Hearts of Humanity
Year: 1932
Plot: The film is a pre-Code drama set in a diverse, close-knit New York neighborhood. It centers on genial Irish policeman Tom O'Hara, who is eagerly awaiting the arrival of his wife and young son, Shandy, from Ireland. Tragedy strikes when his wife dies at sea and O'Hara is fatally shot by a burglar while trying to stop a break-in at his widower neighbor Sol Bloom's second-hand shop. Before he dies, O'Hara extracts a promise from Sol to look after Shandy. Sol, a kind Jewish pawnbroker who already has a streetwise son named Joey, adopts Shandy, and the boy integrates into the neighborhood. The story follows the "adopted" Shandy O'Hara Bloom and the community's efforts to raise him, with conflicts arising from Joey's mischievous behavior and Shandy's own dilemmas, including stealing a cherished harp to try and protect his new brother.
