In the Shadow of Hollywood: Highlights From Poverty Row

Midnight (1934)

One of Humphrey Bogart’s first featured roles was as a gangster in this "B" drama. A hard-hearted jury foreman (O.P. Heggie) sees to it that a woman convicted of murdering her cheating spouse is sentenced to death, only to face a crisis of conscience when his daughter (Sidney Fox) commits a similar act. With Henry Hull, Helen Flint. AKA: "Call It Murder." 73 min. BW/Rtg: NR

Back Page (1934)

In this lighthearted comedy, an idealistic young reporter (Peggy Shannon) quits her job after a very controversial story is stopped by her editor. She then takes a job as an editor herself, working for a paper in California, but soon discovers a corrupt plot to defraud the citizenry in an oil scheme-an operation that reaches higher than she could have imagined. Can she get the facts out to the public...or will her crusading voice be silenced again? Russell Hopton, Sterling Holloway co-star. 63 min. BW/Rtg: NR

Woman In The Dark (1934)

Based on a Dashiell Hammett story, this noirish melodrama stars Ralph Bellamy as an ex-con who is desperate to put his past mistakes behind him. After moving to a remote cabin, he finds his plans complicated when the beautiful Louise (Fay Wray) arrives on his doorstep during a storm with hopes of finding shelter and a safe place to hide from her abusive gangster boyfriend. With Melvyn Douglas, Roscoe Ates. AKA: "Woman in the Shadows." 69 min. BW/Rtg: NR

The Crime of Dr. Crespi (1935)

Erich von Stroheim stars as a mad scientist who finds a unique way to stop his romantic rival: inject him with a serum, leaving him in suspended animation, then bury him alive. This loose treatment of Edgar Allan Poe’s "The Premature Burial" co-stars Dwight Frye and Paul Guilfoyle. 63 min. BW/Rtg: NR

Standard; Soundtrack: English; audio commentary.