Tonight's Movie: Over the Wall (1938) - A Warner Archive DVD Review

Dick Foran and John Litel star in OVER THE WALL (1938), a Warner Bros. "B" film just released on DVD by the Warner Archive.

Litel also starred in the previous year's MISSING WITNESSES (1937), another new Warner Archive release reviewed earlier this evening.

This time around Litel plays Father Neil Connor, a prison chaplain who has a run-in with pugnacious would-be prizefighter Jerry Davis (Dick Foran) at the beach. Hotheaded Jerry later gets into serious trouble when he's framed for murder and sent to prison, where he once again meets Father Connor.

Jerry has a huge chip on his shoulder, but Father Connor discovers that Jerry has a beautiful singing voice, and bit by bit Jerry's life begins to turn around, thanks to the support of his girlfriend Kay (June Travis) and Father Connor.

Foran sings four songs, most notably "Ave Maria," which makes this one a bit different from a run-of-the-mill crime film. As with MISSING WITNESSES, it's nothing great but I rather enjoyed it.

Carole Landis is visible playing a girl named Peggy in the beach scenes. The cast also includes Dick Purcell (a star of MISSING WITNESSES), Veda Ann Borg, Ward Bond, Jonathan Hale, George E. Stone, and Raymond Hatton.

OVER THE WALL was directed by Frank McDonald from a screenplay by Crane Wilbur and George Bricker. It was filmed by James Van Trees. The running time is 67 minutes.

Like MISSING WITNESSES, this Warner Archive DVD is a good print with some slightly iffy sound quality. There are no extras.

Thanks to the Warner Archive for providing a review copy of this DVD. Warner Archive releases are MOD (manufactured on demand) and may be ordered from the Warner Archive Collection at the WBShop or from any online retailers where DVDs and Blu-rays are sold.