Beauty and the Boss (1932) User Reviews (24)

Warren William - the man you hate to love...

[AlsExGal · 8/10 · 25 April 2010]

...but you just can't help yourself. William is perfect here as an efficient German bank president and baron, totally consumed with business by day and with romancing the ladies -lots of them - at night. He only has problems when his two interests converge. This usually occurs because he has a beautiful secretary. His usual solution - to fire the secretary and get her out of his business life, and then make her one of his many mistresses.

The baron tires of this repetitive problem, and vows that his next secretary will be a plain practical woman for whom he will have no attraction. So into his life walks Susie Sachs (Marian Marsh), "the church mouse". The cutest scene of the film is where Susie tricks her way into see the baron and tells him about the plight of her class -"the mice" - the unemployed and hungry. The baron is quite interested in her story. You see, he is not such a bad guy. It just never occurred to him that there might be a girl of her age in Germany more interested in a good meal than a diamond bracelet. He's never seen that side of life and therefore not given it much thought. He hires her, and she works out quite well for him until a business trip to Paris brings the Baron quite a few surprises.

This film was really a delight with very good dialogue and animated performances. Charles Butterworth is really quite good as comic support in these early Warner Brothers talkies. He plays the baron's assistant who is constantly writing down instructions on his cuffs and seems to have no objections when he is told he will be working all night and won't be allowed time to eat. David Manners plays the baron's younger brother who sees the beauty in Susie even when she is playing the frump.

Charming Pre-Code Comedy

[MovieResearch · 7/10 · 2 November 2007]

Although it betrays its theater-script origins in the rhythm of the performances and dialogue, this sparkling little formula comedy about a secretary who wins a rich Baron is chockablock with snappy retorts and racy rejoinders. Marian Marsh is adorable, charming and always convincing.

The surprising candor of the script is refreshing: despite the free modern use of more explicit language, this depression-era tale leaves nothing to the imagination. Its honesty is surprising and heightens the humor of the gentle jokes.

Watching scenes played out between Marsh and Warren William with such genuine engagement would be impossible in the modern era of frenetic jump-cutting. What a treat to see talented performers do such naughty and giggly scenes in a single take with hardly a cutaway or interruption in sight!

Fun competition for the boss...

[ksf-2 · 8/10 · 30 July 2017]

Clearly a pun on "Beauty and the Beast".... this early talkie is so under-rated. It's just before the Hays code started being enforced, and the clever banter gets quite saucy. Warren William (from the Lone Wolf films) is the all-business, hardworking company president, who has no time for the flirtations of his secretaries, first Mary Doran, then Marian Marsh. It turns into a kind of competition between the two girls, after a confrontation. Doran is "Ollie", who uses her wit, wiles, and low-cut dresses to try to lure in the Baron. Susie (Marsh) tries to take the high road at first, but sees how easy it is to make men swoon with Ollie's naughty girlie ways. Charles Butterworth is here as the office manager, and has all the best lines. That dry, sarcastic wit, which he brought from his vaudeville days, usually muttered under his breath. He was only 36 in this film, but wow, he always looked old as dirt. Frederick Kerr is the Baron's sidekick, but doesn't really add much to the story. It's fun being an observer, to see who will "win" the prize. Story by Hungarian Ladislas Fodor, and the foreign currency and other words creep into the conversation. Directed by Roy Del Ruth, who had been around since the early days of silents, and successfully moved into talkies. This one is a lot of fun. Doesn't seem to have been shown often on TCM, with only 300 votes. Warner packed a lot into 66 minutes, and it moves right along. Recommended ! Catch it if you can. Warner Brother archives HAS released this on DVD...

Wonderful pre-code comedy romance; tip top performances!

[nlangdon · 17 May 2000]

Warren William and Marian Marsh sparkle in this delicious Vitaphone production. Ms. Marsh handles the role of a dowdy but wise secretary with great aplomb, she's delightful! William (the star with two first names) is charming as the playboy baron with an amorous secretary on every phone line. Charles Butterworth adds to the fun with his usual hijinks. This one's a keeper!

precode comedy

[blanche-2 · 6/10 · 22 March 2015]

"Beauty and the Boss" is a 1932 film starring Warren William, Marian Marsh, and David Manners. Since it's precode, it's filled with innuendo. William plays a Viennese bank president who is easily distracted by his secretary, so distracted, in fact, that he fires her. Times were different, but maybe not - in 2013, a similar incident made national news, as one did in 2010.

