Union Depot (1932)

Union Depot (AKA Gentleman for a Day) is a 1932 First National release which gives us a glimpse of a day in the lives of an assortment of people who all happen to be in a major railway station.

The opening shots are intended to convey to us the sheer variety of these people and there are a couple of pre-code moments here - there are two very obvious whores and there’s a woman waving good-bye to her husband only to heave a sigh of relief and fall into the arms of her lover.

Chick Miller (Douglas Fairbanks Jr) is a hobo and a thief. He steals a suitcase and in it he finds a fancy suit of clothes and a bankroll. Now he’s as good as any gentleman.

He runs into Ruth Collins (Joan Blondell). She spins him a line. He’s heard sob stories from dames before but he starts to think that maybe this one is telling the truth. Chick’s attitude to money is easy come, easy go. He’s happy to splash out some money on a cute dame, especially when it’s not his money.

Part of Ruth’s sob story involved a sinister doctor who had made attempts on her virtue. Surprisingly the sinister doctor actually exists.

Things get complicated when Chick’s hobo buddy Scrap Iron Scratch (Guy Kibbee) finds a left luggage ticket. The two decide to collect whatever it was left at the luggage office. It’s a violin case. We already know the violin case belongs to a pompous German aristocrat (played by Alan Hale). There’s no violin in the case, but there’s a huge stack of money. Chick starts spending the money on Ruth. Chick is really enjoying himself as a rich gentleman.

Unfortunately the cops are interested in reclaiming that money. While Chick and Ruth are enjoying their blossoming romance they don’t realise they’re now mixed up in something that is way too big for them to handle. And Chick has really fallen for Ruth.

Fairbanks is in fine form. Chick is a scoundrel and he’s irresponsible and shiftless and untrustworthy but he’s likeable and he has a kind generous side. Fairbanks could do that sort of part extremely well.

Joan Blondell is always good and she’s very good here. The chemistry between Fairbanks and Blondell is excellent.

The supporting cast is strong with Alan Hale and Guy Kibbee being as much fun as usual.

It’s a slightly offbeat romance with a crime element and the balance between the romance, crime and light comedy elements is just right. The railway station setting works well as a device for throwing people together in unexpected ways.

There’s some pre-code outrageousness here. Ruth needs some money badly and she is clearly prepared to sleep with Chick in order to get it, until he figures out that she is not that kind of girl. There’s a slight undercurrent of free-and-easy morality running through the movie and Chick’s thieving is treated as being hardly worthy of condemnation.

This is also very much a Depression movie. Money is tight and you do what you have to do to survive.

The story sounds fairly conventional but it’s handled in a breezy slightly quirky way and the ending is definitely not what I expected.

This is an unassuming but rather charming movie with two very charismatic leads. Highly recommended.

The Warner Archive DVD provides an acceptable if less than pristine transfer.