The Crowd Roars (1938) User Reviews

After All He's Got Hair On His Chest

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 19 September 2007]

After a bunch of early films where Robert Taylor was playing both modern and costumed romantic leads, taking full advantage of his extraordinary good looks, Robert Taylor asked for some more rugged type roles. Louis B. Mayer's answer to his most cooperative of stars was to cast him first in A Yank At Oxford and then in The Crowd Roars.

In the first film, Taylor rowed crew for dear old Oxford where he was a matriculating student. But in The Crowd Roars he's even more rugged as a boxer. The role was chosen for him so he could have lots of opportunities to go bare-chested and show that in fact he's got hair on his chest. Taylor himself made that comment and back in those more innocent days it was to show he was not a powderpuff as if having follicles on your anterior was proof of that.

Overlooked in this hairy situation was the fact that Robert Taylor got a very fine role for himself as a boxer determined to make a quick buck and get out as fast as possible before becoming a punch drunk rummy. He's had poor and he's had rich and rich was better. Back when he was poor he was living hand to mouth with a near do well father, Frank Morgan, and a gentle mother who took in washing because her husband couldn't hold down a job. Taylor's mother in The Crowd Roars was played by Emma Dunn in a brief, but very telling role.

Anyway when young Gene Reynolds grows up to be Robert Taylor he's now supporting dear old dad who's still drinking and gambling. Those two habits are nearly the undoing of his son when he falls into the hands of rival gamblers Edward Arnold and Nat Pendleton. The usual bumbling oaf that Frank Morgan portrays on screen is played far more serious here. It's one of Frank Morgan's best screen roles.

Arnold has his secrets also, his daughter Maureen O'Sullivan and her ditzy friend Jane Wyman think Arnold is a stockbroker, as if that wasn't also gambling. Taylor in courting Sullivan does not disillusion her.

Look for another good performance by William Gargan as a former Light Heavyweight champion who takes an interest in young Gene Reynolds and Lionel Stander as Gargan's trainer and later Taylor's trainer.

The Crowd Roars is a fine film from MGM that went a long way in expanding Robert Taylor's range as thespian.

And we proved he had hair on his chest.

old-fashioned entertainment

[blanche-2 · 7/10 · 4 June 2005]

This is the kind of old-fashioned entertainment that the studios used to churn out every week. Gorgeous Robert Taylor plays a prize fighter, Frank Morgan his moronic father, Edward Arnold a mob boss, and Maureen O'Sullvian is Arnold's beautiful daughter, who falls in love with Taylor. And hello, who wouldn't.

This is a piece very much of its time. Today, the relationship between the Tommy McCoy character as a young kid and the light heavyweight title holder Martin would be instantly suspect. How the world has changed.

The film manages to hold one's interest, especially with its exciting fight sequences. As an added treat, "Hart to Hart" co-star Lionel Stander, who played "Max," has a supporting role. I'd know that voice anywhere.

That was the unluckiest punch I ever threw

[sol1218 · 7/10 · 5 June 2005]

**SPOILERS** Handsome, and too pretty to be a pug, Robert Taylor as boxer Tommy McCoy is quite convincing in the ring as a professional boxer as he is out of it. Where he has all the young ladies,on the screen and in the audience, going completely bananas over him including pretty Sheila Carson, Maureen O'Sullivan. The daughter of his manager Jim Cain who's really big time Wall Street honcho James W. Carson, Edward Arnold.

Matched up in a bout with his good friend and boyhood hero former light Heavyweight Champ Johnny Martin, William Gargan. Tommy tries to go easy on the over-the-hill ex-champ but catches him with a solid left-hook in the second round that not only knocks Johnny out but ends up killing him. With Johnny leaving a wife and young son behind and nobody to look after them Tommy gives her his share of the purse. Instead of paying off his irresponsible dad's Brian McCoy, Frank Morgan, debt that he owes big-time-bookie Jim Cain. Tommy outraged to find out that his father sold out his contract to Cain walks out on him and boxing.

Out on the streets for six months without any work Tommy comes back to Cain for a job and agrees, reluctantly, to fight for him, giving 10% of his purse to the later Johnny Martin's Famiy, at the same time have his dad front as his manager.

