The opening sequence of Spencer Tracy as a small-town judge denying a divorce to a couple who obviously can't stand each other seems straight out of an "Andy Hardy" film where Lewis Stone did practically the same thing. But unlike that MGM series of sometimes manipulative morality tales, this MGM drama (based upon a Sinclair Lewis novel) uses this opening as a point. This sets up Cass as a truly moral man who hasn't yet married and finds love with a working class girl (Lana Turner) from the opposite side of the tracks. This upsets the apple cart of his high society friends who find his fiancée to be beneath him. The age difference between Tracy and Turner doesn't matter to them, but her lack of supposed breeding does. They pretend to accept her, but go out of their way to sabotage Turner in society every chance they get. His male friends use their friendship with him to try and get away with shady business dealings, and as the marriage builds, it also crumbles as Turner finds it hard to deal with the small-town pettiness.
A glossy women's drama with interest for the men (because of the business angle), this isn't a perfect movie by any means but one that lingers in the memory because of Tracy's nuanced performance. Every detail of his character is developed believably, from his allergy to a kitten to his dealings with people who approach his bench, the hypocrites of his society (lead by the imperious Mary Astor) and his tenderness to Turner in spite of everything. John Hodiak is the cad who almost breaks up the happy home while claiming to be Tracy's best friend, and Astor's society pals include Josephine Hutchinson as the wife of one of the rotten to the core businessmen using Tracy and Margaret Lindsay as the woman they prefer to see Tracy with.
This is also memorable for a scene where Tracy, just taking his evening walk, comes across Turner playing baseball on the other side of the tracks and steps in as umpire. That scene alone says more about his noble character than the screenplays of a dozen MGM potpoilers.
2 out of 4 found this helpful