Black Legion

Synopsis

Black Legion (1937) centers on a hardworking factory employee who becomes embittered after being passed over for a promotion in favor of an immigrant coworker. As his anger is exploited by a clandestine extremist group that promises power, belonging, and easy answers while encouraging hatred toward immigrants, minorities, and political opponents, he is drawn into an escalating cycle of intimidation and violence. This crime drama examines prejudice and radicalization within a society struggling with economic insecurity and social change, as resentment and fear give way to fanaticism, with vigilantism, political extremism, and moral collapse.