Men in Exile is a 1937 American drama film directed by John Farrow. A "B" movie from Warner Bros. Pictures, it was the first feature Farrow directed. It is essentially a remake of their 1931 melodrama Safe in Hell, albeit with the lead switched from female to male, with some plot changes as a result.
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Plot
After becoming the target of a manhunt for a murder he did not commit, cab driver Jimmy Carmody flees to a tropical island that serves as a haven for criminals on the run. Soon after he arrives, he becomes involved with gun smugglers trying to overthrow the local dictator, as well as falling for the lovely daughter of the owner of the hotel he is staying at.
Cast
Dick Purcell as Jimmy Carmody
June Travis as Sally Haines
Victor Varconi as Colonel Gomez
Olin Howland as H. Mortimer Jones
Margaret Irving as Mother Haines
Norman Willis as Rocky Crane
Veda Ann Borg as Rita
Alan Baxter as Danny Haines
Carlos DeValdez as General Alcatraz
Alec Harford as Limey
John Alexander as Witherspoon
Demetris Emanuel as Aide to Gomez
Production
In August 1936 Warners announced they would make Men in Exile the next month. They said it was a remake of Safe in Hell (1931) and would star Humphrey Bogart and Margaret Lindsay. In October Dick Purcell and June Travis were announced as stars and John Farrow was to direct.
Reception
"The direction is good and the chases are thrilling", said the Monthly Film Bulletin. "Farrow has endeavoured to dignify familiar material with a touch of Maugham but the result is not outstanding" said the Los Angeles Times.
Purcell and Travis were meant to be reunited in The Mystery of Hunting's End (which became Mystery House with Purcell and Ann Sheridan.)