Due to the political season we recently had, Warner Archive went deep into their vaults to release on Blu-ray the 1933 pre-code political drama entitled Gabriel Over the White House.
Screen icon Walter Huston (Treasure of the Sierra Madre, The Beast of the City, The Furies) is Judson Hammond, The President of the United States. Hammond is a nice, friendly but corrupt president who has a near-death experience in a car accident who suddenly falls under the influence of Abraham Lincoln and the Archangel Gabriel (hence, the film’s title).
Legendary actor Franchot Tone (Sadie McKee, Love on the Run, Reckless) is Hartley “Beek” Beekman, Secretary to the President, who must do a juggling act for President Hammond time after time. The main crux of the film has to do with a march of unemployed citizens who are looking for work lead by John Bronson (David Landau, The Cabin in the Cotton, I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang), which Hammonds responds by calling them “stupid, lazy people”. What follows turns into an ugly situation with bombs, fires and death.
Gabriel Over the White House is a film that displays fascism at its finest. I thought the movie was fantastic with the as expected excellent performances by the cast and the compelling storyline. Director La Cava keeps this crazy film going at a steady pace. Regarding this feature, I am not saying that I am a fan of fascism, but a new fan of this classic political pre-code shocker itself!
Much to the surprise of many, Gabirel Over the White House has received a Blu-ray release from the Warner Archive Collection. As with all their films, Warner Archive has done their very best with their video and audio presentation. The black and white image is clean with a solid greyscale. Blacks are dark and inky, and whites are also crisp. The internal and external shots show a lot of detail. The only issue I noticed is some shots tending to look blurry or out of focus. This could be due to how the film was shot. Outside of that the movie looks excellent on Blu-ray, a clear image with film grain, without the use of any DNR or other artificial enhancers.
The English DTS-MA 2.0 soundtrack is also excellent with clear easy to follow and understand dialogue. The musical scores, including The Battle Hymn of the Republic, which is heard often throughout also sounded strong and slightly more aggressive than the dialogue. Overall, the audio is blended well together, even with a faint touch of hissing that can be barely detected which appears here and there, but it does not affect the listening experience. Crackling, popping and other audio issues are nowhere to be found on this Blu-ray. English subtitles are available for this offering.
The special features include a trio of 1933 cartoons: Bosko in Person, Buddy’s Beer Garden and The Dish Ran Away with the Spoon.
I was pleasantly surprised about how much I enjoyed this feature, probably because I love classics in general. I recommend this release to other fans of the classic pre-codes, classic movie lovers and fans of Walter Huston and to those that want to watch something on the shocking side of the cinematic spectrum!
Gabirel Over the White House
Director – Gregory La Cava
Cast- Walter Houston, Karen Morley, Franchot Tone
Country of Origin-USA
Distributor – Warner Archive/ Warner Home Video
Number of Discs –1
Reviewed by – David Steigman
Date- 2/5/2025