The most interesting thing about this movie is the collection of could have, should have moments that under the right direction and with the right script would have resulted in a much better adventure. A bit reminiscent of "The Sand Pebbles", the story has much potential which the dialog fails to deliver. Character development is all but nonexistent for a group of interesting individuals. And don't get me started on the pitiful editing. But what makes it worth a look is the collection of actors chosen for this turkey. Gwili Andre, the tragic Dane who chose fame by immolation, Arlene Judge, famous for her eight marriages, Edward Everett Horton in his most woefully miscast role. His wild-eyed intensity just doesn't translate well into heroic action. He just looks ridiculous. As for Andre, she had the looks but not the talent. The veterans, Richard Dix, Zazu Pitts, and C. Henry Gordon acquit themselves well as the true professionals they were despite the poor material they were given to work with. So there you have it. A pretty bad movie that's nonetheless worth a look.

A collection of natives and Westerners barricade themselves in an old Chinese inn against the onslaught of fierce Tartar bandits.ROAR OF THE DRAGON is a very fine adventure film, with suspense & humor, plenty of excitement, first rate production values and good acting. It is indeed difficult to find anything to dislike about the movie and it stands up nicely to comparison with other similarly themed pictures of the period - SHANGHAI EXPRESS (1932), THE MASK OF FU MANCHU (1932) & THE BITTER TEA OF GENERAL YEN (1933).Richard Dix creates another sturdy performance as the alcoholic riverboat captain who takes charge in defending the folks sheltering in the inn. Dix gives us a character who's sensible, brave and absolutely no nonsense in dealing with deadly danger. But the film has another champion as well, and this one refreshingly unlikely. Wonderful character actor Edward Everett Horton eschews his normal Nervous Nellie nuances and rewards us with a civil servant who vigorously fights back against the terrorists, heroically aiding Dix despite terrible odds. He even gets to enjoy some tender romance before the film ends, leaving us with a most memorable characterization.Two lovely ladies grace the film - Gwili Andre as the mysterious gun-toting doll sought by the bandit chief and Arline Judge as the girl from Bridgeport, Connecticut, who finds love in the most unexpected place. Comedienne ZaSu Pitts plays the timid Lady from Omaha, thoroughly regretting her decision to travel around the world. Dudley Digges is the cowardly owner of the stranded riverboat, degraded enough to steal goat's milk from orphans. C. Henry Gordon is delightfully repulsive as the Russian leader of the bandits, whom we first encounter cauterizing the remains of his left ear, bitten off by Dix in a previous encounter.Movie mavens will spot an uncredited Willie Fung at the end of the picture playing a Chinese sailor.

This brisk action movie, set in deepest Manchuria, stars Richard Dix as a dipsomaniac riverboat captain thrust into a precarious situation: rescuing a mixed bag of travelers, children, and ne'e'r-do-wells from a bandit, played with wicked intent by C. Henry Gordon. Amongst the motley crew are Zasu Pitts as a nervous society lady, Arline Judge as a flapper with a heart of gold, and Danish-born Gwili Andre as a Garbo-like woman of mystery. The film is brilliantly shot by Edward Cronjager, with some top-notch action sequences, but Howard Estabrook's screenplay doesn't do enough to establish its characters, perhaps not surprising considering the film's 68 minute running time. Nonetheless, this gets a strong recommendation, especially for fans of pre-code cinema, who will appreciate scenes such as Gordon having a hot iron applied to the hole in his head where an ear used to be.

Richard Dix was excellent in this movie. I don't know if it was the direction or the fact that his character was drunk most of the time, but the improvement over the Secret Service a yr. earlier was very pronounced. He had subtlety, complexity and nuance here. In the earlier, he was very stagy. Never heard of Gwili Andre before (or since) but she was extraordinarily beautiful and she could act. She must have been a model. The whole cast was very good.