Antonius Block Oh, what a cringe-inducing moment it is, to see Constance Bennett's face contort in shock and anger when she discovers her new lover (Richard Barthelmess) is "Chinese", and then goes and strikes him repeatedly in public. There is some solace in her being suitably apologetic afterwards, getting chastised, and then still loving him, but the film's real triumph is in treating Asian-Americans with dignity, and showing the hypocrisy of white people. How fantastic is it when early on he says "They are liars and hypocrites. Their religion teaches love and brotherhood and equality, but they worship money and prejudice!"Now you may be thinking as I did, Richard Barthelmess is Asian? And this is one of the film's weaknesses, as is E. Alyn Warren (another Caucasian) playing his father. You'll have to bear with that part, and forgive the film for not putting Asian actors in primary roles, though in Barthelmess's case, it is eventually explained. If you can do that, you may find it refreshing that the characters (including the servants) speak eloquently, and have a sense of class in the face of the racism of others. It's far from perfect, but its heart is in the right place, respecting the culture, and pointing out one's character is more important than one's race ("love knows no barriers"). Another great quote, practically reading the mind of the viewer 88 years later, is when he questions "Why should I be glad..." to be Caucasian, and not Asian.Now, how it resolves itself takes away from a little of the message, but what a difference this one is from others from the time which were hyping 'yellow peril'. It is a little creaky in places, with slow and stilted dialogue, but Bennett livens things up a bit with her playful presence and defiance of her father. "Take me in your arms, and dance with me," she implores Barthelmess, and then later "Kiss me, and don't talk." It's an average film and certainly not going to blow you away, but I bumped it up a bit for the step it took in the racial dialogue, even if it can't be judged by today's standards.

mark.waltz "He's an educated Chinaman" someone tells Constance Bennett who has come to apologize for racial slurs against Richard Barthelmess brought up to think he's Chinese even though he looks totally Caucasian. The statement meant to defend Barthelmess is actually a slur against the typical looking Chinese that Bennett claims she knew living in California, what this man, tearing Bennett down, is saying is that a Chiese man is OK as long as he's educated, hangs out with Caucasians and looks Caucasian.There's a ton of anti-Asian racial slurs used violently throughout the film, and audiences in 2013 might not understand the mindset of a 1930 audience. Even if the film blatantly used racism without its so-called defense, it wouldn't be as offensive as this. As a film, it is entirely too long, and the twist at the end will probably make you wince. This is a sad example of one type of pre-code celluloid that went too far and like the logo of the 1932 "Scarface" truly is the "shame of a nation" that does nobody any good. By the time the two-strip color flashback final occurs, you'll have given up.

kidboots When talkies came along Richard Barthelmess, who had been a top star from the early 1920s, proved to be one of the very few silent stars whose career, at least initially, went from strength to strength. Not only was he placed 6th in a box office popularity poll in 1931, his salary (in 1933) was one of the highest, being around $8,500 a week, which made it quite easy for Warners to drop him when his contract came up for renewal and his star began to fall. But before then he showed a lot of versatility by tackling roles such as a crusading news reporter ("The Finger Points"), an ex-flyer ("The Last Flight"), a disillusioned war veteran ("Heroes For Sale") and even a share cropper ("The Cabin in the Cotton").Unfortunately it would take all his skill and the allure of his leading lady to get people into the cinema for "Son of the Gods" - a drama about the romance between a sophisticated girl and a wealthy college boy who neglects to tell her of his Oriental parentage. Constance Bennett kept gossip magazines working overtime as she spouted her opinions about marriage, wealth and life in general, so people hurried to the cinema to see the outspoken actress they thought they knew.When Sam Lee (Barthelmess), a wealthy but shy college student invites his "friends" out to an exclusive night club, "The Bird Cage", the evening turns sour when one of the girls finds out that he is - shock!! horror!! - Chinese!! This is the last straw for Sam who realises the only friends he has are those that envy him his wealth. He feels he lacks the humility his father expects of him and decides to sail to Europe, working his way as he goes. He finds employment with Mr. Bathurst, a British writer who uses Sam as a researcher for the Chinese section of the play he is writing. Bathurst knows Sam's history and, unlike the Americans, respects his honor and integrity.Sam meets beautiful Allana Waggner (Bennett) who gives him to understand that if a man has her love it doesn't matter who or what his parentage, she will give her all. Which makes the story very cringe worthy in that when she finds out he is nothing more than a "common Chinaman" she goes off her rocker and attacks him in the cafe with a riding crop!!! This movie doesn't have anything in common with "Broken Blossoms", except to point out that little had changed in the meantime and that in 1930 being Chinese carried the same stigma as being a leper, in white man's eyes. I have seen Constance Bennett in a few films and I was surprised by her amateurish acting at the start - she did improve as the film progressed and was quite good in the scenes where she had to suffer. Apparently "The New York Times" was unimpressed with her histrionics and deliberately referred to her as Constance Talmadge throughout the review.Of course the one person who does treat him as an equal is Eileen (Mildred Van Dorn) a sweet Irish girl who would make him a perfect wife and whose uncle holds the key to Sam's mysterious past but love is blind and Allana's treatment brings him back to America a changed man. He finds his father dead and, fed up with the contempt and treachery of the white race, decides to live as a Chinese man - which includes frequenting Oriental dives!!! He takes over his father's business and his tough and ruthless methods tear down all the good will his father had built up. I suppose to appease the public, the twist at the end, that he was not Chinese but really a foundling (played by the always cute Dickie Moore) taken in by the Lees, didn't mean much as Allana didn't want to know anything about his past but wanted to love him unconditionally.re the Technicolor sequence. I think it was the scene which took place in the back of the car Sam was driving. Suddenly his friends launch into a song "Pretty Little You" (which I can remember from "Sally"), their lips turn dark and their cheeks become "rosy" - all signs that color was used.

drednm Interesting story and sympathetic treatment of racial discrimination, Son of the Gods is rather too long and contains some hammy acting, but on the whole remains a fascinating film.Story about a Chinese passing as White (Rchard Barthelmess) starts as Barthelmess leaves college after being insulted by a trio of brainless co-eds. He embarks on a world tour to discover himself and ends up as secretary to a British playwright (Claude King). In Monte Carlo he meets beautiful Alanna Wagner (Constance Bennett) and they fall in love. But when she discovers he is Chinese she goes berserk in a memorable scene.Plagued by guilt and love, Alanna goes into a mental spiral and makes a few attempts to contact Barthelmess. After his father dies he takes over the business (banking?) and dons Chinese garb as a symbol of his hatred of the White race that has spurned him. After a San Francisco detective tells him the truth about his birth, Barthelmess makes the decision to honor his Chinese father and mother.And I agree that one reviewer here never saw this film. Alanna declares her love for Sam BEFORE he tells her of his recent discovery. And that makes all the difference in this film.Barthelmess and Bennett each have a few scenes where they chew the scenery, but on the whole this is a solid and interesting drama. Frank Albertson is good as the nice college pal, Claude King is solid as the playwright Bathurst, Bess Flowers has one scene as an Oklahoma Indian, and E. Alyn Warren is the Chinese father, Dorothy Mathews is nasty Alice. Not so good are Anders Randolf as Bennett's father and Mildred Van Dorn as Eileen. Also note the gorgeous blonde to the right of Barthelmess at the roulette table. What a stunner whoever she was!