This Day and Age (1933)
Directed by Cecil B. DeMille
Genres - Drama, Romance |
Sub-Genres - Urban Drama |
Release Date - Aug 25, 1933 (USA - Unknown), Aug 25, 1933 (USA) |
Run Time - 86 min. |
Countries - United States |
MPAA Rating - NR
Share on
Synopsis by Hal Erickson
Cecil B. DeMille's This Day and Age was perhaps the most Draconian entry in Hollywood's early-1930s "vigilante" film cycle. Richard Cromwell heads a group of civic-minded teenagers in a small midwestern town. When a lovable old tailor (Harry Green) is murdered by a notorious gangster (Charles Bickford), Cromwell and his pals demand justice. But the local government is terrified by the influential gangster; in fact, many of the city fathers are on the take. Enraged, the kids take matters in their own hands. In the near-fascist climax, a mob of teenagers kidnap Bickford, spirit him away to the city dump, and suspend him over a pit of rats until he confesses to the murder! This Day and Age was the sort of Depression-engendered film of desperation that all but vanished once Franklin Roosevelt was elected.
Characteristics
Themes
Keywords
midwestern, teenagers, vigilante, murder, tailor, justice, crime-lord