The story of Temple Drake 1933 - One of the films most responsible for the creation of the Production Code

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IMDB rating: 7,3

Director: Stephen R. Roberts
Main Cast: Miriam Hopkins, William Gargan, Jack La Rue, Florence Eldridge, Guy Standing, Irving Pichel

"William Faulkner's novel Sanctuary was a notorious bestseller upon its publication in 1931, and while it was successful enough that Paramount Pictures quickly snapped up the film rights, they were forced to change enough of the story to make it fit for the screen (even in the pre-code era) that by the time it reached theaters the title had been changed to The Story of Temple Drake. It's a welcome surprise to discover that it's actually an engrossing little drama, even if its melodramatic overtones do get to be a bit on the heavy side in some places. Still, the fact is that Drake's story is more about southern power, class and hypocrisy than it is about sex, and it makes for an effective piece of filmmaking. Although Oliver P. Garrett's screenplay of necessity has to take some liberties with the William Faulkner novel that is its source, it comes across as one of the most successful screen adaptations of a Faulkner work. Things have been toned down a bit, and of necessity shortened, and the ending resolves too quickly, but there's still force and power and heat and drama in what Garrett has written for the screen. Stephen R. Roberts directs well, although with perhaps less 'oomph' than one might wish on occasion. But the film's biggest asset is it terrific star performance from Miriam Hopkins. Sexy, sensual, forthright and a force of nature in her own right, Hopkins' Temple lights up the screen. Her bravura performance is a delight from start to finish, and she is the bedrock that makes Drake a film to watch.
While the most sordid aspects of Sanctuary were excised by screenwriter Oliver H.P. Garrett and director Stephen Roberts, The Story of Temple Drake was still quite controversial on its initial release, and within a few months of its release, Will Hayes and Joseph Breen overhauled the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America's production code and strengthened enforcement of its guidelines on content, making it virtually impossible for a major studio to make a film like it again until the 1960s." - www.allmovie.com

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Secrets 1933 - The last film of America's Sweetheart

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IMDB rating: 7,7

Director: Frank Borzage
Main Cast: Mary Pickford, Leslie Howard, C. Aubrey Smith, Blanche Friderici, Doris Lloyd, Ned Sparks

"Silent screen legend Mary Pickford makes her final movie appearance in Secrets, adapted from the play by Rudolph Besier and Mary Edgerton. Secrets is a curious misfire, meaning that it doesn't really work as a film but has more than enough interesting things about it to make it worth watching. For one thing, it's Mary Pickford's last film and one of the few talkies that the vibrant silent star made. Pickford never really made the transition from silent to sound, although a number of her talking pictures were popular. She was capable of being a fine talkie actress; the talent was clearly there, but she needed to put a great deal of effort into re-learning how to act in front of a camera with a microphone, and she apparently didn't want to do so. As a result, some of her scenes come across as stilted or disjointed; others, however, are magical and demonstrate what could have been. Indeed, her scene following the death of her child is pure gold. Leslie Howard was more at ease with dialogue, and his performance is a big help to Secrets, but there's also a problem here: Howard is very convincing as the lover, not quite as convincing as a rough Western hero type. Frank Borzage works some magic of his own in his direction; despite some credibility problems in the script, Borzage directs as if he believes in every wild moment, every truth-stretching bit turn of events." - www.allmovie.com

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Employees' entrance 1933 - Excellent look at the backstage of a department store

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IMDB rating: 7,3

Director: Roy Del Ruth
Main Cast: Warren William, Loretta Young, Wallace Ford, Alice White

"Warren William plays a high-powered ambitious executive who unflinchingly steamrolled his way to the top without regard for the havoc he left in his wake. As the manager of a Macy-like department store, he constantly browbeats his flunkies into submission, and ends-up driving at least one to suicide. Loretta Young plays the wife of one of William's minor employees (Wallace Ford), with whom the Big Boss has a brief affair during an office party. Eventually William gets his comeuppance, and Loretta is vindicated in the eyes of her hubby. A terrific example of pre-Motion Picture Production Code raciness, Employees' Entrance still causes audiences to gasp at its audaciousness when seen today
Warren William dominates the picture - just as he did in Skyscraper Souls (1932) in an identical role - as the store's completely amoral, conniving, tyrannical manager. He is perfect in the part and it is fascinating to watch a skilled actor portray a thoroughly bad character. As one of the finer actors of the decade, it is indeed a shame that William is all but forgotten today.
The rest of the cast is excellent: Wallace Ford and Loretta Young as a secretly married couple whom William tries to corrupt; Alice White as the store floozy, willing to drop her morals at William's command; Ruth Donnelly as William's no-nonsense secretary; Frank Reicher and Charles Sellon as two old men who respond in very different ways to having William destroy their livelihood; and Hale Hamilton as the store's ineffectual, absentee owner." - www.allmovie.com

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Bombshell 1933 - Shining comic riot with Harlow & Tracy

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IMDB rating: 7,4

Director: Victor Fleming
Main Cast: Jean Harlow, Lee Tracy, Frank Morgan, Franchot Tone, Pat O'Brien, Una Merkel, Ted Healy, Isabel Jewell, Louise Beavers, C. Aubrey Smith

"Jean Harlow is the 'bombshell' of the title, a popular movie actress named Lola. Though she seemingly has everything a girl could possibly want, Lola is fed up with her sponging relatives, her 'work til you drop' studio, and the nonsensical publicity campaigns conducted by press agent Lee Tracy. She tries to escape Hollywood by marrying a titled foreign nobleman, but Tracy has the poor guy arrested as an illegal alien. Finally Lola finds what she thinks is perfect love in the arms of aristocratic Franchot Tone, but she renounces Tone when his snooty father C. Aubrey Smith looks down his nose at Lola and her profession. Upon discovering that Tone and his entire family were actors hired by Tracy, Lola goes ballistic - until she realizes that Tracy, for all his bluff and chicanery, is the man who truly loves her. Allegedly based on the career of Clara Bow (who, like Lola, had a parasitic family and a duplicitous private secretary), Bombshell is a prime example of Jean Harlow at her comic best. So as not to mislead audiences into thinking this was a war picture, MGM retitled the film Blonde Bombshell for its initial run.
All of the actors are terrific. Franchot Tone is hilarious, totally and deliberately way over the top saying lines such as the one in the summary box. Harlow is surrounded with the best character actors - Lee Tracy, who despite a scandal in 1934 managed to enjoy a nearly 40-year career is great as Lola's fast-talking scam artist agent; Frank Morgan plays his usual role of a weak man, but not a bad one; Louise Beavers brings spark to the role of a maid; Pat O'Brien is in top form as the volatile Brogan.
But it's Harlow's film, and she keeps up with the frantic pace of the film beautifully. Funny and vulnerable, she's hilarious when she pretends she's upper class, as she's often done in her films - no one has ever pulled that off quite like she has. Bombshell is one of her best films among a lot of wonderful ones." - www.allmovie.com

