Among Wellman's strong production of the thirties ,"Wild boys of the road" and "heroes for sale" are the stand outs.Released in the short space of one year (with three other movies ,including the excellent " Lilly Turner" ) ,it was ,along Frank Borzage's and Mervyn Le Roy's works,the best American cinema of the era.
The first pictures reveal nothing of the harshness which will follow.It's a graduation ball ,but boys have to pay 75 cents to enter. Those are the depression years and the price to pay is very high. Eddie and Tommy have got to leave their families because their parents cannot feed them anymore.So they hit the road and they meet Sally.Their friendship keeps them together ,and with the other kids they meet along the way ,they all stand together when the men in black want to drive them away from the freight trains,or from their shanty town ,or when one of those hateful adults rape one of them.
The lines always ring true and many scenes are admirable:
Eddie's last hours in his dear home: "I did not like that costume mom!" and the nod to the mother;the old car sold to a junk man ;the empty garage.
Tommy trying to crawl out of the railroad track;his operation;all the things he "won't have to do now" .
Sally's aunt's apartment:there's a similar scene in Borzage's "Little man what now?" when the lovers come to a relative 's place in Berlin .
Eddie telling the judge about his plight ;the young actor is so convincing that he will drive you to tears.
My favorite scene: Eddie doing a cartwheel across the sidewalk and suddenly realizing his pal cannot do that anymore ;he goes to him and takes him in his arms.
Follow Eddie,Tommy and Sally on their rocky road:you will never forget them.
The first pictures reveal nothing of the harshness which will follow.It's a graduation ball ,but boys have to pay 75 cents to enter. Those are the depression years and the price to pay is very high. Eddie and Tommy have got to leave their families because their parents cannot feed them anymore.So they hit the road and they meet Sally.Their friendship keeps them together ,and with the other kids they meet along the way ,they all stand together when the men in black want to drive them away from the freight trains,or from their shanty town ,or when one of those hateful adults rape one of them.
The lines always ring true and many scenes are admirable:
Eddie's last hours in his dear home: "I did not like that costume mom!" and the nod to the mother;the old car sold to a junk man ;the empty garage.
Tommy trying to crawl out of the railroad track;his operation;all the things he "won't have to do now" .
Sally's aunt's apartment:there's a similar scene in Borzage's "Little man what now?" when the lovers come to a relative 's place in Berlin .
Eddie telling the judge about his plight ;the young actor is so convincing that he will drive you to tears.
My favorite scene: Eddie doing a cartwheel across the sidewalk and suddenly realizing his pal cannot do that anymore ;he goes to him and takes him in his arms.
Follow Eddie,Tommy and Sally on their rocky road:you will never forget them.