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Bogart plays the villain? In 1938? Buckle up, buttercup.
TMDB
56
Rotten Tomatoes
45
Watch(US)

Racket Busters (1938)

Depression-era gritB-movie energyproletariat rage

Overview

DramaCrime

A trucker with a pregnant wife fights a New York mobster's protection racket.

Flag of USUS
Content warning
gangstercon artist

Standout Aspects

Acting

Bogart's sneering villainy proves he was always magnetic.

Direction

Lloyd Bacon crams social commentary into exploitation runtime.

Best for:Solo: Late-night Bogart deep dive before Casablanca made him a star.·Rewatch: Spot the Warner factory efficiency—71 minutes, zero fat.
Heads up:Violence: 1938-code brutality: implied more than shown, but still bleak.
Lloyd Bacon

Director

Lloyd Bacon

ReleasedJul 16, 1938
Runtime1h 11m
StatusReleased

Vibe

Pacefast
Intensitymedium
Tonedark
Feelmedium
Warner Bros. Pictures

Top Cast

Humphrey Bogart

Humphrey Bogart

John "Czar" Martin

George Brent

George Brent

Denny Jordan

Gloria Dickson

Gloria Dickson

Nora Jordan

Allen Jenkins

Allen Jenkins

Skeets Wilson

Walter Abel

Walter Abel

Hugh Allison

Henry O'Neill

Henry O'Neill

Governor

Penny Singleton

Penny Singleton

Gladys Christie

Anthony Averill

Anthony Averill

Dave Crane

Oscar O'Shea

Oscar O'Shea

Pop Wilson

Elliott Sullivan

Elliott Sullivan

Charlie Smith

Fay Helm

Fay Helm

Mrs. Charlie Smith

Joe Downing

Joe Downing

Joe Pender

Norman Willis

Norman Willis

Gus Hawkins

Don Rowan

Don Rowan

Cliff Kimball

Irving Bacon

Irving Bacon

Counter Man (uncredited)

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Deep Dive

Trivia, insights & behind the scenes

Trivia

Released same year as Angels with Dirty Faces, part of Warner's 'social problem' crime wave. Bogart made six films in 1938—this was his villain era before The Maltese Falcon rewired his career.

Cultural

The 'protection racket' plot mirrored real Teamsters corruption and congressional investigations into labor racketeering that dominated 1930s headlines.

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Reviews

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