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Going Hollywood 1933 - Davis follows Crosby to Tinseltown

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IMDB rating: 8,3

Director: Raoul Walsh
Main Cast: Marion Davies, Bing Crosby, Fifi D'Orsay, Stuart Erwin, Ned Sparks, Patsy Kelly

"Reportedly at the request of Marion Davies herself, Bing Crosby was borrowed from Paramount for the MGM Davies vehicle Going Hollywood.
When she discovers that the crooner she adores is 'Going Hollywood', a liberated school teacher dogs his steps all the way to the Studio sound stages.
Marion Davies tries her hardest to entertain in this tinsel town spoof, but neither the script (based on a story by the celebrated Frances Marion) nor the direction give her much leeway. Raoul Walsh seems a curious choice to direct this kind of film, but he must have had William Randolph Hearst's approval or he never would have been given the assignment. The trouble is that Marion has little chance to be anything other than sweet and pleasant - when finally given the opportunity to do a wicked spoof of co-star Fifi D'Orsay, she's terrific. Unfortunately, moments like that come all too rarely.
Leading man Bing Crosby comes off rather better, showing the casual charm that would make him a huge star. And he gets to sing some fine tunes by Nacio Herb Brown & Arthur Freed, including the classic ‘Temptation' and the fun ‘We'll Make Hay While The Sun Shines.' Although his character is a bit of a cad, Bing never fails to deliver the goods to the audience. As was his wont, publisher William Randolph Hearst, Marion Davies' 'very good friend', was present throughout the filming, making it difficult indeed for Bing Crosby to 'lose himself' in the kissing scenes.
Some of the best moments in Going Hollywood belong to Patsy Kelly, making her movie debut as Davies' wisecracking chum, and to the Radio Rogues, a comedy singing act specializing in impressions of contemporary radio celebrities." - www.allmovie.com

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Murders in the Rue Morgue 1932 - Lugosi in a Poe adaptation

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IMDB rating: 6,3

Director: Robert Florey
Main Cast: Bela Lugosi, Sidney Fox, Leon Ames, Bert Roach, Betty Ross Clarke

"Having missed the opportunity to direct Frankenstein for Universal, Robert Florey was offered Murders in the Rue Morgue as a consolation, whereupon he transformed a pedestrian property into a minor classic.
Bela Lugosi in the prime of his horror career delivers a sublimely evil performance that carries this effective thriller released by Universal in the wake of their horror success of Frankenstein and Dracula. Based on a tale by Edgar Allen Poe, Murders in the Rue Morgue strikes a similar feel to some of Tod Browning's pictures: dark and rather sadistic. Lugosi's Dr. Mirakle is an evil doctor whose prize sideshow attraction is a killer gorilla whose blood he wants to mix with that of a woman (Sidney Fox) for some bizarre reason. While Lugosi takes the role to its horrifying limits, his co-stars pale by comparison playing rote characters in corny performances. Leon Waycoff (aka Leon Ames) is the hero, a medical student whose girlfriend (Fox) is abducted by the runaway ape in an exciting rooftop climax. The film's stronger elements - a woman's death in Mirakle's lab, another who is murdered and left stuffed in a chimney - come across even more powerfully thanks to the fine cinematography of the masterful Karl Freund (Metropolis). In one particularly noteworthy shot, the sound of a woman's screams are intercut with footage of shocked villagers. Director Robert Florey does a solid job of keeping the action moving and the audience on its toes despite a script that does have its occasional lame points. One notable example of this is when Waycoff's friend becomes overly upset that his pal won't eat. John Huston received credit on the film for adding dialogue." - www.allmovie.com

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Tiger shark 1932 - The root of all the remakes

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IMDB rating: 6,5

Director: Howard Hawks
Main Cast: Edward G. Robinson, Richard Arlen, Zita Johann, Leila Bennett, J. Carrol Naish

"Legend has it that director Howard Hawks filmed Tiger Shark for Warner Brothers while on a fishing trip in Hawaii. Despite the off-handed nature of the production, the film - based on the play, They Knew What They Wanted - still manages to touch upon many of Hawks' signature themes. There's a morally complex love triangle, an examination of trust and loyalty, and the impending doom of an outside instrument of death (the sharks). Tiger Shark's driving story line is delivered in a typically Hawksian, no-nonsense style; the fishing scenes are highly charged and very realistic, significant for a film made in the 1930s. Two years after his breakthrough role in Little Caesar (1930), Edward G. Robinson proves his versatility as the Portuguese tuna boat skipper with a bitter, resentful side. Warner Bros. would unofficially remake Tiger Shark several times over the next ten years; while the professions of the two leading male characters would change, the basic 'triangle' plot remained the same." - www.allmovie.com

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The animal kingdom 1932 - Good mistress vs. bad wife

Ann Harding, Leslie Howard & Myrna Loy in The Animal Kingdom (1932)

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IMDB rating: 6,6

Director: George Cukor, Edward H. Griffith
Main Cast: Ann Harding, Leslie Howard, Myrna Loy, William Gargan, Neil Hamilton, Ilka Chase

