I’ve come late to appreciating Tay Garnett’s comedies, of which One Way Passage is probably the best. Garnett, who was once a darling of French cinéastes, is most remembered nowadays for his exotic action and war films like Slave Ship and Bataan and the noir classic The Postman Always Rings Twice. He also made fineContinue reading “One Way Passage (1932)”
Category Archives: 1932
Trouble in Paradise (1932)
Ernst Lubitsch’s Trouble in Paradise is one of the films on Classic Hollywood’s Mount Rushmore. It’s the most concentrated example of Lubitsch’s famous style, so distilled that it’s almost abstract. Lubitsch himself considered it his greatest stylistic achievement. But there’s trouble in paradise in more ways than one. For me, this dazzling artifact lacks bothContinue reading “Trouble in Paradise (1932)”
Jewel Robbery (1932)
Jewel Robbery has experienced a formidable change of fortune recently. In the past, film historians sometimes mentioned it respectfully in passing in the context of William Powell’s career, or as an example of elegant pre-code badinage, or as one of the more successful imitations of Lubitsch’s style. It’s getting a lot more love nowadays, andContinue reading “Jewel Robbery (1932)”
The Half-Naked Truth (1932)
If there’s a totally distinctive American contribution to the comic pantheon it’s probably the confidence-artist as the quintessential modern character. Clever servants and tricksters abound in tales from the Old Worlds, but they are usually outsiders of a stable village or court society. Now and then a royal pretender arrives on the scene like theContinue reading “The Half-Naked Truth (1932)”
Washington Merry-Go-Round (1932)
Washington Merry-Go-Round is an inexplicably neglected gem of a political comedy from the early sound era. I can’t figure out why it gets so little respect. Maybe it’s because its director, James Cruze, a visually inventive director of silents, didn’t make many other sound films and never made the A-list. Maybe its star, speed-talking LeeContinue reading “Washington Merry-Go-Round (1932)”
Love Me Tonight (1932)
The reputation of Love Me Tonight at the moment could not be higher. Most film scholars consider it one of the great – if not the greatest – cinematic film comedies. That’s justifiable. The project was originated by Lubitsch, but he ceded control over it to Rouben Mamoulian when he became more interested in makingContinue reading “Love Me Tonight (1932)”
Million Dollar Legs (1932)
“Million Dollar Legs,” starring among others W.C. Fields (as an uncanny Trumpian clown president of the Republic of Klopstockia) and Jack Oakie, was directed by Edward F. Cline, who was associated with Fields since the silent days. It’s a wonderful film in lots of ways. It’s surrealistic slapstick close to the Marx Brothers’ mode. TheContinue reading “Million Dollar Legs (1932)”