Lively, entertaining reviews of, and essays on, old and newer films and everything relating to them, written by professional author William Schoell.

Thursday, July 19, 2012

INTERNES CAN'T TAKE MONEY

INTERNES CAN'T TAKE MONEY (1937). Director: Alfred Santell.

This is the movie that introduced the character of Dr. Kildare (Joel McCrae), who not only starred in a series of films, but his own TV show [starring Richard Chamberlain in the role]. Kildare is concerned over, and attracted to, a pretty patient named Janet (Barbara Stanwyck) who desperately needs money to pay a popcorn-loving heel, Innes (Stanley Ridges), who says he knows where her little girl is. Kildare does an emergency bar room operation on a shady character named Hanlon (Lloyd Nolan), who helps him get the necessary info from Innes. In the meantime, there are a number of misunderstandings between Kildare and Janet, not to mention Kildare and Hanlon, who tries to pay him cash even as Kildare protests that "internes can't take money". [Yet Kildare doesn't report Hanlon's injury to the police!] Irving Bacon is Jeff, a bar owner; Lee Bowman an interne who is unfairly fired for "experimenting" on a patient; and Pierre Watkin is the chief doctor. Well-acted and quite entertaining.

Verdict: Fine introduction for a very long-lived character. ***.

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