"The first film version of Philip Barry's Broadway play The Animal Kingdom stars Ann Harding, Leslie Howard and Myrna Loy. Howard plays a wealthy publisher who decides to marry the socially prominent Loy, leaving his mistress Harding in the lurch. In comically convoluted fashion, Loy behaves like a callous libertine, while Harding is the soul of love and fidelity. The frustrated Howard declares at the end that he is going back to his 'wife' - meaning, of course, the faithful Harding. Animal Kingdom was long withdrawn from public view due to the 1946 remake One More Tomorrow; a pristine 35-millimeter print was discovered in the Warner Bros. vaults in the mid-1980s.
Philip Barry as a playwright was able to find an audience in two distinct eras of American history, the carefree Roaring Twenties and the poorer socially significant Thirties. He did with a clever mixture of social commentary while writing about the privileged classes enjoying their privileges.
The Animal Kingdom had a 183 performance run on Broadway the previous year and its star Leslie Howard was a movie name already on two continents. So Howard, Bill Gargan, and Ilka Chase repeat their Broadway roles here.
Harding was an interesting leading woman - she was attractive but not beautiful and had a very low, distinctive speaking voice. She came from the Broadway stage, and her heyday in films was through the mid-thirties, though she worked consistently in films and television until the mid-60s. As was the case back then, at 31 years of age, her time as a leading lady was drawing to a close, and soon would be turned over to people like the younger Loy. Her performance in The Animal Kingdom is a very honest one. Loy is absolutely ravishing as she essays the part of the glamorous wife beautifully, reminiscent of Gene Tierney later on with the ultra-feminine facade hiding the steel underneath. Howard is handsome and thoughtful in the lead, and one can see it slowly occurring to him that he made a mistake."

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Doctor X 1932 - Beware the full moon!

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IMDB rating: 6,5

Director: Michael Curtiz
Main Cast: Lionel Atwill, Fay Wray, Lee Tracy, Preston Foster, John Wray

"Michael Curtis's Doctor X is a strange movie by any definition, both in its content and its execution. Based on a mystery/melodrama by Howard Warren Comstock and Allen C. Miller, which ran for 80 performances (a marginally respectable, if not profitable run, in those days) on Broadway in the winter/spring of 1931, the play was mostly set in the offices of a New York newspaper and in East Orange, New Jersey - screenwriter Earl W. Baldwin moved the action entirely to New York and Long Island, effectively creating an old dark house mystery; and Curtiz transposed it all into an eerily stylized mode, shot in two-color Technicolor that gives the whole movie a strangely mixed look of not-quite-verisimilitude and unearthly eeriness. Actually, the main element of New York verisimilitude resides in the presence and performance of Lee Tracy's fast-talking reporter, who propels a lot of the action forward in what is otherwise a surprisingly talkie script; Tracy makes an unconventional but likable hero, and is well matched to Fay Wray as the daughter of Dr. Xavier (Lionel Atwill), the pathologist called in on the case of the 'Moon Killer'. His casting, and the deliberately overstated performances by his colleagues at the Academy of Surgical Research, fill the movie with potential suspects (some of whom are obvious red herrings). The resolution, such as it is, and the logic of the story, coupled with the talkie nature of the picture, make Doctor X more of a curio than a truly great, or even very good movie. For decades the movie was only available in murky black-and-white prints, which further reduced its value, apart from the eeriness of the plot and resolution, but the renewed availability of Technicolor prints has restored much of its original value. (The movie was successful enough in its time to justify the creation of a low-budget (black-and-white) faux sequel, The Return of Dr. X, seven years later, with a pre-stardom Humphrey Bogart in the title role)." - www.allmovie.com

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Rasputin and the empress 1932 - The three fabulous Barrymores together

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IMDB rating: 6,7

Director: Richard Boleslawski
Main Cast: John Barrymore, Ethel Barrymore, Lionel Barrymore, Ralph Morgan, Diana Wynyard

"It's hard to separate fact and fancy from the many accounts of what happened on the set when all three of the fabulous Barrymores - Ethel, John and Lionel - appeared together for the only time in Rasputin and the Empress. As for the end result, John offers the subtlest (!) performance as Russian Prince Paul Chegodieff; Lionel throws all caution to the four winds in the role of 'Mad Monk' Rasputin; and Ethel comes off as rather artificial as Empress Alexandra (Ethel was more appealing in her character roles of the 1940s and 1950s). When seen today, Rasputin and the Empress seems rather choppy in spots, with isolated lines of dialogue and sometimes whole scenes completely missing. This is due to a million-dollar lawsuit brought against MGM by Prince Yusupov, the man who really engineered Rasputin's assassination. The Prince wasn't offended by being depicted as a murderer, but he was distressed when MGM suggested that his wife had been raped by Rasputin. As a result, Rasputin and the Empress was withdrawn from distribution, and all prints were later bowdlerized when released to television. Also as a result, all future Hollywood films were obliged to carry the 'Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental' disclaimer." - www.allmovie.com

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A bill of divorcement 1932 - Katharine Hepburn's auspicious film debut

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IMDB rating: 6,6

Director: George Cukor
Main Cast: John Barrymore, Katharine Hepburn, Billie Burke, David Manners

"Katharine Hepburn made her auspicious film debut in the otherwise undistinguished A Bill of Divorcement, based on a play by Clemence Dane. Even now, many decades later, there's still a raw freshness and energy to Hepburn's performance that is hard to resist. It's true that her work here is not particularly polished; there are moments when she clearly pushes too hard, and others when she sacrifices truth for effect. But there's a spirit and energy radiating from the actress that make the viewer forgive her these and other little sins, and she is so spot on in most of the sequences that there's no need to make excuses for this early performance. What's surprising is John Barrymore's performance, which was lauded at the time but has been overshadowed by Hepburn's through the years. The celebrated but uneven actor gives an exceptional performance, informed with telling detail and carefully nuanced, and there is a rare and essential rapport between him and Hepburn which goes a long way to smoothing over many of the rough patches of the dated and sometimes melodramatic screenplay. Also a surprise is Billie Burke, who gives her character an underlying melancholy and guilt, and who handles her dramatic scenes quite well. Divorcement doesn't stand up well as drama, and George Cukor's direction is often rudimentary, but it's a great showcase for its stars." - www.allmovie.com

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No man of her own 1932 - The only onscreen pairing of Gable & Lombard

