BroadcastChic Excellent, a Must See

CommentsXp Best movie ever!

SparkMore n my opinion it was a great movie with some interesting elements, even though having some plot holes and the ending probably was just too messy and crammed together, but still fun to watch and not your casual movie that is similar to all other ones.

Dirtylogy It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

alexanderdavies-99382 "Union Depot" is a "Warner Bros" film that takes place as close to real time as possible. The story unfolds during a single night at a busy railway station where the viewers get to see people from all walks of life. The photography effectively shows all this, via a montage of people waiting for trains, having something to eat at the station cafeteria etc. In the midst of all this, two hobos played by Douglas Fairbanks Jr and Guy Kibee are looking for ways to feed themselves. Fairbanks is a smart operator in acquiring a new look by disguising his real one. He changes clothing, has a shave and then comes across a violin case that's full of stolen money. Then the film kicks off into high gear. Joan Blondell plays another character with a "hard luck" angle but it works well in "Union Depot." Alan Hale is great as the villain but Frank McHugh has little to do. The plot moves at a steady pace and the climax is very good.

zardoz-13 "Invasion U.S.A." director Alfred E. Green's charming little romantic thriller "Union Depot" qualifies as a pleasant bit of escapism. Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Joan Blondell, Alan Hale, Guy Kibbee, and David Matthau comprise the capable cast in this Warner Brothers' release. Scenarists Kenyon Nicholson of "Laughing Sinners" and Walter DeLeon of "Pot o' Gold" adapted the play penned by Joe Laurie Jr., Gene Fowler, and Douglas Dirkin and writers Kubec Glasmon and John Bright handled the dialogue. "Union Depot" chronicles the escapades of two jailbirds just released from the city lock-up and have gone to Union Depot to rustle up with dough. Chic Miller (Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. of "Little Caesar") and his woebegone hobo cohort, Scrap Iron Scratch (Guy Kibbee of "Babbitt"), set about scavenging around Union Depot. Scrap Iron stays out of sight, while Chic indulges in harmless kleptomania. The wiry Miller enters the restroom and slips into an official uniform of a Union Depot Information Agent and then later sheds the uniform. Fortune smiles on him when another passenger, an absent-minded drunk (Frank McHugh of "All Through the Night"), abandoned his suitcase in a toilet stall. Incredibly enough, despite their obvious difference in height and weight, Miller dons some of the drunk's apparel and finds a wad of bills. Off he goes to enjoy a decent meal. Meantime, Scrap Iron finds a pawn shop claim ticket and turns it over to his buddy. Chic takes the claim check to the pawnshop and he looks glum when the clerk returns with a violin case. Chic is poised to sell violin when he takes a peeks inside. He discovers bundles of bank notes. Indeed, the violin belongs to a crook, The Baron - aka Bushy Sloan (Alan Hale of "Santa Fe Trail") who has it stuffed with counterfeit bank notes. He lost the claim check at the depot, and he has been hanging around to recover it.Meantime, as a change of pace, Chic enjoys the advantages of having folding money. He runs into a chorus girl at Union Depot, Ruth Collins (Joan Blondell of "The Public Enemy"), treats her to dinner. He listeners to her sob story about catching a train to Salt Lake City where she can rejoin a dancing troupe. Initially, Chic thought that she might be a prostitute, but he learns that she had broken her ankle and desperately needs enough money to get to Salt Lake City where she can rejoin her dance company. Chick tries to behave like a carefree bachelor, but he is obviously attracted to Ruth. He buys her a ticket on the next train to Salt Lake City and gives her enough loot to buy a new dress. Chic doesn't realize, however, but The Baron has been shadowing him. The Baron saw Chic break out a fresh batch of bills, and the wrapper flutters to the floor where the Baron recognizes it from his stash of cash. Eventually, we learn through the character of Federal Agent Kendall (David Matthau of "Horse Feathers") that the money that Chic and Ruth have been flashing is counterfeit. Kendall arrests them, and Chic cuts a bargain with him to turn loose Ruth because she has not been a part of this crime. Chic leads Kendall's partner to where he cached the cash, but The Baron follows them and shoots the Federal agent with Chic. Chic and The Baron chase each other through the railway yard. At one point, these two are running around actual trains. Eventually, Chic catches up with The Baron, and Kendall arrests The Baron, while setting the other characters free.Fast-paced and funny, "Union Depot" is a glimpse into the past about transportation. Nobody in the first-rate class gives a bad performance. Clocking in at 67 minutes, "Union Depot" ranks as an above-average thriller with sympathetic characters and a dastardly villain.

utgard14 Interesting Pre-Code movie about a hobo (Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.) at a train station who finds a bag with money and clothes that he uses to transform himself into a gentleman, at least on the outside. He meets a woman (Joan Blondell) who's down on her luck and, after initially treating her pretty rough, decides to try and help her out. There are other characters with their own stories and eventually they all intersect.Doug Fairbanks is good in a role that's hard to like at first. He has nice chemistry with Joan Blondell. Joan's both sexy and cute, playing slightly against the types of parts she was normally playing then. Guy Kibbee is fun as Fairbanks' friend Scrap Iron. Frank McHugh has an amusing bit as a drunk, Alan Hale is a counterfeiter, David Landau a tough cop, and George Rosener a perverted weirdo after Blondell. The movie moves along at a quick pace and gets the most out of its 67 minutes. Colorful characters and a snappy script with some laughs, drama, and even action. It's solid entertainment but also has some interest for those curious about Depression-era America.

gerrytwo Union Depot starts with an exterior crane shot that slowly zooms into the train station from above, with no noticeable break as camera goes through the wall into the lobby of the station. Alfred Green, the director of this and many other Warner Bros. movies in the 1930s, keeps things hopping as two homeless men, played by Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and Guy Kibbee, come into some money accidentally. Joan Blondell, always a welcome addition to any movie, enters the picture as jobless young woman who meets Fairbanks while at the station, running away from a sex maniac played by George Rosener, usually a screenwriter. Someone figured he looked right for the part. Union Depot, with its cynical view of life and its casual approach to sex, stands up better than the synthetic movies made after the strict Production Code took effect in July, 1934. The stars, the off-beat story and Alfred Green's fluid direction make this dated movie fine entertainment.