Pre Code Hollywood Season: FD Cinematheque

Racketeer, The (1929)

Director: Howard Higgin

Cast: Robert Armstrong, Carole Lombard, Roland Drew, Paul Hurst, Kit Guard, Al Hill, Hedda Hopper, John Loder, Jeanette Loff, Winter Hall, Winifred Harris, Robert Parrish

68 min

The Racketeer is a 1929 American Pre-Code drama film. Directed by Howard Higgin, the film is also known as Love’s Conquest in the United Kingdom.

It tells the tale of some members of the criminal class in 1920s America, and in particular one man and one woman’s attempts to help him. Gossip columnist Hedda Hopper appears in a minor role. The film is one of the early talkies, and as a result, dialogue is very sparse.

Plot

New York City gangster Mahlon Keene (Robert Armstrong) melts when he meets down-on-her-luck beauty Rhoda (Carole Lombard), a society gal who’s in desperate need of dough to support herself and her boyfriend, Tony (Roland Drew), a brilliant violinist with a serious drinking problem.

Mahlon pulls some strings to help Tony get back on top; in return, Rhoda is to dump the musician and marry the mobster.

The already heated situation is further complicated when the cops decide to crack down on Mahlon.