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* TakeThat: The movie attacks the hypocrisies of both capitalism ''and'' communism.
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--> '''Roger''': There I was, everybody making a hero of me. I accepted it because I didn't have guts enough to refuse it... It went on, and on - the honours piled up. And every one I got made it more impossible to tell the truth. I couldn't let go.
to:
--> '''Roger''': There I was, everybody making a hero of me. I accepted it because I didn't have guts enough to refuse it... It went on, and on - the honours piled up. And every one everyone I got made it more impossible to tell the truth. I couldn't let go. I know that all my promotions and decorations belong to you. I know that I've stolen the credit from a real hero.
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--> '''Roger''': There I was, everybody making a hero of me. I accepted it because I didn't have guts enough to refuse it... It went on, and on - the honours piled up. And every one I got made it more impossible to tell the truth. I couldn't let go. I kno
to:
--> '''Roger''': There I was, everybody making a hero of me. I accepted it because I didn't have guts enough to refuse it... It went on, and on - the honours piled up. And every one I got made it more impossible to tell the truth. I couldn't let go. I kno
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Able to kick his addiction, Tom finds himself in Chicago where he meets kind Mary (Aline [=MacMahon=]) and her father who run a restaurant and an apartment building. There he meets and falls in love with Ruth (Loretta Young). Ruth works at a laundromat and gets Tom a job there. With his quick mind, he’s able to work his way up and live a relatively happy life. But it begins to fall apart when his boss dies, and the company is taken over by uncaring businessmen. Thrust once again into uncertainty and torment, Tom struggles to keep his dignity and care for his family and friends.
to:
Able to kick his addiction, Tom finds himself in Chicago where he meets kind Mary (Aline [=MacMahon=]) and her father who run a restaurant and an apartment building. There he meets and falls in love with Ruth (Loretta Young).(Creator/LorettaYoung). Ruth works at a laundromat and gets Tom a job there. With his quick mind, he’s able to work his way up and live a relatively happy life. But it begins to fall apart when his boss dies, and the company is taken over by uncaring businessmen. Thrust once again into uncertainty and torment, Tom struggles to keep his dignity and care for his family and friends.
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Tom (Richard Barthelmess) suffers through the horrors of UsefulNotes/WorldWarI and UsefulNotes/TheGreatDepression as a war hero with none of the glory; Roger Winston (Gordon Westcott), thinking Tom dead during a deadly mission, takes the credit for capturing a German officer and is awarded a medal of honour.
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Tom (Richard Barthelmess) suffers through the horrors of UsefulNotes/WorldWarI and UsefulNotes/TheGreatDepression TheGreatDepression as a war hero with none of the glory; Roger Winston (Gordon Westcott), thinking Tom dead during a deadly mission, takes the credit for capturing a German officer and is awarded a medal of honour.
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* PrisonerExchange: After the war Tom gets returned to his own lines via PrisonExchange.
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* PrisonerExchange: After the war is over, Tom gets returned to his own lines via PrisonExchange.an exchange of prisoners between Germany and the Allies.
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* PrisonerExchange: After the war Tom gets returned to his own lines via PrisonExchange.
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* PicturePerfectPresentation: There is a scene transitioning from a newspaper photograph to the real scene at the laundry.
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* PicturePerfectPresentation: There is a scene transitioning from a newspaper photograph to the real scene location at the laundry.a laundromat.
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there is no focus on the psychological aftereffect of the war on the characters. Tom becomes an addict but that's a physical trauma. Roger's problem is not caused by war trauma either
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* ShellShockedVeteran: Tom and all the veterans of WWI were left broken.
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* WarIsHell: And so is its aftermath.
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* BitterSweetEnding: The film ends with [[spoiler: Tom as a hobo, trying to find decent work,]] but his son says that he wants to be like his father when he grows up.
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* BitterSweetEnding: BittersweetEnding: The film ends with [[spoiler: Tom as a hobo, trying to find decent work,]] but his son says that he wants to be like his father when he grows up.
