ST. JAMES THEATRE.

Evening Post, Volume CXXV, Issue 152, 30 June 1938, Page 14

ST. JAMES THEATRE.

"The Last Gangster."

Edward G. Robinson brings all of his consummate artistry to the role of Joe Krozac, gangster, killer, and extortionist of "The Last Gangster, which commences tomorrow at the fat. James Theatre, and the result is a portrayal which for sheer power and dramatic effectiveness has not been equalled even by the actor's own "Little Caesar" of some years back. "The Last Gangster" is the picture of a domineering, ruthless, underworld czar—a man who has outsmarted rival crooks and got away with it, a man who has laughed at Judges and got away with it, a man who recognises no power greater than his own. When his doom finally falls and he is ultimately sent to serve ten years in prison for income tax evasion, he is like a child in an unknown world. It is This man whom Robinson brings to life with that unerring instinct for making a human being out of a screen shadow which has labelled him one of the screen's greatest character stars. The story is given even greater emotional impact in its narrative of the wife and child who have been left behind when Joe Krozac is sent to prison. Hounded by newspapermen the gangster's harassed wife is befriended by a reporter whom she marries following her divorce from Krozac. When the gangster finally is released from prison it is with hatred for his wife and the man whom he thinks of as having stolen his child. It is ultimate understanding of the child's clean new environment ancl his own unfitness to be the child's father that leads the picture to its stirring climax. Rose Stradner proves herself not only lovely to look at but an actress of distinguished talent. In the difficult assignment of Edward G. Robinson's wife, she brings to the role a sincerity and dramatic depth. James Stewart, as the reporter who befriends her, brings a sharp contrast to Robinson s ruthless criminal characterisation. Excellent work is contributed by Lionel Stander as the gangster's henchman who finally turns on him, and others who stand out in the cast are Douglas Scott as the son, John Carradine, and Sidney Blackmer.