The Case of the Black Pearl [DVD] [1932]

Like many low-budgeters of the early talkie era, Sally of the Subway is not so much a film as a reunion of several former silent-screen favorites. The title character, played by Dorothy Revier, is a member of a criminal gang, intent on pulling off a huge swindle by using a genuine Grand Duke (Huntley Gordon) as their "front." Hero Jack Mulhall gets wind of the villains' schemes, and with craft and cunning allows the bad guys enough rope to hang themselves. Though Sally of the Subway was released by Action Pictures (a forerunner to Monogram), there's precious little action save for a mid-film fight sequence pitting Mulhall against four plug-uglies. Blanche Mehaffey, a poverty-row perennial, is the nominal love interest.~Hal Erickson