As soon as his secretary has been dismissed, a young woman crashes into his office demanding a job. She's hungry and supporting her mother and her dog. Impressed with her steno skills, he hires her. She falls for him and quietly sabotages a few of his relationships.

This film was a big hit so Marsh and William were paired up again but with less success. Marian Marsh is of course adorable, and William is his usually cad-like self. Handsome David Manners, who plays his brother, is charming.

Cute comedy, not as brazen as "Baby Face" or other precodes, but fun just the same.

A Wonderful Distraction

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 2 December 2011]

Originally entitled The Church Mouse in New York, London, and Paris where it began as a play by Ladislas Fodor, Beauty And The Boss is an average comedy with a few good laughs about a wealthy man who can't decide whether he wants efficiency or eye candy as female employees. The play ran a respectable 164 performances on Broadway in the 1931-32 season for the Depression and the most prominent name in the cast was that of Ruth Gordon.

Warren William is the French industrial tycoon with this terrible dilemma and when he finds he can't concentrate on his business because he finds stenographer Mary Doran too attractive he fires Doran. There won't be that problem with Marian Marsh however who dresses down and dowdy so much that she's called a church mouse. But she's set her cap for William and she'll do whatever it takes to nail him.

Rounding out this European comedy of manners is David Manners as William's fun loving brother, they're much like the Larrabee brothers in Sabrina. There's also Frederic Kerr as a count with a roving eye and the ever droll Charles Butterworth who for me is always a pleasure to watch in anything.

The material cast has to work with is pretty thin, but they rise to the occasion and while Beauty And The Boss will never be rated as one of the great comedies of the Thirties it will give a few good laughs to anyone who views it.

No Women Wanted During Banking Hours

[movingpicturegal · 9/10 · 18 October 2006]

About a bank president who talks about putting a new rule into the company: "all females must wear long sleeves and high necks". Seems he is easily distracted by women, particularly his attractive and flirtatious secretary who he thinks is a "playgirl" rather than working girl, good for after hours only. He actually fires her - and she doesn't mind, 'cause she apparently agrees with this after hours concept, and becomes one of his new girlfriends (there seem to be many others too, judging by the office visits and phone calls from bathtubs he keeps getting). Soon a young waif arrives - hungry and oddly dressed in an outfit that includes black umbrella and flat black hat with a big white feather in it (why do these poor waif girls in old movies always seem to wear an odd feathered hat?). Well, seems she's an out-of-work stenographer looking to get hired - and turns out she's a whiz who loves work too, spending her free time toning her secretarial skills rather than dating men, she takes shorthand at 150 words a minute! He hires her on the spot since she's "plain" - seems even though she is clearly very pretty, he for some reason (like often seen in movies) can't see her beauty through the odd outfit. Well, she falls for him and soon blooms!

This is a thoroughly entertaining, fast paced, fun-to-watch film with lots of amusing pre-code banter and top-notch performances adding to the mix - I loved it. Warren William, one of my favorite actors from this time period, is just perfect as the rather handsome but stiff "girl crazy" boss, and Marian Marsh as the waif (who I thought looked like Reese Witherspoon in the earlier scenes) is just SO cute and charming - I really enjoyed her performance. Cute scene where she gets "taught" by the previous secretary how to seduce a man via accidentally-on-purpose leaning against him, and she tries it out on the boss. Really excellent film.

A spot of dictation

[AAdaSC · 7/10 · 27 October 2019]

Is always required in an office situation. In this film, Warren William (The Baron) is a super-rich businessman who has no time for play during work hours. So, how he gets around his selection of attractive secretaries is to fire them if they are good-looking and then casually date them whilst keeping them on a retainer salary for 6 months. It's a perfect set-up. In walks Marian Marsh (Susie) looking for a job and she is the perfect secretary as he doesn't find her attractive. She looks poor and doesn't wear make-up. She isn't a distraction and proves herself super-efficient at her duties. However, she wants more. She can also make herself look attractive.

This is a comedy that is funny and points out a few truths about men and women although the politically correct mob will be horrified. Ha ha. Live with it. All characters do well in this short film and it's a pretty racy pre-code offering. Marian Marsh plays a kind of Mary Poppins role. Warren Williams really does have office life sussed - a good role model. However, Poppins arrives and makes some changes. Her main rival comes in the shape of previous secretary Mary Doran (Ollie) and these two have some funny interactions that are also fraught with tension.