At the Carson Estate, where Cain told Tommy that he rented out, Tommy, after meeting Carson's daughter Sheila, realized that Carson is really Wall Street Banker James W. Carson. To his credit Tommy doesn't tell Sheila that not to hurt her by exposing her fathers double life. Cain uses Tommy in a scam to trick big-time gamblers like his fellow bookie "Pug" Walsh,Nat Pendleton, to bet against him. Telling them that Tommy a left-handed one punch palooka without a right hand. After a string of "lucky punch" victories by Tommy "Pug" starts to get suspicious about Cain playing him as a sucker. One day, together with members of his gang, Cain runs into Tommy's dad at a local bar.

Drunk and talking freely about the scam being pulled by both Tommy and Cain the unaware Mr. McCoy spills the beans and ends up being kidnapped by the Walsh gang. Finding out about Cain's scheme and him having a daughter who's in love with Tommy the mobsters also kidnap Sheila. Tommy's informed through a flower-gram to throw the fight he having that night at the garden if he ever want's to see them alive again.

Told to take a dive in the eight round, Pug bet $10,000.00 for that to happen, means that Tommy has to take a vicious beating for seven rounds. Tommy just about out on his feet by the time the eight round starts finds out from Sheila, who escaped from the Walsh Mob, that his dad in the end made up for all the heartbreak that he did to him and his mom through the years. In one final and unselfish act Mr. McCoy became the father to Tommy that up until then he never was; you can just guess what happened in that faithful eight round after The battered and almost beaten Tommy McCoy heard that bit of news.

When more is less

[jaykay-10 · 1 November 2003]

There is enough plot here for five pictures (all of which were made before this one), probably to compensate for paper-thin characters and a total lack of plausibility. The script tries earnestly to justify the unmarked features of a boxer who looks exactly like the young, very handsome Robert Taylor. Dewy-eyed Maureen O'Sullivan is sent to a finishing school by her unsavory (until the end) father, gambler Edward Arnold, but manages to become involved with the fight game (and Robert Taylor) when his training camp is set up at her country home! Low-key believable performances by Lionel Stander and William Gargan are helpful, but Jane Wyman is something of an embarrassment as a flirty, Southern-drawling cutie pie, and Frank Morgan dithers and chortles his way through yet another characteristic role.

Robert Taylor strips!

[a-east · 7/10 · 12 December 2012]

MGM had once used ad-lines which proclaimed "Garbo talks!" and "Garbo laughs!" For this movie they might have used "Robert Taylor strips!" Female fans had always swooned over the romantically handsome Taylor but men supposedly found him too much of a "pretty boy" who too often appeared in soapy costume dramas. Anxious to increase his appeal, and with Taylor's enthusiastic consent, MGM decided to toughen up their rising star's image by casting him as a prizefighter with a dark edge in a gritty (by MGM standards) boxing movie. First, the movie teases its audience by an opening twelve-and-a-half minute sequence detailing the childhood of its protagonist. (Gene Reynolds plays the young Robert Taylor). Then, ta-dah!, we see the adult protagonist, introduced with a shot of his bare, sweaty back as he works out in a boxing gym. Wait, there's more! The camera moves position and we now see Taylor's bare chest, also sweaty, complete with an inverted triangle of chest hair beginning at the collarbones and extending down to the sternum. (One imagines a make-up team carefully trimming and combing this hair to give it just the right effect.) For the next seven minutes Taylor appears bare-chested -- working out at a punching bag, retiring to a dressing room, taking a shower, appearing with a towel tied around his waist. Later in the movie he's shown soaking in a bathtub, (while reading "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire"), and then there are various boxing matches full of sweaty, face-punching action. All this "beefcake," showcased in a slick, satisfying, well-cast package, apparently did the trick because Taylor soon emerged as one of MGM's brightest and most durable stars. Curiously, Taylor rarely again took off his shirt, so if you want to see his nipples showcased in all their Hollywood glory, you better watch "The Crowd Roars."

Dated story, but exciting fight scenes!

[JohnHowardReid · 7/10 · 12 February 2018]

Copyright 1 August 1938 by Loew's Inc. A Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer picture. New York opening at the Capitol: 4 August 1938. U.S. release: 5 August 1938. 10 reels. 92 minutes. (An excellent DVD is available from the Warner Archive).