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IMDB rating: 6,7

Director: Wesley Ruggles
Main Cast: Clark Gable, Carole Lombard, Dorothy Mackaill, Grant Mitchell, Elizabeth Patterson

"Many viewers will come away slightly disappointed from No Man of Her Own, a perfectly adequate, moderately entertaining little film that raises unrealized expectations due to its fabled status as the only onscreen pairing of legendary husband and wife Clark Gable and Carole Lombard (at the time the film was made, both were married to other people; their romance and subsequent marriage was several years in the offing). No Man's screenplay is what keeps it from reaching the expected heights; it's perfectly fine, but also a bit odd, shifting a little awkwardly in tone as it goes along and thus creating a certain amount of dissatisfaction. It seems as if the viewer is being set up for a raucous comedy, a 'mating of opposites' situation that promises great clashes of amusement. Instead, what results are chuckles which soon turn into mild amusement as the film ambles its way into a rather standard romance. Perhaps all of this could have been an asset, creating a film that surprised audiences by its shifts in tone, but Wesley Ruggles' direction is not inventive enough to pull off this feat. It is, however, more than capable of framing the performances of its stars, which are the real reason for seeking out No Man of Her Own. Gable and Lombard glisten, and if both have given better performances elsewhere, they're still a treat. So the film is an opportunity not to be missed by latter-day 'Golden Age of Hollywood' aficionados." - www.allmovie.com

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Faithless 1932 - Suffers from miscasting but very enjoyable

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IMDB rating: 6,8

Director: Harry Beaumont
Main Cast: Tallulah Bankhead, Robert Montgomery, Hugh Herbert

"Faithless was titled 'Tinfoil' during pre-production, which is perhaps a more apt description of this story about a calculating heiress who loses everything only to find her heart. Although never abandoning her husky mid-Atlantic speech pattern - Bankhead's desperate prostitute still says 'cahn't' - the grand dame's acting prowess stands her in good stead throughout and she remains believable to the very end. Robert Montgomery is his usual affable self, but comedian Hugh Herbert is surprisingly potent as Bankhead's nasty 'sugar daddy'. Faithless is pure soap opera, but as such it never fails to entertain.
Tallulah Bankhead made her name on the stage and came to Hollywood under contract to MGM. Faithless would be her last film until 1944's Lifeboat. Bankhead's particular style of acting was not effective on film, and it was probably because of the way she was cast. In Lifeboat, she's perfect - Hitchcock wanted 'the most oblique, incongruous person imaginable in such a situation'. Robert Montgomery plays one of depression's many unlucky - what jobs he gets, he loses because the companies close, and he's finally attacked on the job by employees who feel threatened. Through it all, he keeps his dignity and hope." - www.allmovie.com

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Arsene Lupin 1932 - The first screen pairing of the Barrymore brothers

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IMDB rating: 7,0

Director: Jack Conway
Main Cast: John Barrymore, Lionel Barrymore, Karen Morley, John Miljan, Tully Marshall

"John Barrymore plays a burglar and his brother Lionel Barrymore is the detective trying to catch him in this cleverly cast drama. An upscale thief who works under the name of Arsene Lupin is making the rounds of the homes of the wealthy and privileged, and Detective Guerchard (Lionel Barrymore) is determined to track him down. What he doesn't know is that the suave and sophisticated Duke of Charmerace (John Barrymore) is actually the man behind the robberies. Will Guerchard find out the thief's true identity before he can execute a daring theft from the Louvre Museum? Karen Morely co-stars as Sonia, the Duke's love interest.
When it debuted in 1932, the big news about Arsene Lupin was that it was the first screen pairing of the legendary Barrymore brothers. Modern audiences, who have had the chance to see them in several of their subsequent screen teamings, won't approach Arsene with the same sense of anticipation, but they'll likely find themselves quite entertained with the result, especially if they are fans of Raffles-type 'gentleman thief' stories. The screenplay of Arsene is solid, setting up the situations with skill and making sure that all of the parts are in their proper places. The writers do a fine job of keeping the audience guessing as to the identity of the title character until more than halfway into the film and it is only in the climax that the viewer is really certain that his guess is right. Jack Conway directs efficiently, with an eye on atmosphere and tension but also making sure that the appropriate light moments are given equal play. And he is very careful to spotlight 'the big show': the scenes in which John Barrymore and Lionel Barrymore share the screen and perform their own special brand of dramatic dueling. They're in beautiful form, sparring delightfully off of each other and giving their fans plenty to relish. All in all, Arsene is a treat for fans of light mystery entertainment." - www.allmovie.com

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(Arsene Lupin Double Feature: Arsene Lupin 1932 & Arsene Lupin Returns 1938)

Kongo 1932 - A tropical human condition story

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IMDB rating: 6,9

Director: William J. Cowen
Main Cast: Walter Huston, Lupe Velez, Conrad Nagel, Virginia Bruce

"A remake of West of Zanibar (1928), this strange, gut-wrenching melodrama set in the African jungles, offers a disturbing portrait of a bitter, crippled and insane megalomaniac who vents his rage via mental torture against all those who get too near. Walter Huston plays the madman who lost the use of his legs during a battle with his nemesis Gordon. The accident happened many years ago and since then Huston has dragged himself about in his jungle home making the lives of those around him waking nightmares. He has terrified the local tribesmen into total submission with his knowledge deadly voodoo (he tells them guns are magical instruments). He is even crueler to his fellow Anglos. A young white woman comes to visit one day. Believing her to be the daughter of his arch rival Gordon, he gleefully embarks upon a heavy reign of psychological abuse until the poor girl is nearly destroyed. For more fun, he gets a new doctor addicted to drugs and of course he can also torment the woman who loves him, Velez. The horror continues until Gordon suddenly shows up. Vengeful Huston quickly picks a fight and during the ensuing struggle Gordon tells Huston a bitter truth, one that leads Huston to a horrible realization." - www.allmovie.com

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Emma 1932 - Another sterling performance from Dressler

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IMDB rating: 7,1

Director: Clarence Brown
Main Cast: Marie Dressler, Richard Cromwell, Jean Hersholt, Myrna Loy, John Miljan