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* IdiotBall: Tom, thinking that he can calm down an angry mob who’s out for blood, follows them and makes himself look like their leader. Ruth, on the other hand, follows this angry mob, trying to save Tom from them. She puts herself in danger [[spoiler: and is murdered by one of the protesters]].
to:
* IdiotBall: Tom, thinking that he can calm down an angry mob who’s out for blood, follows them and makes himself look like their leader.[[RabbleRouser leader]]. Ruth, on the other hand, follows this angry mob, trying to save Tom from them. She puts herself in danger [[spoiler: and is murdered by one of the protesters]].
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* StrawCharacter: Max Brinker is a straw communist. So much so, that he gets exceedingly greedy once he makes enough money.
to:
* StrawCharacter: StrawHypocrite: Max Brinker is a straw communist. So much so, that he communist who gets exceedingly greedy once he makes enough money.
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--> '''Roger''': There I was, everybody making a hero of me. I accepted it because I didn't have guts enough to refuse it... It went on, and on - the honours piled up. And every one I got made it more impossible to tell the truth. I couldn't let go. I know that all my promotions and decorations belong to you. I know that I've stolen the credit from a real hero.
to:
--> '''Roger''': There I was, everybody making a hero of me. I accepted it because I didn't have guts enough to refuse it... It went on, and on - the honours piled up. And every one I got made it more impossible to tell the truth. I couldn't let go. I know that all my promotions and decorations belong to you. I know that I've stolen the credit from a real hero.kno
* ItsASmallWorldAfterAll: Eventually Tom bumps into Roger under some bridge in the middle of nowhere.
* KillThePoor: Max has this idea after having turned into a member of the NouveauRiche.
-->"If I was running the world...I would kill everybody that needed anything."
-->"If I was running the world...I would kill everybody that needed anything."
* MiscarriageOfJustice: Tom gets wrongfully accused and convicted of leading a mob and inciting to riot.
* NeverSayDie: Tom tells his son that his mother went somewhere.
* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: First Tom captures the German officer and gets injured in his back. Later he tries to stop the PowderKegCrowd but in turn gets accused of being their RabbleRouser and gets sentenced to five years of hard labor.
* PicturePerfectPresentation: There is a scene transitioning from a newspaper photograph to the real scene at the laundry.
* PowderKegCrowd: It just needs one stone throw to start the riot between the angry mob and the police force.
* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: First Tom captures the German officer and gets injured in his back. Later he tries to stop the PowderKegCrowd but in turn gets accused of being their RabbleRouser and gets sentenced to five years of hard labor.
* PicturePerfectPresentation: There is a scene transitioning from a newspaper photograph to the real scene at the laundry.
* PowderKegCrowd: It just needs one stone throw to start the riot between the angry mob and the police force.
* TimeCompressionMontage: Tom's five years at prison gets captured in a couple of key shots with the [[ExplodingCalendar year numbers popping up on screen]].
* TravelMontage: Tom's travel across the country is illustrated with a pan across the map of the United States.
* TravelMontage: Tom's travel across the country is illustrated with a pan across the map of the United States.
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* WarIsHell: And so is its aftermath.
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* WarIsHell: And so is its aftermath.
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Tom (Richard Barthelmess) suffers through the horrors of WWI and UsefulNotes/TheGreatDepression as a war hero with none of the glory; Roger Winston (Gordon Westcott), thinking Tom dead during a deadly mission, takes the credit for capturing a German officer and is awarded a medal of honour.
to:
Tom (Richard Barthelmess) suffers through the horrors of WWI UsefulNotes/WorldWarI and UsefulNotes/TheGreatDepression as a war hero with none of the glory; Roger Winston (Gordon Westcott), thinking Tom dead during a deadly mission, takes the credit for capturing a German officer and is awarded a medal of honour.
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* SurprisinglySuddenDeath: [[spoiler:Ruth gets clubbed to death by a single blow of the truncheon, it happens without warning and buildup and her body falls with a totally shocked look on its face]].
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Back to civilian life after recovering as a POW, Tom has a crippling morphine addiction due to his war injuries and is treated unjustly even if he sacrificed so much for his country.
