One of the first films to deal with the panic associated with the Depression, American Madness also marked the beginning of Frank Capra's populist vein. Walter Huston is wonderful as a youthful and idealistic bank president who opposes his ultra-conservative board and makes loans on faith to small businesses. When a cashier engineers a theft, rumors run wild about the amount of the loss and depositors start a run on the bank. In the end, it is the people who received the loans who come to the rescue of the bank, returning their money and helping to restore confidence. But Capra's populism also works against itself, and ultimately American Madness was Columbia's contribution to Hoover's anti-hoarding campaign; Hoover, too, placed the onus of a nation's pain on the little guy. American Madness is a fascinating souvenir of the Depression, with expressionistic crowd scenes and a dynamic shooting style that turns the bank into a Grand Hotel-like setting for everything from larceny to love.