"Emma is a turn-of-the-century domestic drama completely dominated by star Marie Dressler. She plays the maid of an upper middle class family, keeping her wits about her as her employers suffer crisis after crisis. When the master of the house (Jean Hersholt), a prominent inventor, is widowed, he proposes marriage to Emma. Shortly afterward, Hersholt dies, and Emma, who has married 'out of her class', is accused of murder by Hersholt's jealous children. Cleared of the accusation, Emma turns over her inheritance to the selfish children and heads off to work for another family, once again making the best of any and all bad situations.
At the time she made this film, Marie Dressler was Hollywood's greatest star. An unlikely celebrity sensation, with her homely face and shapeless body, Dressler was nonetheless adored by the American public who could sense her basic decency and goodness. For a few brief years she became the nation's grandma, someone with whom the public could feel completely comfortable. Dressler seemed to typify the virtues of hard work and plainspoken honesty - attributes which counted for much in the Great Depression's darkest days.
Firm support is given by gentle Jean Hersholt as Dressler's kindly employer. As his son, Richard Cromwell gives an energetic performance. Lovely Myrna Loy, not-quite-yet a star, is strangely awkward as Hersholt's spiteful daughter. John Miljan is effective in the role of a relentless District Attorney." - www.allmovie.com

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Pack up your troubles 1932 - Stan & Ollie and a little girl

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IMDB rating: 7,3

Director: George Marshall
Main Cast: Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, Don Dillaway, Mary Carr, James Finlayson

"Drafted into the army during World War I, those muddled misfits Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy make a shambles of Training Camp before being shipped to France. When their best pal Eddie (Donald Dillaway) is killed in battle, Stan and Ollie vow to locate the grandparents of Eddie's orphaned little daughter (Jacquie Lyn). Unfortunately, the grandparents are named Smith - and they live in New York City. With only a city directory and phone book as their guide, Stan and Ollie undergo several chucklesome misadventures as they scour the canyons of Manhattan to find Mr. and Mrs. Smith. With the orphanage officials hot on their heels, the boys take drastic action to raise enough money to get out of town with the little girl. All turns out well when Eddie's grandfather makes an appearance under the least likely circumstances. But before Laurel & Hardy can enjoy their own happy ending, they cross the path of an old enemy from their army days: a knife-wielding chef with blood in his eye.
The second of Laurel & Hardy's feature-length films, Pack Up Your Troubles is infinitely more amusing than their first feature effort, 1931's Pardon Us. Best bit: An overtired Laurel, attempting to tell a bedtime story to the little girl, ends up snoozing away as the kid finishes the story. The powerhouse supporting cast includes such Laurel & Hardy regulars as James Finlayson, Billy Gilbert, Rychard Cramer, Charles Middleton and Charlie Hall. George Marshall, the film's director, proves a mirthsome menace in the small role of the vengeful chef." - www.allmovie.com

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The penguin pool murder 1932 - Entertaining mystery boosted by Oliver and Gleason chemistry

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IMDB rating: 7,1

Director: George Archainbaud
Main Cast: Edna May Oliver, Robert Armstrong, James Gleason, Mae Clarke, Donald Cook

"Edna May Oliver makes the first of three appearances as Hildegarde Withers, the schoolteacher/sleuth created by mystery writer Stuart Palmer.
The Penguin Pool Murder is a delightful piece of murder mystery fluff. It's no classic of the genre, mind you, but it's a fun little movie, and one in which the comedy works equally as well as the mystery. The plot is, of course, concerned with 'who done it', and it lays the pieces out in an entertaining manner. It's not especially hard to solve the identity of the murderer and some of the clues are put together a bit too handily, but Penguin is so much fun that few will care. Nor will they care too much about the climactic court room scene which, even by cinematic standards, veers off course from reality by a wide margin, nor about the willingness of the chief detective to misstate a valuable piece of evidence (which somehow keeps being withheld even during the trial). How can one care when the droll Edna May Oliver and the crusty James Gleason are having so much fun sparring with each other? Oliver and Gleason carry the picture, something two character actors don't get the chance to do very often, and boy do they make the most of the opportunity." - www.allmovie.com

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Tarzan, the ape man 1932 - The one and only original Tarzan movie that started it all

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IMDB rating: 7,2

Director: W. S. Van Dyke
Main Cast: Johnny Weissmuller, Maureen O'Sullivan, C. Aubrey Smith, Neil Hamilton, Doris Lloyd

"Tarzan, The Ape Man was not only MGM's inaugural Tarzan film, but also the first to star former Olympic swimming champ Johnny Weissmuller as The Lord of the Jungle (strange but true: one of the pre-Weissmuller Tarzan candidates was Clark Gable!)
Utilizing scads of stock footage from MGM's Trader Horn (1931), the film begins with great white hunter James Parker (C. Aubrey Smith) trekking through darkest Africa in search of the legendary Elephant Graveyard. Accompanying Parker is his daughter Jane (Maureen O'Sullivan) and her erstwhile beau Harry Holt (Neil Hamilton). The expedition is habitually sabotaged by the ecology-conscious Tarzan, a white man who'd been lost in the jungle years earlier and raised by Apes. Tarzan kidnaps Jane and spirits her away to the treetops, where she gradually overcomes her fear of the Loinclothed One and teaches him to speak English. The perfect gentleman, Tarzan returns Jane to her father and swings off into the distance. When Parker, Jane and Holt are captured by pygmies, Tarzan comes to the rescue, with an entourage of his elephant friends. At fade-out time, Jane has decided to renounce civilization and spend the rest of her life with Tarzan.
The only one of the MGM Tarzans actually based on the Edgar Rice Burroughs originals, Tarzan the Ape Man proved a surprise hit, spawning an endless parade of sequels and remakes.
The movie was one of Irving Thalberg's 'pet' projects at MGM, an opportunity to take an existing franchise (Edgar Rice Burroughs' jungle lord had been a film staple since beefy Elmo Lincoln donned a loincloth, in 1918), give it 'A'-list production values and a 'name' director (W.S. Van Dyke), introduce charismatic actors as the leads (28-year old multiple Olympic champion Johnny Weissmuller and 21-year old Irish import Maureen O'Sullivan), and create a 'definitive' success for the studio." - www.allmovie.com