Anyone for a box of carrots? Good for Marian.

Wonderful comedy

[jadd1600 · 9/10 · 18 October 2006]

One of the very first boss falls for secretary films, but fresh, original, and wonderfully acted and scripted. Warren William is young but just as dapper and sophisticated as in later roles. I have never seen the female lead -- secretary -- before, but she is very pretty and a good comedic actress. One of the best parts is the way she keeps turning the tables on WW as the boss, first with super efficiency and later by doing what he commands, literally. It is set in Europe at the height of the worldwide depression, and it shows how well some of the rich -- those who were lucky enough not to be heavily invested in the preceding stock market mania -- were living, while others struggled. Seeing how people lived then, some 70 years ago, is always interesting.

One sterling performance in a so-so sexist comedy

[SimonJack · 6/10 · 14 June 2015]

A couple reviewers noted that this movie couldn't be made today – it's too sexist. Many others talk about it being "pre-code." When the Hays Office began enforcing the movie industries' self-imposed censorship (the "code") in 1934, films after that time wouldn't be able to show or talk about some things directly. Sex was the main taboo. I hope others can see the irony in this. Today Hollywood can make X-rated films with no limits. But we have another unwritten censorship – nothing sexist. I just mean to point out the irony in this – not to approve of either type of film. Society's mores change. What was bad before is good today, or OK. What was OK then is bad today. But does it ever really change? What is good for us, or bad for us, as individuals and as a society?

"Beauty and the Boss" clearly is a sexist film. And, it clearly mirrors some – not all, but some of society of that time. The sexism is the core of the plot in this film. Without it, the whole story changes. The film is adapted from a play that ran a year or so on Broadway. Clearly, the sexist aspects are an intended part of the film's entertainment. Some may not enjoy it for that reason. Others may be able to enjoy it with the understanding that that was a part of the culture of the time.

So, how good is the film? It seems very stagy. Most of the roles are OK, but the script is weak. The film is choppy and not very well edited. I think it suffered in direction as well. Remember, this is an early sound film – only three years into it, and I think the setting, direction and filming show that. They are a bit crude yet. For a comedy, it has very little witty, clever or funny dialog. It's mostly in character interactions.

Warren William had some very good films, but his character in this one is off. I think he over does it as Baron Joseph Ullrich in his demanding manner, so that when he calms down it's too stark a contrast and not believable. This is really a film for Marian Marsh. She sparkles in the role of Susie. Josef does a good job in his rapid-fire dictation and orders, but Susie tops him in her speedy ordering of everything. The transition of her character from the meek, poor, humble job seeker to the rapid-fire, in command, self-confident yet modest woman in charge is excellent. She clearly makes this film.

Marsh was barely on the silver screen a decade when she married and retired from acting. Her roles had gone downhill after some early successes, and she had a spat with Warner Brothers. But that was after her sterling performance as Trilby opposite John Barrymore's Svengali. The movie was titled "Svengali," but George Du Marier's novel on which it was based was called "Trilby."

I should mention that a reviewer, whose comments and reviews I most often enjoy, got one thing wrong in his comments. He referred to Williams' character, Baron Josef von Ullrich, as a French industrialist tycoon. In the movie, he is Viennese. For the last part of the film, he flies from Vienna to Paris for an extended business trip and takes with him his steno-secretary (Susie) and his gopher,Ludwig Pfeffer played by Charles Butterworth.

Most of the names are Austro-Hungarian, and Josef hires Susie for 40 kronen. Before that she said she had 20 pfennig in her purse. The kronen was in place until 1924, after which it was replaced by the Schilling. From the aircraft they fly in, its hard to tell exactly the date on which the movie is based. The first trans-Atlantic nonstop commercial airline flight was in 1938 – six years after this movie. But there were passenger planes that flew in the early 1920s. What adds to the confusion is that all during the 1920s, the Austro-Hungarian area of Eastern Europe was particularly hard-hit by the great depression So, the big banking deals that Josef is pulling off seem as not very likely for that time.

A very funny scene happens in the hotel when Ludwig has returned from a night out and is tipsy. He gets off the elevator and begins walking as though he were balancing. Another hotel guest asks him, "What are you doing?" Ludwig replies, "Walking a tightrope." The guest observes, "But there isn't any tightrope." Ludwig answers, "That's OK. I can do it better without one."