Able to kick his addiction, Tom finds himself in Chicago where he meets kind Mary (Aline [=MacMahon=]) and her father who run a restaurant and an apartment building. There he meets and falls in love with Ruth (Loretta Young). Ruth works at a laundromat and gets Tom a job there. With his quick mind, he’s able to work his way up and live a relatively happy life. But it begins to fall apart when his boss dies and the company is taken over by uncaring businessmen. Thrust once again into uncertainty and torment, Tom struggles to keep his dignity and care for his family and friends.
Able to kick his addiction, Tom finds himself in Chicago where he meets kind Mary (Aline [=MacMahon=]) and her father who run a restaurant and an apartment building. There he meets and falls in love with Ruth (Loretta Young). Ruth works at a laundromat and gets Tom a job there. With his quick mind, he’s able to work his way up and live a relatively happy life. But it begins to fall apart when his boss dies and the company is taken over by uncaring businessmen. Thrust once again into uncertainty and torment, Tom struggles to keep his dignity and care for his family and friends.
to:
Back to civilian life after recovering from his injuries as a POW, Tom has a crippling morphine addiction due to his war injuries and is treated unjustly even if when he sacrificed so much for his country.
Able to kick his addiction, Tom finds himself in Chicago where he meets kind Mary (Aline [=MacMahon=]) and her father who run a restaurant and an apartment building. There he meets and falls in love with Ruth (Loretta Young). Ruth works at a laundromat and gets Tom a job there. With his quick mind, he’s able to work his way up and live a relatively happy life. But it begins to fall apart when his bossdies dies, and the company is taken over by uncaring businessmen. Thrust once again into uncertainty and torment, Tom struggles to keep his dignity and care for his family and friends.
Able to kick his addiction, Tom finds himself in Chicago where he meets kind Mary (Aline [=MacMahon=]) and her father who run a restaurant and an apartment building. There he meets and falls in love with Ruth (Loretta Young). Ruth works at a laundromat and gets Tom a job there. With his quick mind, he’s able to work his way up and live a relatively happy life. But it begins to fall apart when his boss
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* {{Jerkass}}: Roger's father to Tom. He's very unsympathetic to Tom's addiction.
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* DirtyCoward: Roger freaks out during the mission, so Tom needs to capture the German officer all by himself. {{Lampshaded}} by Roger:
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* DirtyCoward: Roger freaks out during the mission, so Tom needs to capture the captures a German officer all by himself. {{Lampshaded}} by Roger:
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* DisappearedDad: {{Justified}} since Tom was wrongly put in jail and is being persecuted by [[spoiler: anti-communists]].
* DudeWheresMyRespect: The world treats veterans with no care or respect for their lives. Tom, and [[spoiler: and eventually Roger]], experience this firsthand when they are treated harshly by policemen [[spoiler: when they become hobos.]]
* DudeWheresMyRespect: The world treats veterans with no care or respect for their lives. Tom, and [[spoiler: and eventually Roger]], experience this firsthand when they are treated harshly by policemen [[spoiler: when they become hobos.]]
to:
* DisappearedDad: {{Justified}} since Tom was wrongly put in jail and is being persecuted by [[spoiler: anti-communists]].
* DudeWheresMyRespect: The world treats veterans with nocare or respect for their lives. respect. Tom, and [[spoiler: and eventually Roger]], experience this firsthand when they are treated harshly by policemen [[spoiler: when they become as hobos.]]
* DudeWheresMyRespect: The world treats veterans with no
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* JobStealingRobot: What the laundromat workers are rioting about. Tom and Hans created a machine for the laundromat to make the work easier, but they made sure to secure the workers’ jobs. However, when the owner dies, the new businessmen want to spend less, so they fire the workers and have the machines do most of the work.
to:
* JobStealingRobot: What the laundromat workers are rioting about. Tom and Hans Max created a machine for the laundromat to make the work easier, but they made sure to secure the workers’ jobs. However, when the owner dies, the new businessmen want to spend less, so they fire the workers and have the machines do most of the work.
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* RedScare: Tom goes to jail because he “led” the mob and was thought of as a communist. [[spoiler: The whole reason why he must bum around the country is because he’s being watched by anti-communist forces who want to kill him.]]
to:
* RedScare: Tom goes to jail because he “led” the mob and was thought of as a communist. [[spoiler: The whole reason why he must bum around the country is because he’s being watched by anti-communist forces who want to kill him.]]
