White Fang *** (1936, Michael Whalen, Jean Muir, Jane Darwell, John Carradine, Charles Winninger, Slim Summerville, Thomas Beck) – Classic Movie Review 6368

Director David Butler’s semi-classic 1936 adventure is a successful, fast-moving and handsomely filmed version of the Jack London story, with Jean Muir and Thomas Beck as siblings Sylvia Burgess and Hal who are bequeathed a mine.

But Beck’s Hal is scared and feeble and kills himself, and then saloon owner Beauty Smith (John Carradine)’s greedy bad guys come after the mine and accuse their tough guide Weedon Scott (Michael Whalen) of murdering Hal.

Muir and Whalen are appealing as they face adversity in the 1890s gold-rush Klondike with their half-wolf, half-dog White Fang (played by Lightning the Wonder Dog) to keep them company in this rousing, old-style adventure yarn, with a few gentle comic moments.

Stealing the show, Carradine makes a thrilling bad guy as the ugly Beauty Smith and Jane Darwell is the other class act as the innkeeper Maud Mahoney, with Charles Winninger and Slim Summerville not far behind as Doc McFane and Slats Magee.

Also in the cast are Joseph Herrick, George Ducount [Du Count] and Marie Chorre.

This 20th Century Fox film is written by Gene Fowler, Hal Long and Sam G Duncan, shot in black and white by Arthur C Miller, produced by Darryl F Zanuck and scored by Hugo Friedhofer and Charles Maxwell, with art direction by William S Darling.

It was billed as the SEQUEL TO CALL OF THE WILD (1935) with Clark Gable.

White Fang (1991) with Ethan Hawke.

It is remade as a 1972 film with Franco Nero and in 1991 as White Fang (1991) with Ethan Hawke.

© Derek Winnert 2017 Classic Movie Review 6368

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