Monthly Archives: May 2022

The Most Dangerous Game
Directed by Irving Pichel and Ernest B. Shoedsack
Written by James Ashmore Creeland from a short story by Richard Connell
1932/US
Produced by Merion C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack; Distributed by RKO
IMDb page
Repeat viewing/Amazon Prime rental

Bob: This world’s divided into two kinds of people: the hunter and the hunted. Luckily, I’m the hunter. Nothing can change that.

I’ve seen this film several times through the years and, if anything, my affection for it has grown.  The filmmakers make every minute count in this 63 minute thriller/horror film.

Bob (Joel McCrea is a big game hunter.  As the movie opens he tells the rest of his party that hunting is sport for both the hunter and the hunted.  He soon will find out how wrong he is when their fancy yacht is shipwrecked on a small island.

The island is ruled by psycho-sadist hunter Zaroff.  Bob is introduced to the Tartars who work for him and shown his ravenous savage dogs.  Zaroff has arranged that his island benefit from numerous shipwrecks it seems.  Currently Eve (Fay Wray) and her recklessly alcoholic brother (Walter) are in residence.  Eve takes Bob aside and says that something is wrong.  The shipwrecked sailors that were there when the two arrived have disappeared.

Zaroff is excited to meet Bob, having read his books. Zaroff says that his trophy room is open to visitors only right before they go on a hunt.  Martin asks to see it and is never seen again.  Eve and Bob break into it and gasp at the gruesome mounting of disappeared humans therein.

Now it is Bob’s turn to become prey.  The deal is that the hunt will begin at midnight.  If Bob can survive until dawn, he will win and he and Eve can depart on the launch.  If Zaroff kills Bob he will take Fay Wray and make her his own.  This would be a fate worse than death and she decides to accompany Bob.  Bob is armed only with a large knife.  Zaroff has access to an arsenal of unique weapons. The remainder of the film is non-stop action as the pair surmount one scary obstacle after another.  Noble Johnson plays the Count’s main lackey.

I’ve always liked this one because Joel McCrae runs around in rags displaying his very attractive chest.  But it’s a cracking action movie as well and moves at an admirable pace.

There is nothing “early talkie” about this.  McCrea and Wray are fine.  Leslie Banks goes way over the top in a manner that suits the material  perfectly.    Max Steiner composed one of the very first movie score to  fully integrate the musical score with the images on-screen and to score individual scenes for their content and create leitmotifs for individual characters, as opposed to simply providing vaguely appropriate mood music.  Nothing high brow but awfully entertaining.  Recommended.

The movie was filmed concurrently with King Kong (1933) during the breaks for special effects work.  The same sets were used for the swampy forest setting in which the hunt takes place.

Platinum Blonde
Directed by Frank Capra
Written by Robert Riskin from a story by Harry Chandlee and Douglas W. Churchill
1931/US
Columbia Pictures
IMDb page
Repeat viewing/Amazon Prime rental

Conroy, The Editor: Anne Schuyler’s in the blue book; you’re not even in the phone book. Think that one over… sucker!

Capra delivers a solid newspaper/romcom picture with plenty of snappy dialogue.

Stew Smith (Robert Williams) is the wise-cracking star reporter on a big city newspaper. Michael Schuyler is trying to avoid a scandal about his chorus girl girlfriend who has settled a breach of promise lawsuit but has refused to return his love letters.  Rumors of this are floating around and Stew’s editor sends him to the swanky Schuyler family manse to verify the story.  The Schuyler’s lawyer tries to bribe him to not print the story.  Stew now has his confirmation.  At the same time, he is introduced to Michael’s sister Anne (Jean Harlow).  It is lust at first sight.

Lust turns to love and Stew and Anne marry.  Anne’s family is dismayed but Anne reassures them.  It is then he finds that Anne expects him to give up his old life and friends, live in the mansion, and accompany Anne to her many social engagements.