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* StrawCharacter: Max Brinker is the straw communist. So much so, that he gets exceedingly greedy once he makes enough money.
to:
* StrawCharacter: Max Brinker is the a straw communist. So much so, that he gets exceedingly greedy once he makes enough money.
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''Heroes for Sale'' (1933) is a [[UsefulNotes/ThePreCodeEra pre-code]], Creator/WilliamAWellman directed drama about the life of Tom Holmes, a returning WWI veteran. It’s a rare look at fallen servicemen that later films like Film/TheBestYearsOfOurLives would also explore.
to:
Directed by Creator/WilliamAWellman, ''Heroes for Sale'' (1933) is a [[UsefulNotes/ThePreCodeEra pre-code]], Creator/WilliamAWellman directed pre-code]] drama about the life of Tom Holmes, a returning WWI veteran. It’s a rare look at fallen servicemen that later films like Film/TheBestYearsOfOurLives ''Film/TheBestYearsOfOurLives'' would also explore.
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Changed line(s) 9 (click to see context) from:
Able to kick his addiction, Tom finds himself in Chicago where he meets kind Mary (Aline MacMahon) and her father who run a restaurant and an apartment building. There he meets and falls in love with Ruth (Loretta Young). Ruth works at a laundromat and gets Tom a job there. With his quick mind, he’s able to work his way up and live a relatively happy life. But it begins to fall apart when his boss dies and the company is taken over by uncaring businessmen. Thrust once again into uncertainty and torment, Tom struggles to keep his dignity and care for his family and friends.
to:
Able to kick his addiction, Tom finds himself in Chicago where he meets kind Mary (Aline MacMahon) [=MacMahon=]) and her father who run a restaurant and an apartment building. There he meets and falls in love with Ruth (Loretta Young). Ruth works at a laundromat and gets Tom a job there. With his quick mind, he’s able to work his way up and live a relatively happy life. But it begins to fall apart when his boss dies and the company is taken over by uncaring businessmen. Thrust once again into uncertainty and torment, Tom struggles to keep his dignity and care for his family and friends.
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--> Roger: There I was, everybody making a hero of me. I accepted it because I didn't have guts enough to refuse it... It went on, and on - the honours piled up. And every one I got made it more impossible to tell the truth. I couldn't let go. I know that all my promotions and decorations belong to you. I know that I've stolen the credit from a real hero.
to:
--> Roger: '''Roger''': There I was, everybody making a hero of me. I accepted it because I didn't have guts enough to refuse it... It went on, and on - the honours piled up. And every one I got made it more impossible to tell the truth. I couldn't let go. I know that all my promotions and decorations belong to you. I know that I've stolen the credit from a real hero.
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-->Tom Holmes: You used to hate the capitalists.
-->Max Brinker: Naturally. That was before I had money.
-->Max Brinker: Naturally. That was before I had money.
to:
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Changed line(s) 1,2 (click to see context) from:
Heroes for Sale (1933) is a [[UsefulNotes/ThePreCodeEra pre-code]], Creator/WilliamAWellman directed drama about the life of Tom Holmes, a returning WWI veteran. It’s a rare look at fallen servicemen that later films like Film/TheBestYearsOfOurLives would also explore.
to:
[[caption-width-right:350: The ShellShockedVeteran in TheGreatDepression.]]
''Heroes for
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!!Heroes for Sale displays the following tropes:
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* TheShellShockedVeteran: Tom and all the veterans of WWI were left broken.
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* TheShellShockedVeteran: ShellShockedVeteran: Tom and all the veterans of WWI were left broken.
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* VideoCredits: The film begins this way.
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* VideoCredits: The film begins this way.way.
----
----
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Heroes for Sale (1933) is a [[UsefulNotes/ThePreCodeEra pre-code]], Creator/WilliamAWellman directed drama about the life of Tom Holmes, a returning WWI veteran. It’s a rare look at fallen servicemen that later films like Film/TheBestYearsOfOurLives would also explore.