SYNOPSIS: A wiseacre once remarked, "If you've seen one boxing picture, you've seen the lot!" The Crowd Roars is a testament to the truth of that remark.

NOTES: Re-made by M-G-M in 1947 with Mickey Rooney as Killer McCoy. . COMMENT: This story is now well and truly dated. Frank Morgan is allowed to over-act atrociously, but the fight scenes still pack a considerable wallop. And despite the fact that I knew how it was going to turn out, the climax still had me sitting on the edge of my seat with excitement.

Aside from over-active Frank Morgan, the cast is fine. Make-up and photography (John Seitz) are marvelous. Taylor actually looks as if he is really undergoing a beating!

Change of Pace for Taylor

[drjgardner · 6/10 · 10 September 2015]

"The Crowd Roars" is 1938 black and white boxing film starring Robert Taylor as "Killer" McCoy. It was remade (less successfully) in 1947 with Mickey Rooney.

Good looking Robert Taylor (1911-69) plays a boxer in an attempt by MGM to move him away from his "pretty boy" image in films like "Magnificent Obsession" (1935) and "Camille" (1936). He followed this one with two of his most memorable - "Ivanhoe" (1952), and "Knights of the Round Table" (1953). If you're a Taylor fan, you'll enjoy his role as a tough guy.

Maureen O'Sullivan (1911-1998) plays Taylor's love interest. She teamed with Taylor the same year in "A Yank in Oxford" (1938). She's most famous for playing Jane 6 times in the Tarzan films (1932-1942) but unlike Weissmuller, she played many other roles during that time, including "Tugboat Annie" (1933), "The Thin Man" (1934), "A Day at the Races" (1937), and "Pride and Prejudice" (1940). She slowed down in the 40s to devote time to her husband and 7 children, one of whom is the actress Mia Farrow.

Edward Arnold (1890 – 1956) plays the crime boss. He appeared in more than 100 films from 1916 to 1956. He's best known for playing Daniel Webster in "The Devil and Daniel Webster" (1941) and Diamond Jim Brady in "Diamond Jim". He's one of the few hefty men who were ever able to achieve leading man status, but staying "hefty" (and not going to fat) was such a problem for him that he ultimately decided to let his girth expand while his stardom faded. This earned him many meaty character roles.

Frank Morgan (1890-1949) plays Taylors' father. Morgan will forever be remembered as the "Wizard of Oz" (1939) but this was only 1 of nearly 100 film performances between 1916 and 1950, including Oscar nominations for "The Affairs of Cellini" (1934) and "Tortilla Flat" (1942).

Beautiful Jane Wyman (1917-2007) plays O'Sullivan's friend. She is best known for her Oscar winning performance in "Johnny Belinda" and her recurring role as Angela Channing on "Falcon Crest" (1981-90). Other notable roles include "Lost Weekend" (1945), "The Yearling" (1946), "The Glass Menagerie" (1950), and "Magnificent Obsession" (1954). She racked up 4 Oscar nominations, 2 Emmy nominations, and won the Golden Globe 3 times. She was Ronald Reagan's first wife (1940-48).

Well known boxers Maxie Rosenblum, Jim McLarin, and Jack Roper also appear.

Variety called it exciting melodrama with plenty of ring action, some plausible romance and several corking good characterizations."

Richard Thorpe (1896-1991) was a busy director with MGM, with more than 185 films between 1924 and 1967, receiving critical praise for his work on "The Great Caruso" (1951), "Ivanhoe" (1952), and "Knights of the Round Table" (1953).

There are dozens of boxing films. My favorites are "The Champ" (1931), "Champion" (1949), "Cinderella Man" (2005), "The Fighter" (2010), "Raging Bull" (1980), "Requiem for a Heavyweight" (1956), and "Rocky" (1976). Not included in this list are several films about fighters but the fight action is secondary (e.g., "On the Waterfront", "The Quiet Man", "The Great White Hope", "Snatch").

Robert Taylor as a professional boxer?!

