Is it too soon to mention John Ford?  He’ll turn up again when we get to Stagecoach and The Grapes of Wrath, the former being much more representative of his career as a whole, whilst the latter being arguably his best film.
Ford was the 13th child of Irish immigrants, and after earning his spurs in the silent era on some fifty-odd two-reel ‘horse operas’, he would go on to become one of Hollywood’s most celebrated and influential directors, overseeing along the way a clutch of the very best movies ever made, and winning four Academy Awards in a career spanning fifty years.

The Informer is largely overlooked when discussing Ford’s work but its critical success was certainly the springboard for his ‘human dramas’ of the thirties.  Later he would turn to outdoor action pictures and we’ll pick up the story then.  Halliwell said of Ford –

‘His best films are milestones, but he disclaimed any artistic pretensions.’

Year: 1935