A short bit of fluff, dealing with a run of the mill pre-Code theme, that of a young person (Eric Linden) heading off to New York City to make it. There he meets his unscrupulous uncle (Walter Catlett), who talks big, but immediately begins leeching off his nephew. While it seems pretty obvious where it's heading, things take a pretty unexpected turn when the pair host a bootleg party up in their hotel room. Among the party-goers is a Ziegfeld girl with a soft heart (good old Joan Blondell), as well as a sharp talking young man (an uncredited Humphrey Bogart, in his first film for Warner Bros.).
This isn't a masterpiece or anything, but I loved its energy, and seeing these actors. Blondell is wonderful both as a budding love interest to Lindell, as well as when she spouts out all the lingo while shooting craps, one of my favorite moments. Catlett is oddly charismatic and the rest of the supporting cast is deep.
There is also a forbidden aspect to the whole thing, with Prohibition still being in effect and yet the booze flowing and intoxicated people alternating between bantering with one another and various bad behavior. The book one of them is reading, 'The Well of Loneliness,' was very well known and highly controversial for its lesbian protagonist. There is darkness to the plot twist and how it resolves, house detective Guy Kibbee leading the way while searching for his stashed alcohol, but it's buoyed by the vulnerability of Lindell and sweetness of Blondell.
The film isn't a deep study of anything really, but it is a small window into the period. It reflects the changing fortunes of the Depression and the theme of hunger when Blondell says "Chorus girls used to get pearls and diamonds. Now all they expect is a corned beef sandwich and they yell if they don't get it." Director Mervyn LeRoy zips things along over 63 minutes, and includes a few nice visual moments along the way, including a montage of close-ups. If you like films from the era, it's worth seeing.
0 out of 2 found this helpful