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Skin Deep (1929 film)
1929 film From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Skin Deep is a 1929 American sound (All-Talking) pre-Code drama film directed by Ray Enright and starring Monte Blue. It was produced and distributed by the Warner Brothers. It was also released in the U.S. in a silent version for theaters not equipped yet with sound. The film is a remake of a 1922 Associated First National silent film of the same name directed by Lambert Hillyer and starring Milton Sills.[1][2]
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Plot
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Joe Daley (Monte Blue), a hard-boiled leader of a downtown underworld gang, impulsively marries Sadie Rogers (Betty Compson), a beautiful but gold-digging cabaret entertainer. Sadie, driven by ambition and desire for wealth, chooses Joe over his rival, the slick uptown gangster Blackie Culver (John Davidson), whose interest in her is more carnal than romantic.
Behind Joe’s scarred gangster exterior lies a man earnestly seeking redemption. Upon marrying Sadie, Joe resolves to leave crime behind and return $100,000 in stolen bonds to the authorities. He sends them anonymously to District Attorney Carlson (John Bowers) with a note declaring his intent to go straight. But Sadie, disappointed by this newfound honesty, tries to pressure Joe into staying a criminal. When she fails to sway him, her frustration pushes her back into Blackie’s arms.
Still burning with desire for Sadie, Blackie conspires with her to frame Joe for the very theft he tried to make right. They manipulate the evidence and orchestrate a setup that leads to Joe’s arrest and conviction. Sentenced to five years in state prison, Joe believes that Carlson himself betrayed him.
While Joe serves his time, Sadie and Blackie begin a steamy and self-serving affair, hiding it behind Sadie’s occasional visits to her husband. To Joe, these visits are a lifeline; to Sadie, they are part of a cruel performance. She fears what Joe might do when he learns the truth upon release.
To ensure Joe never leaves prison alive, the lovers devise one final plan. Sadie visits Joe and, feigning distress, claims that District Attorney Carlson is pursuing her and that she can no longer fend him off. She urges Joe to escape and kill him. Blinded by love and rage, Joe agrees. She smuggles escape tools to him, and in a daring nighttime break, Joe slips past guards and machine gun fire.
During his escape, he crashes a stolen motorcycle after skidding off a road. Badly injured and his face mutilated beyond recognition, he is found by Elsa Langdon (Alice Day), the daughter of renowned plastic surgeon Dr. Bruce Langdon (Tully Marshall). Taken to the elder Langdon’s sanitarium, Joe undergoes extensive reconstructive surgery. His old face—and his identity as a notorious gangster—is erased.
In the weeks of his recovery, Joe finds unexpected peace and warmth with Elsa. They develop a deep affection, and though he says nothing of his past, Dr. Langdon later reveals that he has known who Joe is all along. Rather than turn him in, he asks only that Joe start a new life. Joe hesitates—he has unfinished business.
Meanwhile, Sadie and Blackie, growing increasingly anxious, receive a phone call from Joe, who tells Sadie he’s about to kill Carlson. Elated, they tip off the police, hoping to finally rid themselves of him.
Joe arrives at the Carlson home and corners the D.A. at gunpoint. But Carlson doesn’t panic. Instead, he reveals that he himself was being deceived by his own wife and manipulated by Blackie and Sadie. Just as Joe prepares to shoot, the police arrive—tipped off, ironically, by Blackie. Carlson, recognizing Joe but choosing not to expose him, offers him a chance to help take down Blackie instead.
Joe agrees. Using his new identity, he poses as an old friend of the now "dead" Joe Daley and infiltrates a meeting at Sadie’s apartment. Sadie, Blackie, and their gang of criminals—including Tim (Robert Perry) and the eccentric Dippy (Georgie Stone)—fail to recognize him. He tells a fabricated story: Joe Daley has killed Carlson and been caught. In response, Sadie and Blackie celebrate and kiss—betraying their total lack of remorse.
Suddenly, Mugs, Joe’s loyal dog, runs to him in joyful recognition. Joe speaks to the dog. Hearing his voice, Sadie gasps in horror as she realizes the man standing before her is Joe. With his gun raised, Joe steps back against the wall as sirens wail outside. One of the gang members cuts the lights. In the chaos, shots ring out. When they come back on, District Attorney Carlson enters with the police. Blackie and the other crooks are arrested as they attempt to flee.
Sadie lies mortally wounded in Joe’s arms—killed by a bullet meant for him. Despite everything, her final gesture is one of desperate regret. Joe, keeping his word to Elsa and Dr. Langdon, quietly leaves the city. With Mugs at his side, he opens the gate to the Langdons’ country estate—a symbol of peace, healing, and a new life ahead.
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Cast
- Monte Blue as Joe Daley
- Betty Compson as Sadie Rogers
- Davey Lee as District Attorney Carlson's Son
- Alice Day as Elsa Langdon
- John Davidson as "Blackie" Culver
- John Bowers as District Attorney Carlson
- Georgie Stone as "Dippy"
- Tully Marshall as Dr. Bruce Landon
- Robert Perry as Tim
Music
The film featured a theme song entitled "I Came To You" which was composed by Con Conrad, Archie Gottler and Sidney Mitchell. The song was sung by Betty Compson in the film. The song is played frequently as background music by the Vitaphone orchestra throughout the film.
Preservation status
All copies of this film are now lost.[3] However, the Vitaphone soundtrack, of music and effects, survive for the International Sound Version.
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