Now Robert has a long-time colleague at the paper who is called Gallagher (Loretta Young).  They are confidants and trade snappy banter.  What Robert doesn’t know is that she is in love with him.  He hasn’t really seen her as a woman.  With Claud Allister as a valet.

I liked this one a lot due to the snappy dialogue, expertly delivered by the very appealing Williams and company. IMO one of the best newspaper pictures and contains my favorite performance ever by Loretta Young.  Harlow was still developing her acting chops so she is somewhat stiff and at any rate feels miscast as a socialite.

I found myself wondering what happened to Williams. Turns out this was his first major role and he died of peritonitis 4 days after the picture’s release.

Blonde Crazy
Directed by Roy Del Ruth
Written by Kubec Glasmon and John Bright
1931/US
Warner Bros.
IMDb page
Repeat viewing/Forbidden Hollywood Vol. 8

Peggy: And let me tell you something about this place. I’ve been here six months and I know! For the love of Mike, stay away from those bellhops. They can’t do a girlie any good. And the worst monkey of them all is that guy, Bert Harris. He’s dynamite. Everybody in this joint owes him money from those crooked dice of his.
Ann Roberts: He can’t do me any harm. I haven’t any money and I don’t shoot craps.
Peggy: Oh, yeah? Well, maybe you have something else he can use.

Joan Blondell and Jimmy Cagney make a perfect couple of grifters.

Cocky bellhop Bert Harris (Cagney) is famous for dirty tricks at the hotel he works for in a small midwest town.  When Anne Roberts (Joan Blondell) comes looking for a job he lands her one even though the position had already been filler.  He keeps being fresh and she keeps slapping him.  But he talks her into working a swindle on one of the guests and they become partners in crime, she more reluctantly than he.

They use their ill-gotten gains to move on to bigger fish in Chicago.  But Bert is not quite so smart as he thinks. With Louis Calhern as another con artist and Ray Milland as Anne’s suitor.

This is a very pre-Code and extremely fun movie.  Cagney and Blondell have enough energy to light up a big city.  Everything is kept moving along well.  Despite the crime theme the tone is nice and light.

Ex-Lady
Directed by Robert Florey
Written by David Boehm; story by Robert Riskin and Edith Fitzgerald
1933/US
Warner Bros.
IMDb page
First viewing/Forbidden Hollywood Vol. 7

Hugo Van Hugh: Oh, those modern young people. Give me the old fashioned girl. Do you remember the bustle?
Don Peterson: Do you?
Hugo Van Hugh: No, more’s the pity. I remember the hobble skirt. Oh, there was an invention! The hobble skirt – they couldn’t walk fast nor far in the hobble skirt. You could trust them. And now… Iris is gone.

This remake feature Bette Davis still in the blonde ingenue mode that she fought so hard to get past.  She’s quite good nonetheless but give me Barbara Stanwyck in the original.

This is basically a remake of Frank Capra’s Illicit (1931) starring Stanwyck.  Helen Bauer (Davis) is a successful commercial artist.  Don Peterson (Gene Raymond ) runs a fledgling advertising agency.  Don spends most night at Helen’s apartment.  Her parents are furious. Don is tired of sneaking around but Helen believes marriage takes the fun and spontaneity out of relationships.  She’s also not interested in having children.  But finally she relents.

Most of Helen’s predictions come true.  So she declares the wedding experiment a flop and separates from him.  She doesn’t stop seeing him though and soon he is a frequent visitor at her new apartment.  The separation gives Don the opportunity to respond to a married lady’s advances.  Helen begins to date Nick Malvyn (Monroe Owsley).  Both partners are extremely jealous.  I won’t say how this works out.  But I bet you will need only one guess.  With Frank McHugh as an intellectual (!) and Claire Dunn as his bored wife.

This is definitely pre-Code but is somewhat tamer than Illicit (1931).  It’s a solid production and everyone, even the always bland Raymond, are fine.  A short enjoyable watch.

Bette Davis sure wore clothes well for such a petite woman.