Top 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsMost Popular Video GamesMost Popular Music VideosMost Popular Podcasts
    Release CalendarBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersEmmysSTARmeter AwardsSan Diego Comic-ConNew York Comic-ConSundance Film FestivalToronto Int'l Film FestivalAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
Sign In
New Customer? Create account
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Bullets or Ballots

  • 19361936
  • PassedPassed
  • 1h 22m
IMDb RATING
7.0/10
3.2K
YOUR RATING
Bullets or Ballots (1936)
Trailer for this black and white gumshoe classic
Play trailer3:00
1 Video
72 Photos
CrimeDramaFilm-Noir
When a crusader against rackets is murdered, a grand jury battles the rackets by promoting McLaren to be in charge of the cleanup. He fires NYPD Detective Blake, who punches him and joins th... Read allWhen a crusader against rackets is murdered, a grand jury battles the rackets by promoting McLaren to be in charge of the cleanup. He fires NYPD Detective Blake, who punches him and joins the racket.When a crusader against rackets is murdered, a grand jury battles the rackets by promoting McLaren to be in charge of the cleanup. He fires NYPD Detective Blake, who punches him and joins the racket.
IMDb RATING
7.0/10
3.2K
YOUR RATING
    • William Keighley
    • Seton I. Miller(screen play)
    • Martin Mooney(story)
  • Stars
    • Edward G. Robinson
    • Joan Blondell
    • Barton MacLane
    • William Keighley
    • Seton I. Miller(screen play)
    • Martin Mooney(story)
  • Stars
    • Edward G. Robinson
    • Joan Blondell
    • Barton MacLane
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 36User reviews
    • 16Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    Bullets or Ballots
    Trailer 3:00
    Watch Bullets or Ballots

    Photos72

    Humphrey Bogart and Edward G. Robinson in Bullets or Ballots (1936)
    Edward G. Robinson and Joan Blondell in Bullets or Ballots (1936)
    Humphrey Bogart, Edward G. Robinson, Joan Blondell, Barton MacLane, and George E. Stone in Bullets or Ballots (1936)
    Humphrey Bogart, Edward G. Robinson, Barton MacLane, and George E. Stone in Bullets or Ballots (1936)
    Edward G. Robinson in Bullets or Ballots (1936)
    Edward G. Robinson in Bullets or Ballots (1936)
    Edward G. Robinson and Joe King in Bullets or Ballots (1936)
    Edward G. Robinson in Bullets or Ballots (1936)
    Tom Brower, Wallace Gregory, and Joe King in Bullets or Ballots (1936)
    Joan Blondell in Bullets or Ballots (1936)
    Edward G. Robinson and Joan Blondell in Bullets or Ballots (1936)
    Humphrey Bogart in Bullets or Ballots (1936)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Edward G. Robinson
    Edward G. Robinson
    • Johnny Blake
    Joan Blondell
    Joan Blondell
    • Lee Morgan
    Barton MacLane
    Barton MacLane
    • Al Kruger
    Humphrey Bogart
    Humphrey Bogart
    • 'Bugs' Fenner
    Frank McHugh
    Frank McHugh
    • Herman
    Joe King
    Joe King
    • Capt. Dan McLaren
    • (as Joseph King)
    Dick Purcell
    Dick Purcell
    • Ed Driscoll
    • (as Richard Purcell)
    George E. Stone
    George E. Stone
    • Wires Kagel
    Joseph Crehan
    Joseph Crehan
    • Grand Jury Spokesman
    Henry O'Neill
    Henry O'Neill
    • Ward Bryant
    Henry Kolker
    Henry Kolker
    • Mr. Hollister
    Gilbert Emery
    Gilbert Emery
    • Mr. Thorndyke
    Herbert Rawlinson
    Herbert Rawlinson
    • Mr. Caldwell
    Louise Beavers
    Louise Beavers
    • Nellie LaFleur
    Norman Willis
    Norman Willis
    • Louie Vinci
    Harry Adams
    • Clerk
    • (uncredited)
    Russell Beach
    • Prizefighter
    • (uncredited)
    Wilda Bennett
    • Grand Jury Woman
    • (uncredited)
      • William Keighley
      • Seton I. Miller(screen play) (story)
      • Martin Mooney(story)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    More like this

    Kid Galahad
    7.2
    Kid Galahad
    The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse
    7.0
    The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse
    Brother Orchid
    7.0
    Brother Orchid
    The Great O'Malley
    6.7
    The Great O'Malley
    Invisible Stripes
    6.7
    Invisible Stripes
    Marked Woman
    7.1
    Marked Woman
    'G' Men
    7.1
    'G' Men
    Each Dawn I Die
    7.3
    Each Dawn I Die
    Racket Busters
    6.0
    Racket Busters
    Conflict
    7.1
    Conflict
    Two Against the World
    6.1
    Two Against the World
    Black Legion
    6.9
    Black Legion

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Johnny Blake, played by Edward G. Robinson, was based on real-life New York City policeman Johnny Broderick (c.1896-1966) aka "The Duke" or "the toughest cop on Broadway", while Al Kruger, played by Barton MacLane, was based on notorious gangster Dutch Schultz.
    • Goofs
      When Fenner and Kruger are in the theatre watching Ward Bryant's newsreel re-creation of mobsters collecting money from the nickel game machines, there are school children playing the machines. Later on in the real-world, when the police raid Schultz Drug Store and confiscate the nickel game machines, school children are also shown playing the machines. But the school children in the real world are the same ones used in the re-creation including wearing the same clothes.
    • Quotes

      Lee Morgan: You're gonna take it away from Blake?

      'Bugs' Fenner: Yeah.

      Lee Morgan: Go ahead and take it.

      [Bugs moves in for a long kiss and gets slapped by Lee]

      Lee Morgan: The numbers game.

    • Connections
      Featured in Breakdowns of 1936 (1936)
    • Soundtracks
      The Lady in Red
      (1935) (uncredited)

      Music by Allie Wrubel

      Whistled by Edward G. Robinson

    User reviews36

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    8/10
    Edward G. Robinson: A Tough Guy With A Heart
    This turned out to be a decent '30s gangster movie, not a lot different from a few others I've seen where Humphrey Bogart plays the bad guy and is the main adversary of the hero. Several films had James Cagney up against him; here it was Edward G Robinson.

    Robinson plays policeman "Det. Johnny Blake," who goes underground, so to speak, by posing as a gang member to get the goods on them. (It's based on a real-life character.) Robinson, as usual, is very interesting to watch and is a tough guy BUT with a soft heart. In fact, he even feels bad about betraying the head crook because he has such principles of being a "straight shooter" that he doesn't feel right lying to anybody, even the gang leader "Al Krueger" (Barton MacLane).

    Bogart plays "Nick Fenner," Al's number-one guy and is more of the villain than his boss. Joan Blondell gets second billing but that's not right because she's at least fourth in the amount of screen time and lines. There really is no real love interest in this movie; it's strictly a crime story.

    When I first saw this movie, a little over a decade ago on VHS, I wasn't that impressed but last week, watching this on DVD, not only was the story better than I remembered but the picture was excellent. The blacks, whites and grays in here are beautiful. This was part of the "Tough Guys" DVD package and they did a wonderful job on the transfer.
    helpful•25
    4
    • ccthemovieman-1
    • Dec 23, 2006

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • June 6, 1936 (United States)
      • United States
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA
    • Production company
      • Warner Bros.
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • 1 hour 22 minutes
      • Black and White
      • Mono

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Bullets or Ballots (1936)
    Top Gap
    By what name was Bullets or Ballots (1936) officially released in Canada in English?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2023 by IMDb.com, Inc.