Born to Be Wild (USA, 1938) 66 min B&W DIR: Joseph Kane. SCR: Nathanael West. PROD: Harold Shumate. MUSIC: Alberto Colombo. DOP: Jack A. Marta. CAST: Ralph Byrd, Doris Weston, Ward Bond, Robert Emmett Keane, Byron Foulger. (Republic Pictures)
Born to Be Wild is a nice way to spend an hour, in this caper of two truckers (Ralph Byrd, best known for playing Dick Tracy, and Ward Bond) who race against time to carry a truckload of dynamite to a dam which had been closed down by a land baron who is squeezing the townsfolk out of their properties. The intrepid duo is constantly intercepted by gangsters, resulting in some fun escapism. Doris Weston also tags along for the obligatory love interest. At first, this seems like a familiar programmer, until one realizes that it was written by author Nathanael West (best known for the novel The Day of the Locust). Before his untimely death in 1940 at the age of 37, he was paying the bills by penning B films for Republic and RKO (namely, the well-remembered Five Came Back). This movie is unusual for its (yes!) musical numbers, as the two tough guys sing “Danger Ahead” (cute) in an early scene. (Perhaps it was intended a spoof on macho action pictures.) Director Joseph Kane is best known for helming countless Republic westerns, and kept quite busy until the 1970s, making his swan song with the oater, Smoke in the Wind, featuring John Ashley and Walter Brennan!
Greg Woods
Greg Woods has been a film enthusiast since his teens, and began his writing "career" at the same time- prolific in capsule reviews of everything he had watched, first on index cards, then those hardcover dollar store black journals, then an old Mac IIsi. He founded The Eclectic Screening Room in 2001, as a portal to share his film love with the world, and find some like-minded enthusiasts along the way. In addition to having worked in the film industry for over two decades, he has been a co-programmer of films at Trash Palace, and a programmer/co-founder of the Toronto Film Noir Syndicate. He has also written for Broken Pencil, CU-Confidential, Micro-Film, and is currently working on his first novel. His secret desire is for someone to interview him for a podcast or a DVD extra.