Tom (Richard Barthelmess) suffers through the horrors of WWI and UsefulNotes/TheGreatDepression as a war hero with none of the glory; Roger Winston (Gordon Westcott), thinking Tom dead during a deadly mission, takes the credit for capturing a German officer and is awarded a medal of honour.
Back to civilian life after recovering as a POW, Tom has a crippling morphine addiction due to his war injuries and is treated unjustly even if he sacrificed so much for his country.
Able to kick his addiction, Tom finds himself in Chicago where he meets kind Mary (Aline MacMahon) and her father who run a restaurant and an apartment building. There he meets and falls in love with Ruth (Loretta Young). Ruth works at a laundromat and gets Tom a job there. With his quick mind, he’s able to work his way up and live a relatively happy life. But it begins to fall apart when his boss dies and the company is taken over by uncaring businessmen. Thrust once again into uncertainty and torment, Tom struggles to keep his dignity and care for his family and friends.
----
!!Heroes for Sale displays the following tropes:
*BitterSweetEnding: The film ends with [[spoiler: Tom as a hobo, trying to find decent work,]] but his son says that he wants to be like his father when he grows up.
*CrapsackWorld: How America treated, and still treats, its war veterans.
*DirtyCoward: Roger freaks out during the mission, so Tom needs to capture the German officer all by himself. {{Lampshaded}} by Roger:
--> Roger: There I was, everybody making a hero of me. I accepted it because I didn't have guts enough to refuse it... It went on, and on - the honours piled up. And every one I got made it more impossible to tell the truth. I couldn't let go. I know that all my promotions and decorations belong to you. I know that I've stolen the credit from a real hero.
*DisappearedDad: {{Justified}} since Tom was wrongly put in jail and is being persecuted by [[spoiler: anti-communists]].
*DudeWheresMyRespect: The world treats veterans with no care or respect for their lives. Tom, and [[spoiler: and eventually Roger]], experience this firsthand when they are treated harshly by policemen [[spoiler: when they become hobos.]]
*FakeUltimateHero: Roger plays up the noble war hero card with his father and gets all the glory. [[spoiler: The irony being that he eventually loses it all just as much as Tom even as a decorated war hero.]]
*{{Hobos}}: [[spoiler: Tom and Roger]] become hobos as the Great Depression ravages on.
*IdiotBall: Tom, thinking that he can calm down an angry mob who’s out for blood, follows them and makes himself look like their leader. Ruth, on the other hand, follows this angry mob, trying to save Tom from them. She puts herself in danger [[spoiler: and is murdered by one of the protesters]].
*JobStealingRobot: What the laundromat workers are rioting about. Tom and Hans created a machine for the laundromat to make the work easier, but they made sure to secure the workers’ jobs. However, when the owner dies, the new businessmen want to spend less, so they fire the workers and have the machines do most of the work.
*LoveTriangle: Between Ruth, Mary, and Tom. Mary is the only one that experiences UnrequitedLove.
*MissingMom: [[spoiler: Ruth gets killed, leaving Tom and their son alone.]] Mary becomes a surrogate mother for Tom and Ruth’s child.
*RecoveredAddict: Due to his bullet injury from the war, the German doctors treat Tom’s excruciating pain with powerful morphine pills. Tom becomes addicted to them and gets sent to jail because he can no longer function. After a year, he’s able to quit cold turkey.
*RedScare: Tom goes to jail because he “led” the mob and was thought of as a communist. [[spoiler: The whole reason why he must bum around the country is because he’s being watched by anti-communist forces who want to kill him.]]
*TheShellShockedVeteran: Tom and all the veterans of WWI were left broken.
*TheStoic: Tom.
*StrawCharacter: Max Brinker is the straw communist. So much so, that he gets exceedingly greedy once he makes enough money.
-->Tom Holmes: You used to hate the capitalists.
-->Max Brinker: Naturally. That was before I had money.
*UnrequitedLove: Mary has always had a thing for Tom. She never acts on it.
*WarIsHell: And so is its aftermath.
*VerbalTic: Max’s constant “tisk, tisk, tisk” noise he makes when he disapproves. Usually for an un-communist way of thinking.
*VideoCredits: The film begins this way.