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Blessed event 1932 - Lee Tracy as a lost joy of the pre-code era

IMDB Link
IMDB rating: 7,2

Director: Roy Del Ruth
Main Cast: Lee Tracy, Mary Brian, Dick Powell, Allen Jenkins, Ruth Donnelly

"Blessed Event is one of several early-1930s films inspired by the meteoric rise to fame of gossip columnist Walter Winchell - and like most such films, its title is based on a Winchell tag line.
Lee Tracy plays a glib-tongued reporter who is conducting a feud with popular singer Dick Powell (making his film debut). Along the way, Tracy offends a powerful gangster, and in so doing becomes entangled with chorus girl Mary Brian.
The original Broadway stage version of Blessed Event was written by Manuel Seff and Forrest Wilson--and reportedly inspired by the career of Ruby Keeler, who rose to stardom thanks in part to the patronage of a New York mobster.
There never was anyone quite like Lee Tracy, the machine gun-mouthed character actor who managed a brief starring career in pre-Code movies, of which Blessed Event arguably gives Tracy the chance to shine in all his diamond hard glory. Tracy was an odd choice for stardom, a guy who wasn't blessed with male model looks and who had a persona that was perfect for self-centered egoists who don't mind a little love but only if it doesn't get in the way of old number one. It's the kind of character that can be repulsive, but Tracy's total self-absorption and, equally important, his incredible timing and precise delivery of a one-liner make him somehow appealing. He's a force of nature, and one that won't be denied; moreover, he's a peculiarly American one, taking the concept of individualism to an extreme. Tracy also is someone who requires an amoral atmosphere in which to thrive. After the Production Code really came in, the kind of stories, situations and characters that could best contain him lost their power. But Blessed has none of these worries, blithely dealing with unwanted pregnancies, homosexuality and other subjects soon to be forbidden, and allowing the audience to cheer on a go-getter who tramples anyone in the way of getting what he wants. Tracy is perfectly complemented by Roy Del Ruth's rapid-fire direction and by a script that gives him plenty to get his mouth around; his electric chair monologue is really astounding." - www.allmovie.com

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Red dust 1932 - Gable & Harlow get torrid in the Tropics

IMDB Link
IMDB rating: 7,4

Director: Victor Fleming
Main Cast: Clark Gable, Jean Harlow, Gene Raymond, Mary Astor, Donald Crisp, Tully Marshall

"Red Dust was lensed almost entirely on MGM's back lot; even so, we are utterly convinced that the film takes place in Indochina. Even more importantly, the audience never doubts for one moment that the relationship between 'hero' Clark Gable and 'heroine' Jean Harlow has gone far beyond the meaningful-glances stage.
Gable plays the overseer of a rubber plantation, whiling away the hot, lonely nights with his drunken assistant Tully Marshall. Donald Crisp, another of Gable's cohorts, arrives by boat with stranded prostitute Jean Harlow in tow. Gable wants no part of Harlow at first, telling her that she's history the moment the next boat to Saigon shows up. But Gable and Harlow are, in the parlance of the time, made for each other. After the inevitable affair, Harlow leaves, just as engineer Gene Raymond shows up to participate in the construction of a bridge. Raymond has brought along his seemingly proper wife Mary Astor; it isn't long, however, before Astor is throwing herself at the not altogether unwilling Gable. Raymond is such a good egg that Gable feels ashamed of himself for enjoying Astor's favors. When Harlow returns, Gable goes back to her, which drives the already unstable Astor completely off her trolley. She shoots Gable in a fit of jealous rage. Hearing the shot, Raymond rushes in. Proving that she's 'aces', Harlow quickly covers up for Astor, insisting that it was she who shot Gable. None the wiser, Raymond returns to the mainland with Astor, while Gable and Harlow end up in each other's arms for keeps.
Fairly 'hot' even by pre-code standards, Red Dust has gained legendary status thanks to rumors concerning Jean Harlow's famous bathing scene in a shaved barrel; according to rumor, footage still exists of Harlow totally au naturel (some stories go as far as to claim that the overseas version of Red Dust shows Gable and Harlow 'doing it'.) A heavily laundered remake of Red Dust, Mogambo, appeared in 1954, again with Clark Gable in the lead, but this time with Ava Gardner and Grace Kelly in the Harlow and Astor roles, respectively." - www.allmovie.com

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American madness 1932 - A fast-paced, exciting early social drama

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IMDB rating: 7,5

Director: Frank Capra
Main Cast: Walter Huston, Pat O'Brien, Kay Johnson, Constance Cummings

"American Madness was the first of Frank Capra's topical social dramas, anticipating his later, broader work in this sub-genre with Mr. Deeds Goes To Town, Mr. Smith Goes To Washington, Meet John Doe, and It's A Wonderful Life (two vital elements of which - a key scene midway through the picture and the denouement - were derived from the key dramatic moment in this movie). Indeed, it stands at the nexus of Capra's early career, between actual events that took place at the Bank of Italy, involving its founder A. P. Giannini, and the decade-and-a-half of cinematic storytelling that the director would generate out of moments such as that. And for fans of the filmmaker's uplifting, socially conscious brand of story-telling (which also figures into such comedies as It Happened One Night and You Can't Take It With You), this film is a great discovery on that basis alone. It has its flaws but those can be overlooked in the context of the bigger picture here - in 1932, Capra and screenwriter Robert Riskin were getting away with a lot just making a movie like this, which was not entirely well-received in cities that had seen bank runs in recent months and years (it closed in Baltimore, where such incidents had occurred, in just two days). But American Madness is much more than a social statement - it's a great visual and cinematic narrative achievement, showing how a master filmmaker's vision, coupled with that of a bold screenwriter (Robert Riskin, who would loom large across Capra's career through the 1940's), could devise what amounts to a symphony on the screen.
Walter Huston is terrific as Dickson, a quirky but shrewd financier who is capable of understanding people's financial problems. He's also courteous to his employees and very faithful to his bored wife; at the same time he has a deep grasp of the duty of financial institutions to distribute money into circulation. In what is perhaps the most astute quote in the film, 'Character', he muses, 'is the only thing you can bank on!'
This was one of Huston's earliest roles; it ranks with Dodsworth (1936) and Abraham Lincoln (1930) as his very best." - www.allmovie.com

