''White Woman'' is a 1933 American pre-Code

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by Stuart Walker and starring

Carole Lombard Carole Lombard (born Jane Alice Peters; October 6, 1908 – January 16, 1942) was an American actress, particularly noted for her energetic, often off-beat roles in screwball comedies. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Lombard 2 ...

Charles Laughton Charles Laughton (1 July 1899 – 15 December 1962) was a British actor. He was trained in London at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and first appeared professionally on the stage in 1926. In 1927, he was cast in a play with his future w ...

, and Charles Bickford.''The American Film Institute Catalog Feature Films: 1931-40'' published by The American Film Institute c.1993 The screenplay concerns a young widow who remarries and accompanies her husband to his remote jungle rubber plantation. It is based on the 1933 Broadway play ''Hangman's Whip'', written by

Norman Reilly Raine Norman Reilly Raine (23 June 1894 – 19 July 1971) was an American screenwriter, creator of "Tugboat Annie" and winner of an Oscar for the screenplay of ''The Life of Emile Zola'' (1937). Early years Raine was born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvan ...

and Frank Butler. One of hundreds of Paramount films held in limbo by Universal Studios, Universal gained ownership of Paramount features produced between 1929 and 1949. Paramount remade the film in 1939 as ''

Island of Lost Men ''Island of Lost Men'' is a 1939 American crime film directed by Kurt Neumann and starring Anna May Wong and J. Carrol Naish. It tells the story of the daughter of a general who goes to look for her father after he disappears. The film received m ...

'', with

Anna May Wong Wong Liu Tsong (January 3, 1905 – February 3, 1961), known professionally as Anna May Wong, was an American actress, considered the first Chinese-American movie star in Hollywood, as well as the first Chinese-American actress to gain intern ...

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and

Broderick Crawford William Broderick Crawford (December 9, 1911 – April 26, 1986) was an American stage, film, radio, and television actor, often cast in tough-guy roles and best known for his Oscar- and Golden Globe-winning portrayal of Willie Stark in ''All t ...

in the roles originated by Lombard, Laughton and Bickford. It was directed by Kurt Neumann.

Plot

Judith Denning, a young widow, makes a living as a cafe singer in Malaysia. The colonial authorities threaten her with deportation for indecency, but she has nowhere else to go. Judith has a chance meeting with wealthy but lonely rubber plantation owner Horace Prin, who she agrees to marry in order to escape deportation. Judith travels inland to Prin's plantation, where she discovers the Malay workers are poorly treated and ill-fed, while the white foremen are fugitives coerced into working far from the reach of the law. Prin acts as a tyrant, subjecting his subordinates to his capricious whim and cruel sense of humor. One of the foremen, Hambly, attempts to escape downriver. He is killed by Malay tribesmen hired by Prin, a fate shared by previous escapees. Judith quickly comes to resent Prin. She falls in love with David, a deserter from the British Army who has been trapped working for Prin. They announce their intention to run away together but are easily cowed by Prin. David is reassigned to a position upriver. Prin's domination is upset by the arrival of Ballister, a strong-willed American hired to replace Hambly. He openly defies Prin and makes sexual advances towards Judith. One day, Malay chieftans visit Prin to negotiate a trade deal, but Prin arrogantly insults them. The Malays declare war. The upriver posts are the first to be attacked, and David narrowly escapes through the jungle to Prin's headquarters. Judith and David escape downriver together after Ballister foils Prin's attempts to sabotage their boat. Prin surveys his abandoned plantation. He remains confident that he can defend his plantation until he discovers his hidden defenses have been destroyed by a disgruntled employee. Now realizing his position is hopeless, he plays a game of poker with Ballister, his last remaining ally. The Malays close in and kill Ballister with a blowgun. Prin chastises Ballister for dying while Prin had a royal flush, and raves that he will always be "king of the river". He steps out onto the balcony and is killed by Malay spear-throwers.

Cast

as Judith Denning *

as Horace H. Prin * Charles Bickford as Ballister * Kent Taylor as David von Elst * Percy Kilbride as Jakey * James Bell as Hambly * Charles Middleton as Fenton (as Charles B. Middleton) *

Claude King Claude King (February 5, 1923 – March 7, 2013) was an American country music singer and songwriter, best known for his million selling 1962 hit, "Wolverton Mountain". Biography King was born in Keithville in southern Caddo Parish south ...

as C. M. Chisholm * Ethel Griffies as Mrs. Chisholm *

Marc Lawrence Marc Lawrence (born Max Goldsmith; February 17, 1910 – November 28, 2005) was an American character actor who specialized in underworld types. He has also been credited as F. A. Foss, Marc Laurence and Marc C. Lawrence. Early life Lawrence w ...

as Connors ;Uncredited cast members (alphabetically) *

Noble Johnson Noble Johnson (April 18, 1881 – January 9, 1978), later known as Mark Noble, was an American actor and film producer. He appeared in films such as ''The Mummy'' (1932), ''The Most Dangerous Game'' (1932), ''King Kong'' (1933) and ''Son of ...

as Native Chief *

Tetsu Komai (23 April 1894 – 10 August 1970), also known as Tetsuo Komai, was a Japanese-American actor, known for his minor roles in Hollywood films. Biography Born in Kumamoto, Kyushu, Komai had small parts in over 50 films from the 1920s until the ...

as Chisholm Servant * Victor Wong as Waiter

References

External links

* * * * (source material) {{Stuart Walker 1933 films 1933 drama films American black-and-white films American drama films American films based on plays Films directed by Stuart Walker Films set in Malaysia Paramount Pictures films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films