A clever usage of history is the glue that holds this costume gangster movie together. Robert Taylor is a federal agent utilized by President McKinley in 1901 to infiltrate a gang of bank robbers. This leads to the capture and sentencing to hanging, no witnesses in his favor as the president is assassinated. Barbara Stanwyck plays the Lillian Russell like singer (ironically named Lily) whom Taylor falls for and is the only person who can possibly save him.
This enjoyable period drama with a few nice musical sequences is a delightful pairing of the real-life couple who married several years later. Stanwyck's husky voice isn't Merman or Garland, but is pleasant and perfect for the period. She looks wonderful in the period costumes and her acting excellent, particularly when she goes to see President Theodore Roosevelt for help. She hit her stride this year with her first Oscar Nomination for "Stella Dallas" and Taylor rose above romantic leads where he was overshadowed by the leading ladies he was being cast opposite at MGM.
Victor McLaglen and Brian Donlevy also stand out as members of the gang, McLaglen giving a memorable breakdown scene where he fights against his imminent hanging while in prison. There's a hint of the Alice Faye musicals of the time that 20th Century Fox was making, especially the soon to be released "In Old Chicago".
This enjoyable period drama with a few nice musical sequences is a delightful pairing of the real-life couple who married several years later. Stanwyck's husky voice isn't Merman or Garland, but is pleasant and perfect for the period. She looks wonderful in the period costumes and her acting excellent, particularly when she goes to see President Theodore Roosevelt for help. She hit her stride this year with her first Oscar Nomination for "Stella Dallas" and Taylor rose above romantic leads where he was overshadowed by the leading ladies he was being cast opposite at MGM.
Victor McLaglen and Brian Donlevy also stand out as members of the gang, McLaglen giving a memorable breakdown scene where he fights against his imminent hanging while in prison. There's a hint of the Alice Faye musicals of the time that 20th Century Fox was making, especially the soon to be released "In Old Chicago".