Marie Galante (1934)

My Review

“Marie Galante” is a mystery-melodrama film where an innocent French woman is abducted and stranded in Central America where she becomes entangled in an espionage plot to sabotage the Panama Canal. Director Henry King (“State Fair” 1933) put together this riveting drama which has great production values, memorable performances, and exceptional writing. The screenplay was written by Reginald Berkeley.

French actress Ketti Gallian did a marvelous job in the title role, but it was Spencer Tracy who stole the show as the supposed doctor who was also a tropical disease specialist. Co-stars include Ned Sparks, Helen Morgan, Sig Ruman, Helen Fenton, Robert Laraine, Frank Darien, Stepin Fetchit, Jay C. Flippin, and Arthur Byron as the Governor of the Panama Canal Zone. The exciting “Marie Galante” was a hit as great escapist programming at the Depression Era box office for Fox Film Corporation. It was filmed at the MGM Studios in Culver City, California.