[planktonrules · 6/10 · 4 June 2010]

I like Robert Taylor films and every time one comes on TV, I am sure to watch it. However, despite my enjoying his movies, I must admit that the casting in "The Crowd Roars" is simply insane. The idea of the Taylor playing a professional boxer is just ludicrous. He simply comes off as too scrawny and too pretty. His moniker, "Killer" McCoy, seems awfully silly.

The begins with Frank Morgan the ne'er-do-well father of a nice young boy who eventually grows up and is then played by Taylor. In the interim, the rotten father exploits his kid in every possible way in order to avoid having to get a real job. Eventually, Taylor makes his mark as a boxer--and up and coming fighter who is befriended by the champion (William Gargan). Along the way two serious problems occur. First, Morgan blows through his son's money like mad and never shows any regard for his meal ticket! This gets so bad, he eventually sells his son's contract! Why Taylor has anything to do with this jerk is beyond me--there is NOTHING redeeming about him (perhaps this is a weakness of the film, actually--making the father too unlikable and selfish--fortunately, this was mitigated at the end). Second, along the way towards to the top, Taylor meets up in the ring with his friend. The Champ is now old and retired--and comes out of retirement because he needs the money. In this fight, the Champ goes down and stays down--dead. Taylor freaks out and, temporarily, leaves the fight game--too upset to continue. But, as his father wouldn't let him go to school or learn a decent trade, he's only good as a fighter and is forced to return.

By this point, Taylor is owned by a wealthy guy (Edward Arnold) who, for some reason, wants to remain completely incognito. And, he instructs Taylor to tell no one about their arrangement. Along the way, he meets Arnold's charming daughter (Maureen O'Sullivan) and it's pretty obvious that they'll fall in love. In addition, there is a plot involving a kidnapping just before 'the big fight'! Overall, a moderately engaging but oddly cast film. It's got quite a few clichés but because the actors are so good it still is enjoyable--even if it completely lacks realism.

Starring Robert Taylor, later remade as Killer McCoy (1947) with Mickey Rooney

[jacobs-greenwood · 6/10 · 17 October 2016]

Not to be confused with the 1932 film (starring James Cagney as a race car driver) of the same name.

Quick summary - a boxing movie about a young boy with a deadbeat father that, under the tutelage of a boxing champion becomes a successful boxer himself until he kills his former mentor (trying to make a comeback for financial reasons) in the ring. He then tries to give up the game but is lured back into it by financial need of his own and a gambler whose daughter he falls in love with, only to be imperiled by his father's loose lips about the gambler's secret.

Later remade, almost shot for shot, as Killer McCoy (1947) except that Mickey Rooney played both the young and the older Tommy McCoy character. This original was directed by Richard Thorpe.

Other cast differences from Killer McCoy (1947) include Robert Taylor as "Killer" McCoy, Frank Morgan as his father, Edward Arnold as Jim Cain (the gambler), William Gargan as Johnny Martin, Lionel Standler as Happy (the trainer), Maureen O'Sullivan plays Sheila, Nat Pendleton plays the gangster that Cain scams, and J. Farrell MacDonald as Father Ryan. I'm not sure which version I prefer, both are above average with capable casts and a compelling story.

Another change when compared to the remake is the way in which Tommy and Sheila begin dating. In this one, Jane Wyman is a friend of Sheila's that invites Tommy to their private girls school dance; in the remake, Tommy takes Sheila out for a date after his fight with Sailor Graves. Plus, young Tommy (Gene Reynolds) is a solo pre- fight singer when he meets his boxing mentor Johnny Martin in this film whereas Mickey Rooney's Tommy does a dance act with his father in the remake (and the impetus for Tommy going into the ring to fight is due to his father's bet in the former vs. a newspaper selling dispute in the latter). Lastly, 10 (vs. 5) years pass between the beginning and the "present day" parts in this one (vs. the remake).

A Definite Classic

[rob-1003 · 10/10 · 1 June 2005]

With such a wonderful story or plot, this movie overcomes the bias that one might have for the believability of Robert Taylor as a boxer. You can't help but pull for Tommy McCoy to win. If you like a myriad of emotions within a movie then I would definitely recommend this one. I laughed, choked back a tear and I was on the edge of my seat during the ending. This movie has everything that makes a great movie. It has a wonderful plot, a great lead actor with a great supporting cast, a beautiful actress (Maureen O'Sullivan), good versus evil, suspense and a surprise ending. The Crowd Roars is a gem that I plan on adding to my collection. You don't have to be a sports fan to love this one, but it does help. I can't understand how this movie has gotten lost in roar of the crowd.