Equivalent to watching a funny cat video on You Tube

[1930s_Time_Machine · 3/10 · 25 August 2022]

If Warren William or Roy del Ruth are looking down from Heaven wondering what we're up to, they would be utterly bemused that we're actually watching this drivel now. Nobody at WB would expect anyone to ever see this after 1932. Nobody would even expect anyone to watch this more than once back in '32 either. This is obvious from the sloppy production and direction. For example in one scene, Mary Doran is standing in her underwear and then in a flash she's inexplicably trussed up in a robe - nobody cares. It's also got the very worst painted cardboard backdrop of Paris ever seen on film.

This movie looks like is was written and made during a drunken lunchtime whilst the bosses were out of the building. Thrown together just so the Warner cinemas didn't have any 'dark time' so at least something could be flickering on the screen as the audience shuffled in for the main feature.

Women had only had the vote for about ten years when this was made so times were of course very different. In that context, a little sexism and voyeurism is ok but this one really stretches our limits of acceptability. The story is about how a rich and powerful employer is frustrated by his secretaries being too attractive making it impossible for him not to need to sleep with them - poor man. He therefore employs an ugly girl who of course falls in love with him, buys a sexy dress and therefore becomes beautiful... how terrible for the poor chap.

Although not worthy of any intelligent observation, if one were made it could be noted that although Warren William comments that his new plain Jane secretary is not a woman but just a machine one could ask: who is really the machine? All she has to do is show a bit of cleavage, grin like a demented QVC presenter, push a few knobs and he performs exactly to form. That's of course what she wants, she gives up her job and merrily becomes his lover. So the moral of the story is: if want to get ahead in life, don't work hard, just look pretty.

Despite of all this - maybe because of Warren William being even more Warren Williamish than usual, I have to confess that I found this terrible movie almost entertaining and fun to watch.

No PC Here

[winstonchurchill-93755 · 9/10 · 13 March 2018]

Rapid fire dialog rips through this charming pre code gem so fast you'll have to put down your iPhone to enjoy. Marian Marsh shines and Warren William is offensive and hilarious.

Won't Yola D'Avril Climb Out Of That Bath Tub?

[boblipton · 7/10 · 20 September 2023]

Viennese banker and baron Warren William fires stenographer Mary Doran and hires her as one of his numerous girl friends. He plans on only male secretaries to avoid distraction, but Marian Marsh creeps into his office in a ridiculous hat and efficient manner. At least until they go to Paris.

Miss Marsh' manner of speaking reminds me of a telegraph key, and I find it annoying, but that's clearly part of the plan by director Roy Del Ruth to take the staccato dialogue direction at Warner Brothers and speed it up. That's probably why, while most Warners urban comedies times in at slightly north of 75 minutes, this is a crisp 66. Slow Miss Marsh to the speaking rate of, say, Glenda Farrell, and that's ten minutes right there. Charles Butterworth has some good lines and almost dances the tango; Frederick Kerr is an elderly rake and partner at the bank, and David Manners is there because he's under contract to the studio. With Robert Greig, Lilian Bond, and Yola D'Avril in a bath tub.

This could have been so much better.

[planktonrules · 3/10 · 4 December 2011]

The idea for this film isn't bad, but the writing was just awful. With just a few changes here and there and decent directing, it could have been a nice little film.

The film begins with a big-time executive (Warren William) firing his very competent secretary. Why? Well, she's too good looking and William doesn't want to be distracted. He's a guy who is either a workaholic or a lecher--and nothing in between. Later, he hires a seemingly sexless lady (Mae Marsh) who is more machine-like than feminine. The working relationship works out great--and William is more productive than ever. Marsh seems happy but when she observes how other women have an intoxicating effect on William, she, too, wants to be this sort of a woman and win his heart.

This film could never be made today--simply because it is so incredibly sexist. Such a boss would have a bazillion lawsuits for sexual harassment and gender discrimination!! But, if you can look past this the film still abounds with problems. The biggest is that William and Marsh are badly written characters--caricatures instead of believable people. It comes off, at times, as a very silly film when it shouldn't be. A few other problems are that the actors talk WAY too fast--so fast that I think Jimmy Cagney couldn't have kept up!! The director needed to tell them to slow significantly in their delivery.

