pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship guidelines, popularly known ...

thriller film Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre. ...

Dorothy Mackaill Dorothy Mackaill (March 4, 1903 – August 12, 1990) was a British-American actress, most active during the silent film, silent-film era and into the Pre-Code Hollywood, pre-Code era of the early 1930s. Early life Born in Sculcoates, Kingston u ...

Morgan Wallace Morgan Wallace (born Maier Weill, July 26, 1881 – December 12, 1953) was an American actor. He appeared in more than 120 films between 1914 and 1946, including W.C. Fields' '' It's a Gift'' (1934) Introduction by Arthur Knight where he ...

Ralf Harolde Ralf Harolde (born Ralph Harold Wigger, May 17, 1899 – November 11, 1974) was an American character actor who often played gangsters. Between 1920 and 1963, he appeared in 99 films, including '' Smart Money'' with Edward G. Robinson and ...

Nina Mae McKinney Nina Mae McKinney (June 12, 1912 – May 3, 1967) was an American actress who worked internationally during the 1930s and in the postwar period in theatre, film and television, after beginning her career on Broadway and in Hollywood. Dubbe ...

Clarence Muse Clarence Muse (October 14, 1889 – October 13, 1979) was an American actor, screenwriter, director, singer, and composer. He was the first African American to appear in a starring role in a film, 1929's '' Hearts in Dixie''. He acted for ...

Noble Johnson Noble Johnson (April 18, 1881 – January 9, 1978), later known as Mark Noble, was an American actor and film producer. He appeared in films such as '' The Mummy'' (1932), '' The Most Dangerous Game'' (1932), ''King Kong'' (1933) and '' Son ...

Houston Branch Houston Branch (March 5, 1899 – January 1968) was an American screenwriter. He wrote for 50 films between 1927 and 1958. He was born in St. Paul, Minnesota. Selected filmography * '' Once and Forever'' (1927) * '' Ladies of the Night Clu ...

Dorothy Mackaill Dorothy Mackaill (March 4, 1903 – August 12, 1990) was a British-American actress, most active during the silent film, silent-film era and into the Pre-Code Hollywood, pre-Code era of the early 1930s. Early life Born in Sculcoates, Kingston u ...

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

prostitute. She is accused of murdering Piet Van Saal (

Ralf Harolde Ralf Harolde (born Ralph Harold Wigger, May 17, 1899 – November 11, 1974) was an American character actor who often played gangsters. Between 1920 and 1963, he appeared in 99 films, including '' Smart Money'' with Edward G. Robinson and ...

), the man responsible for ending her former job as a secretary and leading her into prostitution. Her old boyfriend, sailor Carl Erickson ( Donald Cook), smuggles her to safety to Tortuga, an island in the Caribbean from which she cannot be

extradited Extradition is an action wherein one Jurisdiction (area), jurisdiction delivers a person Suspect, accused or Conviction, convicted of committing a crime in another jurisdiction, over to the other's law enforcement. It is a cooperative law enfor ...

. On the island, Gilda and Carl get "married" without a clergyman to officiate, and she swears to be faithful to him. After Carl leaves on his ship, Gilda finds herself to be the only white woman in a hotel full of international criminals, all of whom try to seduce her. Especially persistent is Mr. Bruno (

Morgan Wallace Morgan Wallace (born Maier Weill, July 26, 1881 – December 12, 1953) was an American actor. He appeared in more than 120 films between 1914 and 1946, including W.C. Fields' '' It's a Gift'' (1934) Introduction by Arthur Knight where he ...

), who describes himself as "the jailer and executioner of this island". He arranges to intercept letters Carl sends to her and steals the support money he includes. Bruno's intention is to make Gilda think Carl has abandoned her, hoping she will seek his assistance once she becomes desperate for cash. Later, Gilda is astonished and relieved when Van Saal suddenly arrives on the island. It turns out that he had not been killed by her. He instead had feigned his death and enlisted his wife to collect on his $50,000 life-insurance policy. Once he had gotten the money, Van Saal abandoned his wife and then fled after she "squealed" to the authorities about his fraud. Bruno, now pretending to be concerned for Gilda's safety, gives her a pistol to protect herself. When Van Saal comes to her room and attempts to rape her, Gilda shoots and kills him. She is tried for murder and seems destined for acquittal by a sympathetic jury. While awaiting the official verdict, Bruno tells her that even if she is found innocent, he will arrest her for possessing the "deadly weapon" he had given to her. The sentence will be at least six months in his prison camp, where he will provide her with very comfortable living conditions, although she will be expected to give him sexual favors in return. To foil Bruno's trap, Gilda rushes back to the judge and gives a false confession of killing Van Saal "in cold blood", preferring to be executed rather than break her vow to Carl. The film ends with Gilda, followed by two policemen and Bruno, slowly walking to the

gallows A gallows (or scaffold) is a frame or elevated beam, typically wooden, from which objects can be suspended (i.e., hung) or "weighed". Gallows were thus widely used to suspend public weighing scales for large and heavy objects such as sacks ...

.