"I know this game, I'm in it for the dough."

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 19 February 2016]

The story here is a decent one but you have to overlook some of the less than credible elements. Perhaps it would have been easier back in the Thirties for an investment banker to masquerade as a big time bookie or vice versa, but it seemed like a stretch to me that Jim Carson (Edward Arnold) could keep his identity a secret with a daughter in a prestigious girl's school. It seemed like no one ever knew about his dual life until Tommy McCoy (Robert Taylor) came on the scene as a boxing protégé of former champ Johnny Martin (William Gargan).

So there's that, along with the credibility factor of Robert Taylor's character Tommy dumping Carson/Cain after Tommy's alcoholic father (Frank Morgan) sold his son's contract to the mobster. Can you really do that and knock around for six months without the guy's goons coming around looking for you? I thought that was a bit of a stretch.

Come to think of it, the whole movie was a stretch but at the same time it's kind of an entertaining romance story once Tommy meets Sheila Carson (Maureen O'Sullivan). Sheila's gal pal Vivian probably has the picture's best line when she hits the dance floor with Tommy and exclaims "Uh well, ah, I mean I think your tights are cute,... and so are your tails". You can interpret that any way you want but it came across a little goofy when it happened. Probably why Vivian got whisked off the floor, never to be heard from again in the picture.

You know, I'm reading some of the other review comments for the film and see that some viewers comment favorably on the boxing scenes but I don't get it. To me, most of the fights seemed staged pretty poorly with a lot of push punching and awkward footwork. With Tommy feigning a useless right hand, the lucky punch gimmick was over done, even though it got Killer McCoy through a series of under cards well enough.

For me, the best scenes generally were the ones with Frank Morgan on screen. Even though he played a cad of a father to Tommy, he had that calculating Professor Marvel manner about him that made him seem a natural among the other con men in the story. I wouldn't have minded at all if he had made it to the end of the movie.

A rougher and tougher Robert Taylor emerges

[reelguy2 · 10/10 · 21 May 2002]

This sensational boxing film introduced a rougher and tougher Robert Taylor to 1938 audiences, the result of a well-publicized body building regimen under the personal supervision of Max Baer. Taylor plays Tommy McCoy, a handsome boxer who has to contend with the mob, his drunken father, and the prospect of having his perfect pan punched to a pulp.

An older fight movie with the usual happy ending

[dfwesley · 5/10 · 6 January 2017]

It's a pleasure seeing the old standbys again, Robert Taylor, Edward Arnold, Frank Morgan, Lionel Stander, and others. Taylor, being a professional fighter, has the most handsome face in the business. No cauliflower ears, no mashed nose, or split lips, not on that face!! And certainly, Maureen O'Hara is the oldest looking student in that school for girls!

Crosses and double crosses abound as the big fight approaches. Taylor, about to be knocked into oblivion, rallies when he hears the news his kidnapped sweetheart has turned up, and scores a kayo over his opponent

All's well that ends well, the baddie is arrested, Taylor retires from the fight game, marries O'Hara, and is blessed by a now pleasant and contented mobster father in law, Edward Arnold.

The Crowd Roars is excellent!

[buddha-21 · 9/10 · 14 December 1999]

This version is 10X the quality of the later (1947) Mickey Rooney version. Even though Rooney makes some "cute" comments, the lack of "feel" for the story is apparent. Watch both and you'll agree. This version is EXCELLENT. Much better fighting scenes, too. And a definitely better love angle...

The Crowd Raves for Robert Taylor

[HarlowMGM · 10/10 · 6 April 2012]

THE CROWD ROARS is a sensational boxing drama with a terrific cast at their best. Robert Taylor stars as Tommy McCoy, raised in poverty thanks to his drunken failed vaudevillian of a father, Frank Morgan. Tommy is both a choir boy and a scrapper as a child and starts to earn a little coin singing at public events like a boxing match. When he sings at an event which has kids his own age boxing, his father bets the champion's father Tommy can beat him. He does so quite impressively and becomes a little brother figure to the adult champion William Gargan, a local guy. Gargan trains Tommy who as the years go by continues to climb the ladder while Gargan has peaked and at one point is no longer active. Ultimately, Gargan returns to the ring desperate for money and has to fight his own protégé.