The only interesting thing about this bad film is the sexual undercurrent--which never would have been allowed in the Code films (starting in mid-1934). LOTS of innuendo and double-entendres abound. But the overall effort is limp and silly.

SLOW DOWN! very sexist and dated strong sexual undercurrent Marsh's performance WAY too one-dimensional and silly BAD painting of Paris off balcony William is either a machine or a sex-machine

Great cast and pre-Code fun

[gbill-74877 · 7/10 · 18 June 2021]

Director Roy Del Ruth serves up a little inappropriate office behavior and an at attitude towards women that's hopelessly outdated in this minor pre-Code effort, but I confess I liked it nonetheless. Warren William is in one of his usual roles, that of a powerful businessman, and we first see him working with his attractive secretary, played by Mary Doran. As she takes dictation, he can't help but be distracted by her, and after he ogles at and comments on each part of her body, fires her because he feels she makes him less efficient. She asks "why blame me?" for his issues but the question isn't answered, and she doesn't seem to mind too much anyway. He tells her that now he can pursue her in his personal time, and call her up when he's in an "improper mood," which makes her happy. (There is a lot of male fantasy going on in this one, folks).

We then are introduced to Marian Marsh's character, who we first see looking through the window of a restaurant at a guy while he's trying to eat, her hunger apparent, a reference common during films made during the Depression. She soon shoehorns her way into the secretary job after showing William's character just what a whirlwind she can be in the office, efficiently managing phone calls and taking dictation with lightning speed. She's also in plain clothes and no makeup, so therefore not physically appealing to him. He likes her for being an automaton, but secretly she harbors a desire for him and to be "irresistible to men," and therein lies the rub, especially since he asks her to do things like pick out flowers for his ex-secretary.

Naturally, with a few tips, a beautiful gown, and some make-up, presto/change-o, she's beautiful, and he suddenly notices her in "that way." How many times have we seen this in a film? Anyway, after some seduction and impassioned speeches, he's soon worked up so much that he's literally chasing her around a grand piano, a scene given to us with a nice overhead shot. The boss has other options, including a woman who keeps phoning him up from her bathtub and his ex-secretary, who makes it clear that she's available for him. In her low-cut, shimmery dress, she says "Can't you see? I'm hanging over your head like a ripe peach. If only you'd give the tree a little shake" ... but despite those options, you can kind of see where this one's going.

It's a fine cast here - Doran and Marsh are both appealing, William is solid as always, and there are several good supporting actors, including David Manners and Charles Butterworth, the latter of whom has several funny little moments, delivering droll one-liners, dancing the tango with a flourish, and pretending to walk a tightrope with an umbrella after a night of drinking. I may be rounding up a bit in my score, as this is a pretty simple film. Whizzing by at just 66 minutes is both a blessing and a curse, and it would have been nice if this one had had a little more depth, or amplified its pre-Code naughtiness. It's an interesting (and possibly infuriating) window into the period though.

Effervescent

[amolad · 10/10 · 11 March 2001]

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS GENERAL SPOILERS

A wonderful pre-Code comedy, this is the kind of movie you can't help but watch with a delighted smile the whole way through. The under-known Warren William as usual plays the head of a large corporation, this time in Vienna. Also as usual, he is demanding, domineering, aggressive, and chauvanistic. He's an operator, and his success in charming women would make James Bond envious! The problem is, his secretary is so attractive he is unable to concentrate on his work. So he fires her and hires a plain-Jane to be his secretary instead (Marian Marsh). But the ploy backfires when Marsh blossoms into a beautiful, desirable woman.

Her transformation and William's softening make up the bulk of the picture, and it is just a delight to behold. At one point the action shifts to Paris, and even though we stay in studio sets, the idea of Paris -- its feel, its magic, its charm -- has a palpable emotional effect on Marian Marsh, and on us. It's amazing how much you can feel Paris in this movie even though we never really see it! It comes through in the performances -- the way they talk about being there, the expressions of their faces in their reaction shots.

BEAUTY AND THE BOSS (one of the great movie titles!) is based on a play yet feels cinematic and flowing. The story is very much an old-world story yet it hasn't really dated because the actors are so genuine. All in all, it's an excellent romantic comedy that will make you laugh out loud.

Marian Marsh and Beauty and the Boss

[elton160 · 8/10 · 18 October 2006]

Beauty and the Boss was a delightful movie with some very subtle humor and frank interfacing between the competing beauties. The rapid dialog between the Count and his prospective secretary was a pleasure in wittiness and abstract humor. This movie promised a bright career.