DVD links:

The most dangerous game 1932 - The night of the mad hunter

IMDB Link
IMDB rating: 7,3

Directors: Irving Pichel, Ernest B. Schoedsack
Main Cast: Joel McCrea, Fay Wray, Leslie Banks, Robert Armstrong

"This classic horror film stars Leslie Banks in a tour-de-force of pure evil as the sadistic Count Zaroff, who waylays shipwrecked boats on his foggy island then unleashes his vicious dogs and hunts humans in the jungles for sport. Robert Armstrong and Fay Wray are among the prey and would be reunited the following year for co-director Ernest B. Schoedsack's wonderful King Kong, (actually filmed on the Kong sets during a lull in the production of that classic film, utilizing most of the Kong personnel - actors Fay Wray, Robert Armstrong, Noble Johnson, Steve Clemente and Dutch Hendrian; producer O'Brien; director Schoedsack; composer Max Steiner), while the other co-director, Irving Pichel, would go on to act in Dracula's Daughter. The timeless adventure story has been copied many times, decades later by John Woo in Hard Target (1995), but few of the remakes compare to the somewhat tatty but effective original." - www.allmovie.com

Download links:

(720p BluRay, rar, no password):

http://uploaded.net/file/bjdysy5p/The_Most_Dangerous_Game_1932_720p_BluRay_x264_x0r.part1.rar 
http://uploaded.net/file/uwm6vrne/The_Most_Dangerous_Game_1932_720p_BluRay_x264_x0r.part2.rar

OR:

Jewel robbery 1932 - A pre-code little comedy gem

IMDB Link
IMDB rating: 7,6

Director: William Dieterle
Main Cast: William Powell, Kay Francis, Helen Vinson

"A bored Baroness discovers love and excitement when she becomes caught up in a thrilling jewel robbery.
Scintillating, light as air and slightly naughty, this pre-Code charmer will delight discriminating viewers looking for a sophisticated comedy, a little trifle with which to while away an idle hour. Thievery, marijuana and infidelity - while very serious subjects - are here satirized almost to the point of insignificance. The whole purpose of this forgotten film - which compares nicely with the best of Lubitsch - is to provide the audience with a good time, and in that it succeeds quite admirably.
Beautiful Kay Francis is enchanting, her cool demeanor barely concealing the mischievous passions just below her elegant surface. Very bored with her wealthy but unattractive husband (Henry Kolker), she yearns for a more exciting life. Gentlemanly thief William Powell provides that opportunity. Suave and debonair, he instantly makes the viewer forgive his regrettable vocation. As a twosome, the stars bring just the right frisson of pleasure to their scenes to please all but the most jaded viewer.
The supporting cast further adds to the film's fine distillation. Hardie Albright as Francis' admirer and Helen Vinson as her friend both portray willing partakers of Old Vienna's hedonistic lifestyle. Spencer Charters is very humorous as a completely incompetent night watchman. Sour Clarence Wilson plays a police official, while Alan Mowbray shines in his few minutes as a no-nonsense detective.
 Jewel Robbery was based on a play by Ladislas Fodor, previously filmed in an Austrian version."

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What price Hollywood? 1932 - The familiar 'A Star Is Born' story with Cukor in the director's chair

IMDB Link
IMDB rating: 7,8

Director: George Cukor
Main Cast: Constance Bennett, Lowell Sherman, Neil Hamilton, Gregory Ratoff

"What Price Hollywood is often referred to as the 'first' version of the oft-filmed A Star is Born. While there are strong resemblances between the two properties, Hollywood is in many respects a wholly separate entity.
Constance Bennett plays a star-struck waitress who manages to make a good impression on prominent film director Lowell Sherman. With Sherman's patronage, Bennett rises to film stardom as 'America's Pal'. Sherman is gratified, but he keeps his distance; a chronic alcoholic, he is certain that his inevitable fall from grace will adversely affect Bennett's stardom. Impulsively, Bennett marries wealthy playboy Neil Hamilton, who genuinely loves his wife but is jealous of the demands made on her by her career. Hamilton walks out, but not before Bennett has been impregnated. Turning her attentions to her mentor Sherman, Bennett does everything she can to halt his career downslide, but it is too late. In a startlingly conceived sequence (utilizing slow motion and rapid-fire montage cutting), Sherman kills himself in Bennett's bedroom. When his body is found, the ensuing scandal destroys Bennett's career (represented visually by a life-sized cutout of 'America's Pal' shrinking into nothingness). Hoping to heal her emotional wounds, she flees to Paris with her child, where she is reunited with a contrite Hamilton.
What Price Hollywood? producer David O. Selznick later claimed that most of the dialogue and situations in the film were drawn from life; he'd make the same claim upon producing the similar (but not identical) A Star is Born five years later. Somewhat perversely, Lowell Sherman based his performance-especially the inebriation scenes-on his then brother-in-law John Barrymore." - www.allmovie.com

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Downstairs 1932 - John Gilbert's best performance of the sound era

IMDB Link
IMDB rating: 8,0

Director: Monta Bell
Main Cast: John Gilbert, Virginia Bruce, Paul Lukas, Hedda Hopper, Reginald Owen, Olga Baclanova

"Anyone who believes that the career of silent screen idol John Gilbert ended because his voice has too high for the talkies hasn't seen this marvelously black comedy. In perhaps his best performance of the sound era (with his supporting role in 1934's The Captain Hates the Sea running a close second), Gilbert plays a rogue who can get away with just about anything because of his charisma and charm -- and his voice suits his character perfectly. Karl (Gilbert) is a chauffeur who goes to work for a Viennese Baron and Baroness (Reginald Owen and Olga Baclanova) on the day that two of their servants - head butler Albert (Paul Lukas) and maid Anna (an astonishingly lovely Virginia Bruce) - are being wed. Almost immediately Karl creates havoc in the household - he flirts with the innocent, susceptible Anna, blackmails the Baroness, who is having an affair, and seduces the middle-aged head cook, Sophie (Bodil Rosing), only so he can get his hands on her life savings. In spite of his wickedness, there is something magnetic about Karl, and Anna - who is vaguely dissatisfied with her loving but dogmatic husband - finally succumbs. But all of his schemes inevitably backfire on him and after Albert gets Sophie's money back, he gladly tosses Karl out of the Baron's mansion. The next we see of him, he is charming his way into yet another chauffeur position (hinting at a potential sequel that, unfortunately, never came).
Gilbert, who wrote the story four years earlier, originally had an appropriately macabre ending - after a brutal fight, Albert drowns Karl in a vat of wine. When he first came up with the idea, Gilbert had wanted Erich Von Stroheim to direct. By 1932, this was out of the question (MGM mogul Louis B. Mayer had little use for Stroheim). Instead, the highly capable Monta Bell was given the job - sadly, it was one his last directing assignments. During the shoot, Gilbert and Virginia Bruce fell in love and they were married in August, 1932, the month that the film was released." - www.allmovie.com

