The Hatchet Man

Naturally, the casting of Caucasian actors in Asian roles (see also "The Good Earth," "Dragon Seed," Charlie Chan, Mr. Moto, etc.) is a thing of the past. Casting Edward G. Robinson as a Chinese hit man is equivalent to doing a revival of "Flower Drum Song" with Hugh Jackman and Britney Spears. However, the plot of "The Hatchet Man" is well-thought out and surprisingly respectful of Chinese culture in America. Okay, they're killing each other, but is that any worse than, say, "The Godfather" series as relates to Italian-American culture? At least that don't have the Chinese characters saying things like, "Oh, me velly solly." Plus, the ending (which I won't spoil) is absolutely right and decidedly welcome.

This is a Hard-Hitting, Mysterious Looking, Gaudy Movie that Exudes Enough Oriental Charm and Tong Gangsterism to Make it an Oddity Well Worth Seeing. It's a Pre-Code Entry and Therefore has some Welcome Violence and Drug Doings.

Of Course, it Seems a Prerequisite to Mention that the Two Leads Playing Chinese are Not Chinese, but Edward G. Robinson and Loretta Young, both with the Help of Makeup and Silks can Pull this Off.

So with Apologies to the Politically Correct, this is After All a Time Capsule and Cannot be Faulted for being what it is. A Racist Industry Reflecting a Racist Society Without Such Sensitive Concerns, So We have to Make Our Amends in Retrospect.

This is a Gripping Story of Tradition and Circumstance and is a Darn Good Yarn. The Ending is Cutting Edge and the Film has Many Aspects that make it an Interesting Look Back on Hollywood and the Way it Presented Pictures to the Public.

Overall, a Must See for Film and Cultural Historians. The Movie Looks Fantastic and is Shadowy and Sultry, Violent and Seductive.

A hatchet job is what I fully intended to do to this movie until I found some quiet time in the afternoon to watch it. In fact I gave it an 8/10 for novelty as well as pathos. The casting is preposterous. Can you imagine Edward G Robinson and Loretta Young as Chinese?

Eddie G plays a well respected Tong assassin who is forced to kill his childhood friend and blood brother (played by J Carroll Naish) witch was no surprise. He inherits the friends business and 6 year old daughter for his effort. He prospers and when the girl grows up, he marries her. I should mention that Loretta Young was only 19 when she made this movie and she was remarkably sexy and seductive. Along comes another Tong War and Eddie is pulled out of retirement to do his stuff. Meanwhile his young wife falls for the bodyguard and runs off with him. Loretta and her lover are deported to China for messing about with opium. Although Eddie is initially shamed by her betrayal, he eventually redeems himself and his reputation. After all, he is a hatchet man!

This is one of EGR's lesser known movies, but if you can get over the bizarre casting, the story really is gripping and the cast turns in a bravo performance.

The Hatchet Man (1932)

So burdened with ethnic slandering—most of it "unintentional" at least—this movie is almost impossible to watch fairly. The basic story of inter-clan fighting and murder in the Chinese community (in San Francisco) is meant no doubt to have echoes in Italian mobster killings, and therefore have a wider appeal. But when the main characters are played by very non-Chinese talents (a product of the prejudice in Hollywood at the time), there is a constant woe and disbelief on many levels.

Of course, these problems are exactly why a "student' of early Hollywood should watch this. This is a way to get some sense of the problem these movies present. And there are additional reasons to see this—mainly the two really famous actors of the period doing their best to be Chinese. Edward G. Robinson is of course one of the greats of the era, an odd but searingly talented actor, and he plays well the head of one of the Chinese clans (or tongs). His wife has a smaller role but important —and so Loretta Young, a rising, fresh star, does what she can.

Nothing can redeem all this. The title refers to the violence of the subculture, where the solution for dishonor is death (by hatchet, literally).

There is the simplest of attempts to show how the Chinese were assimilating at the time. In a way the movie shows some shred of real life for the Chinatowns of America. The secondary theme here is love, and a kind of arranged marriage. This conflicts in different ways and Robinson, playing a Westernized immigrant, faces one aspect of this New World he can't quite understand. There are a couple of turns of plot to keep you alert, and a crazy ending worth seeing.

It's great to see Warner Archive put this out there in a clean copy, ready for all our various social biases. Maybe that's why it's worth it on some level. Never mind that it is often stiff and slow. Judge it as you can.

Hatchet Man, The (1932)

*** (out of 4)

Entertaining crime picture has Edward G. Robinson playing the title character, a hit man for a tong gang in Chinatown who must murder his best friend. Before the murder the man gives his daughter to Robinson so that he can marry her when she gets older. Years pass and Robinson and the girl (Loretta Young) are about to be married when another tong war breaks out. Director Wellman knows how to handle this material and does so very well and the film moves very fast and is over before you can blink. The fact that whites are playing all the Asian roles might bother some but nothing ever gets too offensive. Robinson gives a very good, quiet performance even though he's never believable as an Asian. He speaks with his normal voice so there's really never an attempt to come off Asian. Young is also very good in her role, although she isn't given a whole lot to do. I'm not sure if this is wrong or not but in her Asian make up she comes off as one of the most attractive Asian women I've seen. The supporting cast are all fine in their roles with J. Carrol Naish having a bit part. The story is pretty light weight but it remains entertaining through its 74-minutes.