Stometer Save your money for something good and enjoyable

SunnyHello Nice effects though.

Glimmerubro It is not deep, but it is fun to watch. It does have a bit more of an edge to it than other similar films.

Lachlan Coulson This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

Michael_Elliott Mountain Justice (1937)** (out of 4) Michael Curtiz directed this rather disappointing film from Warner about mountain girl Ruth Harkins (Josephine Hutchinson) who wants to help a local doctor (Guy Kibbee) build various hospitals so that the poor can have good health. Her abusive father finds out about all of this and her relationship with a New York lawyer (George Brent) so he puts a major beating on her. In self defense the daughter ends up killing her father and the trash locals want her dead too. MOUNTAIN JUSTICE has quite a bit of stuff going on in it but sadly very little of it works. Warner made all sorts of "message" pictures that often dealt with injustice as well as revenge. This film features that stuff but the entire plot is just so paper thin that it was hard to take any of it serious. The biggest problem is that this father is so mean that it's hard to believe that even these trash locals would buy into supporting him. Even if you do believe that they would, the courtroom sequence at the end is just so obvious because you know there would be so many ways for the lawyer to get the woman off these murder charges even if the trash jury convicted her. I'm not going to ruin the final act but it too really feels rushed and thrown together. The performances are another mixed bag but it seems like Brent wants nothing to do with this material. Even in some bad movies he still manages to deliver good performances but that's not the case here as he just comes across bored and wishing he was somewhere else. Hutchinson delivers a fine performance but it's not strong enough to carry the picture. Kibbee, Robert Barrat and Margaret Hamilton are all good but the screenplay really doesn't do much with their characters. There are a few effective moments including the way Curtiz uses shadows for the beating and murder. There's also an effective sequence towards the end when the rednecks decide to put masks on to kidnap the girl from jail. Still, these scenes just aren't enough to overcome all the weaker moments.

wes-connors "Even in this age of advanced civilization there are still many communities which cling grimly to the stern, unbending principals of our ancestors. And sometimes the defiance of Youth against implacable tribal laws results in tragedy," according to the forward... Our heroine is attractive young nursing school student Josephine Hutchinson (as Ruth Harkins). She would like to start a clinic in her backwoods mountain community, with sympathetic doctor Guy Kibbee (as John "Doc" Barnard), but the endeavor is forbidden by Ms. Hutchinson's ignorant and fundamentalist father Robert Barrat (as Jeff Harkins). When a carnival passes through town, Hutchinson meets New York lawyer George Brent (as Paul Cameron), who is in town to prosecute Mr. Barrat for shooting a surveyor. Hutchinson and Mr. Brent are mutually attracted, but Mr. Barrat forbids marriage...As the brutal, whip-wielding father, Barrat's performance is the one to watch. His wife and daughter, former British "silent film" star Elisabeth Risdon (as Meg) and veteran child actress Marcia Mae Jones (as Bethie) are exceptionally well cast. Also interesting is the long-time unmarried relationship formed by Mr. Kibbee and the inimitable Margaret Hamilton (as Phoebe Lamb). "Mountain Justice" is heightened to the point of no return, but it's certainly interesting. The production is artful, with notable work from director Michael Curtiz and (black-and-white) photographer Ernest "Ernie" Haller. Their work would look better if some of the melodramatics had been toned town, however.****** Mountain Justice (4/24/37) Michael Curtiz ~ Josephine Hutchinson, George Brent, Robert Barrat, Marcia Mae Jones

grafxman The movie is entertaining but bears absolutely no resemblance whatsoever to hillbillies I grew up with. Behaving the way he does, the father character would have been shot dead in his teenage years where I come from in West Virginia. A brutal thug like him would never have fathered any children if he did survive because no woman would ever have married him.In the hillbilly culture where I come from, the family group is typically one of matriarchy. As for the father selecting his daughter's husband, that is totally and completely ludicrous. In the hillbilly culture I grew up in, father's will typically object strenuously to their daughter's selection of a mate but that's only because he doesn't want her to leave the house.As for the doctoring there, most people don't go to doctors or dentists. The hillbilly medical practice goes like this: you ignore the pain until it either goes away or gets so bad you can't stand it and you have to go see a doctor. If it goes away, which it usually does, then you didn't need a doctor anyway. If it gets so bad you can't stand it then maybe it's something serious or maybe it's something you can live with. Dental practice goes like this: you never do anything to your teeth until the cavities get so bad you can't stand the pain. Then you go to the dentist, get them pulled and get false teeth.Personally speaking, I never brushed my teeth until I joined the Navy in 1963! I never took a shower either! Needless to say, those bad practices and habits were quickly altered in boot camp.

mark.waltz Backwoods nurse Josephine Hutchinson and doctor Guy Kibbee want to start a series of clinics to help the poor people who can't afford medical attention. Unfortunately, Hutchinson is saddled with an abusive father (Robert Barrat) who uses his temper to keep his wife (Elisabeth Risdon) and two daughters (Hutchinson, Marcia Mae Jones) in line. With the help of doctor Kibbee and his spinster fiancée (wicked witch Margaret Hamilton), Hutchinson escapes to the city for training, and comes back to fulfill her dream with Kibbee. Unfortunately, her father is unwilling to take her back into his life, and takes his frustrations out on younger daughter Jones. When Jones turns to her older sister for help, an accidental death puts Hutchinson on trial for murder. Her New York lawyer beau George Brent comes to the mountains to help her, leading the way to a gripping conclusion.I was pleasantly surprised by how gripping this film was from start to finish, filled with humor, romance, and melodrama. Hutchinson, one of the most underrated leading ladies in history, is convincing; beautiful, yet not glamorized. She has audience sympathy from beginning to end. Brent, who would support many of Hollywood's most popular leading ladies of the 30's and 40's (Davis, Stanwyck, Oberon, Francis, etc.), does his job well; it is a shame that in few Hollywood films of this era, he would be the focus of the story. Risdon and Jones as Hutchinson's mother and sister, do well in small, yet important roles. Barrat, as the abusive father, is so hateful, though he gives his character a quiet proudness that influences his shameful violence. It is hard to praise a performance which requires him to be so hateful, but yet, it is filled with realism that any abused child can relate to.In comic second leads, Guy Kibbee and Margaret Hamilton are hysterical as an engaged couple heading towards the altar for 30 years. (Hamilton, it should be noted, was only 35 when this film was released!) Their wedding scene is absolutely hysterical. For one of the few times in her film career, Hamilton plays a totally sympathetic character, making it hard to believe just two years later, she would enter film immortality as the wicked witch in "The Wizard of Oz". In a small role as Hutchinson's New York chum, Mona Barrie makes the most of her few scenes. "Mountain Justice" is a film regularly seen now on TCM, and makes fascinating viewing.