Cast

Cast notes * Unusual in mainstream Hollywood productions of the time, the characters portrayed by the main African-American actors in ''Safe in Hell''—Nina Mae McKinney and Clarence Muse—are almost the "only positive and reputable" figures in the film.Fristoe, Roger
"Safe in Hell (1931)"

TCM TCM may refer to: Arts and music Film * ''The Texas Chainsaw Massacre'' (franchise), a horror film franchise ** '' The Texas Chain Saw Massacre'', the original 1974 film ** ''The Texas Chainsaw Massacre'' (2003 film), the 2003 remake Games * ...

. Retrieved January 22, 2018. The two minority actors also spoke in standard American English in the film, even though their lines had been written originally in "Negro dialect". William Wellman's biographer, Frank T. Thompson, speculated that either McKinney and Muse, who were popular favorites at the time, had enough clout with the studio to avoid using a racially stereotyped style of speaking or Wellman "just wanted to avoid a convenient cliche." *McKinney sings "

When It's Sleepy Time Down South "When It's Sleepy Time Down South", also known as "Sleepy Time Down South", is a 1931 jazz song written by Clarence Muse, Leon René and Otis René. It was sung in the 1931 movie ''Safe in Hell'' by Nina Mae McKinney, and became the signature s ...

", written by Leon René, Otis René and

Clarence Muse Clarence Muse (October 14, 1889 – October 13, 1979) was an American actor, screenwriter, director, singer, and composer. He was the first African American to appear in a starring role in a film, 1929's '' Hearts in Dixie''. He acted for ...

for the film.

Production

Filming of ''Safe in Hell'' began in mid-September 1931, under the working titles of ''Lady from New Orleans'' and ''Lost Lady'', and was completed a month later, on October 18."Notes"
''Safe in Hell'', TCM. Retrieved January 23, 2018. The production was originally scheduled to be directed by

Michael Curtiz Michael Curtiz ( ; born Manó Kaminer; since 1905 Mihály Kertész; hu, Kertész Mihály; December 24, 1886 April 10, 1962) was a Hungarian-American film director, recognized as one of the most prolific directors in history. He directed cla ...

, and the casting of some male roles in the film initially included

David Manners David Joseph Manners (born Rauff de Ryther Duan Acklom; April 30, 1900 – December 23, 1998) was a Canadian-American actor who plays John Harker in Tod Browning's 1931 horror classic '' Dracula'', which stars Bela Lugosi in the title role.Pac ...

,

Boris Karloff William Henry Pratt (23 November 1887 – 2 February 1969), better known by his stage name Boris Karloff (), was an English actor. His portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in the horror film ''Frankenstein'' (1931) (his 82nd film) established ...

, John Harrington,

Montague Love Montagu Love (15 March 1877 – 17 May 1943) was an English screen, stage and vaudeville actor. Early years Born in Portsmouth, Hampshire, Love was the son of Harry Love and Fanny Louisa Love, née Poad; his father was listed as account ...

, and Richard Bennett. First National Pictures also considered

Lilian Bond Lilian Bond (January 18, 1908 – January 25, 1991) was an English-American actress based in the United States. Life and career Bond was born in London and made her first professional stage appearance at the age of 14 in the pantomime '' D ...

and

Barbara Stanwyck Barbara Stanwyck (; born Ruby Catherine Stevens; July 16, 1907 – January 20, 1990) was an American actress, model and dancer. A stage, film, and television star, during her 60-year professional career she was known for her strong, realistic sc ...

for the part of Gilda.

Reception

At the time of its release, ''Safe in Hell'' was publicized as being "Not for Children". ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, t ...

'' magazine gave the film a mixed review, commenting: "''Safe in Hell'' is crude, trite, sporadically exciting." The ''

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'', also known simply as the PG, is the largest newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Descended from the ''Pittsburgh Gazette'', established in 1786 as the first newspaper published west of the All ...

'' derided the film as illogical and unintentionally humorous: "Miss Mackaill is too good for the likes of her role while the villains are acted with self-conscious bestiality and amusing indifference." It called McKinney's performance "the best thing in the picture." ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' found the film's storyline implausible as well and its overall tone excessively dark. In its review, ''Variety'' also noted that McKinney and Muse's performances provided the few bright spots in an otherwise "depressing" production:

Preservation

A copy of ''Safe in Hell'' is held in the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The librar ...

collection.''Catalog of Holdings The American Film Institute Collection and The United Artists Collection at The Library of Congress'', p. 157, c.1978 by The American Film Institute Warner Archive released it on DVD on November 8, 2011, and it occasionally airs on

Turner Classic Movies Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie-oriented pay-TV network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasting campus in the Midtown business district of ...

.

References

External links

* * * *
South Seas Cinema website
{{William A. Wellman, state=collapsed 1931 films 1931 drama films American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films Films about prostitution in the United States American films based on plays Films directed by William A. Wellman Films set in New Orleans Films set in the Caribbean Films shot in New Orleans First National Pictures films Melodrama films American thriller drama films 1930s thriller drama films 1930s American films