Filmed for what looks like pennies, The Law Commands is actually a better-than-average oater, which at least tried for something new. Not only is the hero (Tom Keene) a medical doctor but screenwriter Bennett R. Cohen awarded the villain (Robert Fiske) something as unusual for the genre as a wife (Charlotte Treadwell). Budd Buster, as the comedy relief, does a fair impression of George "Gabby" Hayes -- actually offering a "durn tootin'" at one point -- and Keene is obviously a better thespian than most of his low-budget rivals. Contrary to popular belief, a young Laraine Day (aka Lorraine Johnson does not play the heroine in this film. That honor went instead to a pretty brunette named Lorraine Hayes, who was the sister of character actress Bernadene Hayes.
The Law Commands (1938)
Directed by William Nigh
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