Gangs of New York (1938)

Charles Bickford doubles up nicely here as nasty mob boss "Rocky" and as his cop doppelgänger "Franklin" in this well paced and quite enjoyable crime thriller. Try as they might, the authorities cannot find a way to keep the presently incarcerated "Rocky" in jail, so they resort to swapping him for a lookalike, days before his release from prison, in the hope that the new iteration can help garner evidence to finally put an end to activities of the criminal fraternities running the city with impunity. There is a functional supporting cast to help this short film along, but mainly it's the strong effort from the star that maintains a fair degree of momentum as he must try and manoeuvre friend and foe before his precarious status is discovered by his gal or one of his cohorts. Passes an hour well, this - well worth an hour.