They Never Come Back (1932) Online

Jimmy (Regis Toomey) finds out his mother has died just before his big fight. Of course he loses but he also injures his arm. Because he can't fight anymore he gets a job as a bouncer at a swanky night club. He also becomes smitten with Adele (cute Dorothy Sebastian), a dancer, who is having trouble with Mr. Filmore, the owner. Her brother, Ralph, (Eddie Woods, who co-starred with James Cagney in "The Public Enemy") has been stealing money from the till, Filmore finds out and forces him to frame Jimmy. Ralph confesses to Adele, so she romances Filmore to get him to confess so Jimmy can be released from jail. Jimmy gets out of jail on good behaviour and finds out what is happening. He goes back for one last fight to win a purse of $1,000, to pay back the money.

It is not as bad as the reviewers make out. Both the stars do the best they can with the material. Dorothy Sebastian was a great little star in the silents but in talkies her career strangely petered out. In this film she photographs nicely and has a very cute personality - sometimes very hard to get across in these cheap movies. Gertrude Astor from "The Cat and the Canary" (1927) plays Kate, one of the nightclub managers. Regis Toomey, on the other hand, after debuting in "Alibi" (1929) didn't stop working until just before his death at 93!!!

In his autobiography, Yakima Canutt doesn't mention They Never Come Back (1932) in which he obviously doubled for Regis Toomey in the hard-hitting boxing scenes. And no wonder! It's a time-wasting movie despite the presence of an attractive female threesome in the persons of Dorothy Sebastian, Greta Granstedt and Gertrude Astor. The male players, on the other hand, are strictly from hunger. It's enough to say that Kit Guard, in an uncredited role as Toomey's second, walks away with the big boys' acting honors. The boring script also rates as unintentionally ridiculous and Fred Newmeyer's direction (or rather lack of direction) totally inept.

This is one big clunker, from the ridiculous boxing scenes, to the whole premise. The actors sit around and mug and overact. There are pregnant pauses and endless pontificating. The guy needs to pay money back. There are a group of pathetic buffoons who get into the act. It's as if the director had no script and tried to squeeze what he thought was interesting int a series of scenes that go nowhere. Is anyone vindicated? Does it matter. At no time during the film did I care what happened to anyone. The whole boxing thing is dreadful and when it's over, how is it resolved? There is no suspense, no emotion, no questions to be answered. Normally, I can see some merit in these old films. I see none here.

In "Barton Fink," the title character goes to Hollywood and ends up writing a wrestling picture, like Hemingway. The entire story is weighted with the ponderously bad notion of a movie that starts with such an idea. The Hollywood bosses care nothing about the story at all except that it have a couple fights and dancing girls and a romance. Oh, and some intrigue.

Well, that's what some meatgrinder produced in this case.

I see my comment is the first, so some story synopsis is in order.

Jimmy is a good fighter who looses after hearing his mother died. In the process, he permanently injures his arm. A woman in the audience soon gives him a job as bouncer in a club. He falls for the head hoochy girl, though both are swell folks.

But the club owner lusts after the same girl, so he arranges for the brother of that very girl to frame our fighter for theft. He had to you see because he was caught stealing $1,000 himself. So our fighter goes to prison, but doesn't mind because his girl visits frequently.

Meanwhile, the framing brother falls in love with the fighter's sister! He confesses to his sister and she determines to repay the $1,000 and get him off the hook. The fighter is released and thinks the girl is two-timing. That's fixed. So he arranges a fight for $1,000 if he simply goes three rounds with a famed bruiser.

Naturally he gets pulverized, until thinking about his great girl, then he wins! On to the club where he pays off the bad boss and slugs him as well. Both couples bask in happiness.

Worthy of Hemingway.

Ted's Evaluation -- 1 of 3: You can find something better to do with this part of your life.

BOoooooringgggg - with a capital BO. This didn't have to take sixty four minutes because nothing ever really happens to make it a worthwhile story. No suspense, no intrigue, even the boxing scenes leave much to be desired. And as for romance - get a load of that scene between Jimmy Nolan (Regis Toomey) and Adele Landon (Dorothy Sebastian) when they both figure out they can't think of a thing to say to each other. Just painful.

Apparently the title of the picture has to do with the idea that a has been boxer with an injury never really gets back into the kind of fighting shape necessary to be a contender again. It also could refer to the paying audience who might have shelled out some coin to see this thing back in the day. Don't get me wrong, I go for this old time stuff and will watch virtually anything, but sometimes you just can't wait for the thing to be over.

In fairness, the flick did a good job of casting the principal female players. Sebastian and Greta Granstedt as Nolan's sister are a couple of pretty gals, but that's as far as it goes. I'd like to be more positive about the picture, but since I'm coming up blank I'll take Jimmy's advice when he said - "I'll think of something to say tomorrow night".

In his autobiography, Yakima Canutt doesn't so much as even mention "They Never Come Back" (1932) in which he obviously doubled for Regis Toomey in the hard-hitting boxing scenes.

And no wonder Yakima is so silent! "They Never Come Back" is an utterly time-wasting movie, despite the presence of an attractive female threesome in the persons of Dorothy Sebastian, Greta Granstedt and Gertrude Astor.

The ladies are great, but the male players, on the other hand, are strictly from hunger.

I don't want to come down too hard, but it's enough to say that Kit Guard, in an uncredited role as Toomey's second, walks away with the big boys' acting honors. Kit Guard of all people! Kit Guard? I've even forgotten what he looks like!

The boring script also rates as unintentionally ridiculous and Fred Newmeyer's direction (or rather lack of direction) is just totally inept.

Fortunately, the DVD quality is lousy too, so this is a movie that can safely be missed.