Tom (Richard Barthelmess) suffers through the horrors of WWI and UsefulNotes/TheGreatDepression as a war hero with none of the glory; Roger Winston (Gordon Westcott), thinking Tom dead during a deadly mission, takes the credit for capturing a German officer and is awarded a medal of honour.
Back to civilian life after recovering as a POW, Tom has a crippling morphine addiction due to his war injuries and is treated unjustly even if he sacrificed so much for his country.
Able to kick his addiction, Tom finds himself in Chicago where he meets kind Mary (Aline MacMahon) and her father who run a restaurant and an apartment building. There he meets and falls in love with Ruth (Loretta Young). Ruth works at a laundromat and gets Tom a job there. With his quick mind, he’s able to work his way up and live a relatively happy life. But it begins to fall apart when his boss dies and the company is taken over by uncaring businessmen. Thrust once again into uncertainty and torment, Tom struggles to keep his dignity and care for his family and friends.
----
!!Heroes for Sale displays the following tropes:
*BitterSweetEnding: The film ends with [[spoiler: Tom as a hobo, trying to find decent work,]] but his son says that he wants to be like his father when he grows up.
*CrapsackWorld: How America treated, and still treats, its war veterans.
*DirtyCoward: Roger freaks out during the mission, so Tom needs to capture the German officer all by himself. {{Lampshaded}} by Roger:
--> Roger: There I was, everybody making a hero of me. I accepted it because I didn't have guts enough to refuse it... It went on, and on - the honours piled up. And every one I got made it more impossible to tell the truth. I couldn't let go. I know that all my promotions and decorations belong to you. I know that I've stolen the credit from a real hero.
*DisappearedDad: {{Justified}} since Tom was wrongly put in jail and is being persecuted by [[spoiler: anti-communists]].
*DudeWheresMyRespect: The world treats veterans with no care or respect for their lives. Tom, and [[spoiler: and eventually Roger]], experience this firsthand when they are treated harshly by policemen [[spoiler: when they become hobos.]]
*FakeUltimateHero: Roger plays up the noble war hero card with his father and gets all the glory. [[spoiler: The irony being that he eventually loses it all just as much as Tom even as a decorated war hero.]]
*{{Hobos}}: [[spoiler: Tom and Roger]] become hobos as the Great Depression ravages on.
*IdiotBall: Tom, thinking that he can calm down an angry mob who’s out for blood, follows them and makes himself look like their leader. Ruth, on the other hand, follows this angry mob, trying to save Tom from them. She puts herself in danger [[spoiler: and is murdered by one of the protesters]].
*JobStealingRobot: What the laundromat workers are rioting about. Tom and Hans created a machine for the laundromat to make the work easier, but they made sure to secure the workers’ jobs. However, when the owner dies, the new businessmen want to spend less, so they fire the workers and have the machines do most of the work.
*LoveTriangle: Between Ruth, Mary, and Tom. Mary is the only one that experiences UnrequitedLove.
*MissingMom: [[spoiler: Ruth gets killed, leaving Tom and their son alone.]] Mary becomes a surrogate mother for Tom and Ruth’s child.
*RecoveredAddict: Due to his bullet injury from the war, the German doctors treat Tom’s excruciating pain with powerful morphine pills. Tom becomes addicted to them and gets sent to jail because he can no longer function. After a year, he’s able to quit cold turkey.
*RedScare: Tom goes to jail because he “led” the mob and was thought of as a communist. [[spoiler: The whole reason why he must bum around the country is because he’s being watched by anti-communist forces who want to kill him.]]
*TheShellShockedVeteran: Tom and all the veterans of WWI were left broken.
*TheStoic: Tom.
*StrawCharacter: Max Brinker is the straw communist. So much so, that he gets exceedingly greedy once he makes enough money.
-->Tom Holmes: You used to hate the capitalists.
-->Max Brinker: Naturally. That was before I had money.
*UnrequitedLove: Mary has always had a thing for Tom. She never acts on it.
*WarIsHell: And so is its aftermath.
*VerbalTic: Max’s constant “tisk, tisk, tisk” noise he makes when he disapproves. Usually for an un-communist way of thinking.
*VideoCredits: The film begins this way.
