The Criminal Code

film by Hawks [1931]

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July 21, 2026

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"The Criminal Code" is a 1931 film directed by Howard Hawks. The movie stars Walter Huston as a prison warden whose daughter falls in love with one of his inmates. Hawks sought authenticity for the film, even hiring ten convicts to critique the story. This film is part of Hawks's extensive career, during which he directed films across various genres, including westerns, comedies, and gangster sagas. His distinctive style made his films recognizable, and he is considered a quintessential Hollywood auteur.1

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Howard Hawks
Early life and work
Hawks’s next effort was The Criminal Code (1931), starring Walter Huston as a prison warden whose daughter falls in love with one of his prisoners. In a much-heralded interview in 1962, Hawks told future director Peter Bogdanovich that in pursuit of authenticity he had hired 10 convicts to critique…
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Hawks’s next effort was The Criminal Code (1931), starring Walter Huston as a prison warden whose daughter falls in love with one of his prisoners. In a much-heralded interview in 1962, Hawks told future director Peter Bogdanovich that in pursuit of authenticity he had hired 10 convicts to critique…
Read More