Tommy's skills in the ring attract the attention of gambling king Edward Arnold, to whom Tommy's father owes $600. Ultimately the shady Arnold becomes Tommy's manager and Tommy accidentally stumbles upon Arnold's secret life, with a débutante daughter (Maureen O'Sullivan) and society circles thinking Arnold is a Wall Street executive, including daughter Maureen.

This movie is terrific! There's some really good laughs in it, quite a bit of poignancy, and action non-stop. Robert Taylor is perfectly cast as a fairly gentle soul who is in the boxing racket strictly for the money and the escape from poverty. Taylor may be the most gorgeous man in pictures in his era but he's extremely believable as a boxer, with some of the best punches thrown in the ring that you will see from a bona fide movie star. Did I mention he was gorgeous? Well I had to do it again because this film revels in his masculine handsomeness, with his superb physical shape shown frequently clad only in boxing shorts and a stunning mop of thick black hair in a style remarkably contemporary. Taylor's performance is tops too, always one of the screen's greatest "honorable" guys, this is one of his very best roles and he is wonderful in it.

Excellent support comes from Edward Arnold and Frank Morgan (the latter as a character so exasperating though it takes a long time for the audience to like him). Maureen O'Sullivan is lovely in the slender role of the girl Taylor loves. The movie is also notable for no less than four against-type casting bits that work extremely well. Nat Pendleton is best known for his lovable big goon parts in scores of MGM films from the era, here he's a scary mobster Arnold attempts to double-cross. Lionel Stander, on the other hand, often played mean characters but here he's Taylor's great pal of an assistant although as sardonic as ever. Isabel Jewell, so often cast as bimbos, is effective in a small part as a grieving wife while the very young Jane Wyman scores as a dizzy southern débutante who is Maureen's best pal and has quite a crush on Taylor herself.

THE CROWD ROARS curiously has little reputation among film buffs, that's a shame because it's one of the very best films made in 1938 and has everything a classic movie lover could want, a perfect MGM picture.

Excellent boxing film with superb character acting

[Setemkia · 8/10 · 22 October 2005]

One of the very best boxing films of the 1930's and early 1940's and very definitely much better than the 1947 remake with Mickey Roony as "Killer" McCoy. Robert Ryan looks like a light heavyweight and it looks like he can actually throw a punch. As a boxing fan I look for a sense of reality in the fights, and this film has it.

However, the best part of the film are the performances, especially Frank Morgan (the wizard in the 1939, Judy Garland version of "The Wizard of Oz"). Other notable performances are turned in by a young Lionel Stander as the killer's trainer (TV fans will remember him from Hart to Hart). Young and handsome Eddy Arnold is excellent as the gambler/manager. Maureen O'Sullivan carries off the role of the young, college girl love interest with the same innocence she displayed when she broke into films 9 years and 39 films earlier. It's quite a contrast to the more adult roles she was playing at the time.

Director Richard Thorpe captures the atmosphere of the boxing ring and the gambling world quite convincingly. His attention to detail and experience (this is his 120th film) are quite evident, though necessarily the most imaginative. While the film IS superior to the 1947 remake, the director of that film, Roy Rowland, does a much better job of showing the crowd's blood lust in the 8th round of the final fight.

I hate boxing, but loved this movie.

[judithh-1 · 10/10 · 8 June 2012]

Boxing doesn't appeal to me, either for real or on screen so I approached "The Crowd Roars" with some trepidation. However, boxing is only the excuse for a film on the Depression, on corruption, on poverty and crime. Robert Taylor is superb as Tommy "Killer" McCoy, a young man who enters the ring strictly for the money. He has had the wolf at the door and doesn't want to see it again. His distaste for being a "pug" and his longing for respectability come into play as he meets Maureen O'Sullivan and gets a glimpse of how "the other half" live. The fight scenes are exciting and vivid but not glamorized. A scene in the gym introduces a cast of brain-damaged pugs as Taylor prepares for his first big fight. The cinematography is excellent as is the lighting. There are no bad performances. Frank Morgan is the drunken father, Maureen O'Sullivan is the love interest, Edward Arnold the gangster, Lionel Stander the trainer. Jane Wyman has a small but pivotal role as a southern airhead. Highly recommended.