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Suicide fleet 1931 - Fighting sailing ships

IMDB Link
IMDB rating: 5,8

Director: Albert S. Rogell
Main Cast: William Boyd, Robert Armstrong, James Gleason, Ginger Rogers

"Coney island vendors Baltimore Clark (Bill Boyd), Dutch Herman (Robert Armstrong) and Skeets O'Reilly (James Gleason) spend their off-hours (and some of their on-hours) carrying on a friendly rivalry for the affections of the pert Sally (Ginger Rogers). But when America enters WW1, our three heroes leave Sally behind and join the Navy. Before long, Baltimore, Dutch and Skeets find themselves smack in the middle of an ongoing conflict between the German U-boat fleet and a shadowy 'mystery' ship. Naturally, the boys are crewmen on the aforementioned mystery vessel, which is used as a decoy to bring the enemy out into the open. Despite this tense situation, the film spends a goodly amount of time showing the three protagonists cheerfully cheating on Sally with fetching foreign damsels in other ports of call." - www.allmovie.com

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Seas beneath 1931 - Visually interesting sea adventure

IMDB Link
IMDB rating: 5,7

Director: John Ford
Main Cast: George O'Brien, Marion Lessing, Mona Maris

"Seas Beneath is a rousing sea adventure from John Ford that takes place in the closing months of World War I. Largely unavailable for decades, Seas Beneath remains a solid and gritty war picture that is also guilty - like much of Ford's work - of idealizing history. About half of the film takes place in a Spanish port town, where German spies abound. These scenes suffer from a stasis probably dictated by the technical restrictions of the early sound era, but Ford injects them with a seediness and mysteriousness that makes them compelling nonetheless. When Seas Beneath really comes alive, however, is when Captain Kingsley and company leave port and embark on their cat-and-mouse game with the German U-boat. With the invaluable aid of some remarkable location camerawork (as well as the assistance of the U.S. Navy), Ford places the viewer into the center of the action, creating a sense of authenticity that makes these scenes all the more dramatic, and leading up to a stunning climactic sea battle. The battle scenes are the highlight of the picture, and some credit must go to the sound crew for capturing the intensity of the action as the U-boat bombards the schooner over and again while Kingsley waits for his chance to strike. Another valuable element to the film is Ford's wise decision to actually have the Germans speak German, with only a minimal use of intertitles to translate the more important dialogue. The cast is solid, especially Mona Maris as the seductive spy Lolita. Seas Beneath is not a classic, but it deserves to be far better known and more widely seen." - www.allmovie.com

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Border law 1931 - A well paced early sound Western

IMDB Link
IMDB rating: 6,2

Director: Louis King
Main Cast: Buck Jones, Lupita Tovar, Jim Mason

"Border Law, directed by Henry King's less remembered brother Louis, remains a fine B-Western typical of its stalwart leading man Buck Jones. Although Columbia Pictures had only begun its slow climb out of Gower Gulch in 1931, the Jones westerns were better-than-average, and awarded more care than most of their rivals. With old-timer Frank Rice as a not too annoying comic relief and Lupita Tovar as a very fetching saloon belle, Border Law makes a pleasant hour of so of juvenile sagebrush action, Columbia style. The film is also a welcome chance to see the other, American, James Mason in action. His credits always confused with the later British star of the same name, Mason was the typical suave B-Western 'Boss Villain', complete with pencil-thin mustache and supercilious airs. In films since the 1910s, Mason enjoyed his best years in the early sound era, when his villainy often added an air of true menace to an otherwise lethargic B-Western." - www.allmovie.com

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Illicit 1931 - Stanwyck exudes raw sensuality

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IMDB rating: 6,2

Director: Archie Mayo
Main Caast: Barbara Stanwyck, James Rennie, Ricardo Cortez, Natalie Moorhead, Charles Butterworth, Joan Blondell

"'Nearly every girl I know is either unhappily married or unhappily divorced' -  a no-nonsense Barbara Stanwyck tells prospective father-in-law Claude Gillingwater in an early scene in this frank society drama from Warner Bros. Despite rumors of an illicit affair with handsome James Rennie, Gillingwater's son, Stanwyck remains doubtful of whether marriage is for her. And amazingly to viewers accustomed to post Production Code films, there is indeed an illicit affair going on here, what with Miss Stanwyck and her prospective groom lounging about at all hours in their night attire. They do of course get married but almost immediately lose that special spark that comes with a new romance. Rennie begins to dally with mature femme fatale Natalie Moorhead and Stanwyck, despairing at being turned into the shrewish wife, demands that they start afresh, and in separate apartments. Needless to say, the couple come to their senses before the obligatory happy ending, but that didn't pacify scores of local censorship boards, some of whom refused to permit even the film's title. Borrowed from Columbia and suffering a slight case of miscasting, Barbara Stanwyck nevertheless gives yet another of her patented standout performances, adding a bit of street smarts to her Long Island debutante. She is matched in most scenes by the unfairly forgotten James Rennie, a stage actor from Canada, who is best remembered today as the husband of Dorothy Gish. Based on a risqué 1930 play by Edith Fitzgerald and Robert Riskin, Illicit was remade by Warners in 1933 as Ex-Lady, this time starring Bette Davis." - www.allmovie.com

DVD links:

(Double feature with Girl Missing 1933)