Burn 'Em Up Barnes [DVD] [1934]

A serialized remake of a popular 1919 film, the 12-chapter Burn 'Em Up Barnes was simultaneously released as a 74-minute feature version. Jack Mulhall plays stalwart racing-car champion Burn 'Em Up Barnes, while top-billed Frankie Darro portrays his adopted son Bobbie. The two heroes take on crooked promoter Drummond (Jason Robards), who intends to cheat heroine Marjorie Temple (Lola Lane) out of her family's valuable oil deposits. Despite the many roadblocks thrown in his path by the scheming Drummond, Barnes emerges triumphant, while Bobbie achieves personal success as a top newsreel cameraman. The feature-length adaptation of Burn 'Em Up Barnes manages to accommodate all the thrills and spills of the serial version, without any sense of strain or abruptness.~Hal Erickson