Room Service, Comfortable Beds and a Machine Gun on the Roof

A few weeks ago, I wrote about the awesomely fun RKO film Men of America (1932), in which cowboys battled Chicago-style gangsters.  The DVD I now own containing that movie is actually a double-feature, matched up with another awesomely fun RKO movie from that same year.

Roar of the Dragon starts with an effective information dump, delivered to us via newspaper headlines, news banners posted on walls and a bandit leader being briefed by one of his men. This is how we find out that a large group of brutal bandits, led by a Russian renegade named Voronsky—is rampaging around Manchuria while the Chinese army is too busy fighting a war to notice.

Voronsky, by the way, is played by perpetual villain C. Henry Gordon. Gordon outdoes his usual screen villainy here—he practically exudes evil right through the TV screen.

Voronsky’s men had attacked a riverboat commanded by the usually drunk but always competent Captain Carson (Richard Dix). The bandits were driven off and Voronsky now has a mangled ear from where Carson bit him.

All this is wonderful stuff, setting up the story and the necessary ambiance for the film, but I really which the budget and running time of the movie had allowed us to see the riverboat battle rather than just be told about it. That would have been cool.

But the movie doesn’t lack action we get to actually witness. The riverboat is now at a nearby city, being repaired while the captain and the passengers stay at a local hotel. When the bandits attack the city, the hotel is besieged, with Carson taking charge of the defense. A machine gun set up on the roof allows them to hold off the bandits, but they have limited food and water. After some battles, ammunition runs low as well. That they took in a half-dozen Chinese orphans stretches their supplies even thinner.

So the bulk of the movie is a Last Stand, as Carson struggles with both defending the hotel from the bandits and dealing with those making panicky decisions inside the hotel. He also has a spy for the bandits inside with him, though he at first misidentifies a woman named Natascha (Gwili Andre) as this

He figures wrong and, perhaps a little too predictable, he and Natascha eventually fall in love.

But despite the awkward handling of this cliché, the movie as a whole is great. The tension is high throughout, as food runs out and the various people in the hotel handle the situation in different ways.

I especially enjoyed Edward Everett Horton as the hotel clerk Busby. Known for light comedy roles, Horton initially plays Busby in a slightly bumbling and very nervous manner. He’s got a crush on a travelling lady cornet player, though he obviously doesn’t stand a chance with her.

But then there’s actually a definable moment in the movie when you can see him make a decision to acknowledge Carson’s authority and make himself useful. As the movie continues, he does the jobs given him well, bonds with the lady he likes and eventually gets a Crowing Moment of Awesome. His character progression is clearly presented, believable and admirable.

The movie succeeds both as a cracking adventure story and on a surprisingly deep emotional level, as several character deaths during the film have an enormous impact on us.

At the climax, Carson realizes its time to make a break for the riverboat, with Carson putting himself at serious risk to allow the others to escape. This is a bit of a plot hole, since it means the bandits, while in control of the city, left the boat alone and allowed repairs on it to continue. But I suppose its possible that the bandits were concentrating their forces on the hotel, siince Voronsky is obsessed with killing Carson, and the crew of the boat was able to defend it and get is fixed up. Arguable plot hole aside, the climax is exciting stuff.

Another minor criticism is one the movie shares of Men of America. It suffers from Red Shirt Syndrome. As I mentioned, the named characters who die leave an impact on the story. But several Chinese who die defending the hotel are apparently forgotten about. It is probably fair to consider that this might be an aspect of the racism that was common in our culture at the time. But, on the other hand, the American characters are placing themselves at greater risk by taking in and feeding Chinese children without concern over their race. So perhaps it is simply Red Shirt Syndrome, involving characters who exist in a story merely because they are supposed to die to let us know something dangerous is happening.

But I’m nitpicking here. Roar of the Dragon is a great adventure story with a cast of actors who bring their various characters to life. Alive enough so that when some of them die, it can really bring a tear to your eye.