During filming Tracy disappeared from the set for weeks while on a drunken binge. He reportedly also showed up to the set one day surly and hung over and fell asleep in the "Manhattan apartment" set. The studio locked the stage while he was still asleep; Tracy woke up in a rage,and started destroying sets, reportedly causing thousands of dollars worth of damage for which the studio billed him.

---

Goofs

[All goofs for this title are spoilers.]

---

Quotes

Dean: There's nothing left for me now, but Hell. I thought you might like to watch me go there.

---

Connections

Features Dante's Inferno (1911)

---

Soundtracks

The Wedding March
(1843) (uncredited)
from "A Midsummer Night's Dream, Op.61"
Written by Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy
Played on a hurdy-gurdy for the wedding photograph

User Reviews

Modern Morality Drama

Today "Dante's Inferno" is seventy years old, and it was interesting to view the film uninterrupted on the Fox Movie Channel. Spencer Tracy's 28th of a whopping 78 film credits, and the young Rita Casino featured in a prominent dance sequence (before her last name became Hayworth) are points of particular interest here.

This is no routine melodrama: Director Harry Lachman, his writers and actors were into its moral message with dead earnestness. On display is Tracy giving it his all, along with impressive work from Claire Trevor and Alan Dinehart.

However, the basic crux of the tale, given the takeoff of Dante Alighieri was tough to take, as I personally don't believe in that poet's vision of either the underworld or its upper realmed counterpart. Too, the lengthy segment based on Gustav Dore's ridiculous lithographs were as meaningless and skewed as Michalangelo's and other Renaissance artists' graphic interpretations (all of which are traditionally designed to keep people spiritually restive, therefore controllable.)

Thus this enactment from a mythological perspective is pre-school mentality. From a pragmatic perspective, it has some cause and affect validity, in which blind ambition is felled by experienced tragedy.

Tracy's work is most effective, as he executes a flawed yet well-meaning character. Trevor beautifully supports him, rising to the challenge of a courtroom cross-examination in which she conflictingly supports her husband's business indiscretions.

Director Lachman keeps his film moving forward, while steering the entire production crew with a sure hand. For a film with its vintage, "Dante's Inferno" impressively holds its own.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 August 1935 (USA)

Also Known As:

Das Schiff des Satans

Filming Locations:

Ocean Park Pier, Santa Monica, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$748,900 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min (copyright length)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording)

Color:

Black and White (red tinted sequences)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1