Main Cast: Pat O'Brien, Humphrey Bogart, Ann Sheridan, Barton MacLane, Joe Sawyer
Release Year: 1937
Country: US
Run Time: 70 minutes
Plot
One of a slew of prison reform picture that flourished during the Great Depression, this melodrama was banned in Finland. Pat O'Brien stars as Steve Jameson, a former Army officer who is hired at the infamous California prison of the title and quickly brings military order to the facility, separating the general population from the most violent offenders. In the meantime, Steve is falling for a singer, May (Ann Sheridan), but he keeps his profession a secret when she reveals that her brother Joe (Humphrey Bogart) is serving time in San Quentin. May eventually learns of Steve's deception and their romance hits the skids. When a jealous rival guard, Lt. Druggin (Barton MacLane), arranges for Joe to discover the romance between Steve and his sister, Joe begins plotting escape and revenge. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
Review
It may not be Oz, but San Quentin is plenty tough for its time and filled with the kind of no-nonsense performances that only a Warner Bros. stock company could deliver. Although most of the prison movie clichés are present and accounted for, Humphrey Bogart, Joe Sawyer, Veda Ann Borg, and company at least give the impression that they are new and fresh. Pat O'Brien and Ann Sheridan, meanwhile, take care of the romantic interludes with little or no fuss and director Lloyd Bacon keeps things moving at a fast clip. Filming of San Quentin was not without its fair share of problems, however; according to the trade paper Variety, supporting player Tom Manning died of a heart attack on the set and his scenes had to be re-taken after main photography had already wrapped. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
O'Brien plays ex-Army officer Captain Stephen 'Steve' Jameson, who becomes a guard at San Quentin State Prison. Sheridan plays his girlfriend, May Kennedy, and Bogart plays her brother, Red Kennedy, an inmate at the prison.
