Waterfront Lady

Versatile, wondrously gifted 17-year-old West Coast radio actress Ann Rutherford was signed to a contract to star in Nat Levine's "Waterfront Lady" when the performer originally scheduled for the lead role was unavailable. Levine used her in numerous subsequent features and serials while she was under contract. Decades later, Ann recalled that she was delighted at the prospect of playing, at the age of 17, a "waterfront lady," and this - her first film - began for her a long and fruitful career in motion pictures.

Mascot employed a lot of seasoned professionals and turned out a good product, and this feature, well-scripted by Wellyn Totman and nicely directly by Joseph Santley, provides a fine cast with many opportunities to shine. During a raid on a gambling ship, the owner (Charles Wilson) accidentally kills a detective. The gambler's protégé (Frank Albertson) seeks to protect him, thus taking the blame for the crime, and making his escape to a house-boat on the dock, where he meets lovely Ann Rutherford and her unreliable father (J. Farrell McDonald). Romance ensues.

A subplot involves beautiful Barbara Pepper in one of her best roles, portraying the unfaithful sweetheart of the gambling ship's boss. Character parts are vividly enacted by Grant Withers (as Miss Rutherford's dull suitor), Smiley Burnette (as a one-man-band performer), Wally Albright (as an urchin on a houseboat), Ward Bond, Jack LaRue, Mary Gordon, Purnell Pratt, Mathilde Comont, and others - all excellent.

Such actors as Gene Autry and Smiley Burnette often remarked that Ann Rutherford was as thoroughly nice off-screen as she appeared to be in the roles she enacted. In later years, this writer found that assessment to be accurate. She was, indeed, an exceptionally pleasant and kind individual. This entertaining Mascot feature provided a fitting start for her splendid career.

Charles C. Wilson has just promoted Frank Albertson to partner on his gambling yacht. With no time wasted on screen, the cops raid the joint, Wilson gets into a fight with a rat with a gun in the dark -- when the lights come on, the rat is dead and Wilson is holding the gun. He hands Albertson the gun, and everyone tries to make a break. Wilson is captured. Albertson escapes into the tangle of shacks at the waterfront. Up comes J. Farrell MacDonald in a marvelous drunk act, with his daughter, Ann Rutherford in her first credited role. Albertson hides out, romances Rutherford despite the objections of seaman Grant Withers and.... well, it's just the sort of movie I enjoy, lots of funny incidents in the Thimble Theater world of the docks amidst the gangster melodrama. It plays with genres in ways that kept me guessing, thanks to a fine script by Wellyn Totman and Joseph Fields, fast direction by the under-rated Joseph Santley, excellent camerawork by B Western specialist Ernest Miller and crackerjack editing by Ray Curtiss under the supervision of Joseph H. Lewis. A couple of montages near the end are as good as anything Don Siegel did.

It's one of those surprisingly good B movies that the Majors would turn out when no one was looking. That makes it all the more amazing that it's a Nat Levine production for Mascot; usually that would be a warning, and that's undoubtedly why you haven't heard of it. And now you have.

This 1935 Poverty Row picture, competently directed by Joe Santley, much of it played on the cheapest waterfront set that Mascot Pictures could build, benefits from an extremely appealing cast headed by the very likable Frank Albertson with lovely Anne Rutherford in her first role. Both are very natural. They are surrounded by a number of familiar faces- J. Farrell MacDonald, Ward Bond, Jack La Rue, Mary Gordon, and even Smiley Burnett as a mustachioed Italian accordion player. He also wrote the songs. The script by Wellwyn Totman is much better than the usual Mascot fare. Fast-moving and entertaining. A lot of value for the buck.

"Waterfront Lady" is a low-budget public domain B-movie from small-time Mascot Pictures. However, unlike some Bs, this one does have a few established Hollywood actors in the film. Though none of them were big stars (such as J. Farrell MacDonald, Grant Withers, Jack LaRue and Ward Bond), it is nice to see their familiar faces. Ann Rutherford appears here in her first film and IMDb's trivia about this is interesting. The film's title would make you think that the film stars a woman, Frank Albertson is clearly the star. The film begins aboard a gambling ship. Just before it's raided, a stool pigeon and the boss are engaged in a tussle--and in the process the stoolie is killed. Being an all-around sucker, Albertson covers for the boss and is now a hunted man. He hides out along the waterfront and in the process he meets nice Ann Rutherford and falls for her--though she has no idea he's a wanted man and professional gambler. Despite this, he's a pretty likable guy and romance begins to blossom--until his identity is revealed and is forced to flea. Can this all be worked out for a happy ending? Well, what do you think?!

Overall, despite the film's very modest budget, it's a rather agreeable film--mostly due to some decent writing--though the final fight sequence is a bit dopey. Now understand...it is NOT a great film but a very watchable B-movie--especially if you like this sort of thing.

I wouldn't be surprised if MGM allowed poverty row Masacot Pictures to shoot a lot of this film at the waterfront sets they used for Anna Christie. Waterfront Lady had a bit of the same look.

Young Frank Albertson a gambler has been taken into partnership by the owner of a big gambling boat Charles C. Wilson. Soon after in a fight Wilson kills a a complaining customer. When Alberrtson tries to get rid of the gun the cops tag him as the shooter..

Albertson takes refuge at the docks on a houseboat owned by J.Farrell MaDonald and his daughter Ann Rutherford. It's pretty plain and getting more obvious Albertson ain't no sailor. But Rutherford starts to fall for him anyway, much to the chagrin of Grant Withers who has staked out a claim.

This was a nice B film from one of the Poverty Row studios and apparently it wasn't butchered after being sold to television. Lack of production values is apparent. But it's a decent story with attractive players.