Robert Taylor!

[lsda-80381 · 8/10 · 21 December 2022]

This film was made in 1938, in Taylor's early years as an actor. This part is very different from the romantic lovers that he played up to this time, Although there is a romantic aspect to this film. I only gave the film an eight stars bc the plot was quite predictable. The man reason I wanted to see it was Robert Taylor. He was very good in this part but somewhat unbelievable when the romantic scenes had him in a very nice suit. At that point he no longer looked like a boxer but that is irrelevant with respect to his performance. I have no idea why he was constantly panned as an actor. He was good from the get-go. He has a very easy screen presence, he almost dances across it. If you are a Taylor fan, you don't want to miss him in this part. Other cast members were also very good, especially Frank Morgan.

Compared to the remake

[jarrodmcdonald-1 · 8 April 2023]

There had been a film with the same title made in 1932 at Warner Brothers starring James Cagney about a race car driver. But this MGM production, released six years later, has a completely different story. It's about a boxer played by Robert Taylor who gets caught up with a syndicate. It did well with audiences, so Metro producer Sam Zimbalist dusted it off in 1947 and remade it as KILLER MCCOY with Mickey Rooney as a teen facsimile of the character, in an attempt to defy Andy Hardy typecasting.

I won't go into an extremely detailed comparison of the two versions, or even a lengthy comparison of the two lead actors...though I feel Rooney is probably a tad more believable as a scrapper from the wrong side of the tracks. Despite giving a sincere and adequate performance, Taylor seems too polished and cultured to have been raised in poverty. However, I will say that both actors essay the role of Tommy "Killer" McCoy with the necessary physique.

Sometimes Taylor appears to lack confidence in key scenes, which is not what this tale needs. After all, this is supposed to be a drama about a determined fighter whose ambition and self-confidence propels him forward. His primary motivator is said to be money, since success in the ring will help him escape his poor background.

Killer has an interesting relationship with two paternal figures. One is a crooked gangster (Edward Arnold in the original and Brian Donlevy in the remake) who buys his contract; gives him advice; and then eventually becomes his father-in-law.

The other key relationship exists between Killer and his never-do-well father (Frank Morgan in the original and James Dunn in the remake). The father is a gambler and manipulator extraordinaire, yet still likable. The acting between Frank Morgan and Edward Arnold is a little more interesting to watch than what we see with James Dunn and Brian Donlevy. However, the remake plays up the dad's alcoholism, and James Dunn had a drinking problem in real life and won an Oscar for his realistic portrayal of a boozer in A TREE GROW IN BROOKLYN.

Killer falls in love with the hood's daughter, which gives us the pic's romantic angle. The love interest in the original is played by Maureen O'Sullivan who comes across poised yet tame without Tarzan around. I don't think Taylor enjoys any sexual chemistry with O'Sullivan, so their romantic scenes quickly bog down. At least in the remake, there is a sense that Rooney is into Ann Blyth and wants to jump her bones.

Sometimes you have to ask why filmmakers change things that worked well in the first film, when they set out to do a remake. The 1938 version features Jane Wyman (borrowed from home studio Warner Brothers) in the comic relief part of O'Sullivan's southern belle friend. She enlivens every scene in which she is included, in an Una Merkel/ZaSu Pitts sort of way. But producer Sam Zimbalist dropped this engaging character from the remake. This means that the second picture has less comedy and forfeits lightweight moments in favor of the dramatic heavy hitting stuff.

While I enjoy both of these films, I think the remake as a whole is rather intense at times. KILLER MCCOY actually it did better at the box office than THE CROWD ROARS. But I dunno, I guess I just prefer the balanced approach of the original, even if Taylor may be slightly miscast. THE CROWD ROARS is a good movie that kayos the audience with its one-two punch.