Marian Marsh was a beautiful young lady, but what struck me was a resemblance to a later actress, Jane Powell when she was of that age. It was a shame the studios did not hold on to her for better roles but I guess it was the depression and they were interested in churning out low budget movies and constantly showing new faces. Ms. Marsh did show considerable talent, artistically before the cameras, at quite a young age. Considering her young age it seems the studios could have been more understanding when they did not pick up her contract while they were having disagreements over a bad performing movie.

Some Movies Even Warren William Can't Save

[dsikula-1 · 4/10 · 15 August 2015]

While "Beauty and the Boss" isn't a total loss - no movie with Warren William and Charles Butterworth could be - it's darn close, and the fault, dear Brutus, lies with its leading lady, Marion Marsh.

I'm a connoisseur of bad performances, and always held Wheeler Oakman's wooden acting in "Lights of New York" as the gold standard, but Marsh has taken the title in a first-round knockout.

Either director Roy Del Ruth was too busy to direct Marsh or was deliberately trying to end her contract, but the decision to let her speak all her lines as rapidly and with as little inflection as possible was fatal. Every time she's on screen, she kills the picture with her lack of ability to act.

Mary Doran, who plays the "other woman" is so far superior to her in terms of personality and intelligence that it's baffling how William's character throws her over for such a dimwit.

I blame Del Ruth, ultimately. Any director who let Marsh get away with that performance -and- cuts away from Butterworth doing the tango is clearly having a bad time of it.

The Church Mouse Catches Her Lion!!!

[kidboots · 8/10 · 30 November 2010]

Marian Marsh had a gorgeous doll like prettiness and in at least one of her films (the terrific "Five Star Final") proved she could act if given the chance. "Beauty and the Boss" seemed to be the last movie she made under contract to Warners, which shows they didn't take much time to groom and nurture her talent. Although it could have been titles such as "Under 18", "Beauty and the Boss" and "Daring Daughters" that kept discerning picture goers away.

Baron Josef Von Ulrich (Warren William) is a banker who has the perfect solution for separating business from pleasure. Whenever a secretary starts to show too much allure, he simply fires her, gives her 6 months wages then begins an affair with her. His latest conquest, Miss Frey (Mary Doran) is proving very demanding so when Ulrich hires Susie Sachs (Marian Marsh) he is delighted. She has all the attributes he is looking for - plain of face, she describes herself as "hungry and poor as a church mouse" - plus her only interest is in efficiency and hard work. Marian Marsh is just adorable as Susie the "human dynamo" who within 5 minutes organises the Baron as he has never been organised before. She also manages to keep his mistresses at bay and his mind on the job.

A trip to Paris and all the hard work is undone. Susie starts to feel there is more to life than just hard work and has an encounter with Miss Frey who tries to put her wise to all the tricks needed to hook a man (which Susie tries to use in a really sweet scene with the Baron). Susie's transformation is like Cinderella, when she steps out with Paul (David Manners) and Count Von Tolheim (the always good Frederic Kerr). Marian is absolutely radiant in a shimmering gown and with her blonde hair carefully marcelled. David Manners has another of his "nothing" roles. I have read he was never too keen on film acting and you can tell as he basically walks through his role. He has one scene where he confesses his love for Susie but you just know she wants a man of flesh and blood - a man like the Baron!!!

Directed by Roy Del Ruth who was Warner's work horse director. His credits were outstanding - especially to a lover of pre-coders. "Blonde Crazy", "The Maltese Falcon", "Blessed Event", "Employee's Entrance", "The Little Giant" - only a fraction of the films he directed before the production code meanies stamped out the fun. Always at his best working within the framework of a big studio, once he left Warners, he then went to MGM where he was responsible for musicals like "Born to Dance" etc.

Highly Recommended.

Fast-Moving Pre-Code Comedy

[creeper · 8/10 · 25 January 2000]

No big stars in this one but still a very entertaining little film. Marsh and Doran are two women who go after Warren William in very different ways. Butterworth is good in his usual comic relief role. A charming and fast-moving movie.

UNDER-RATED GEM

[ukoutlaw-92465 · 8/10 · 20 September 2023]

I'm amazed this film isn't rated higher than 6.8! It's a fast-paced gem with snappy dialogue and terrific performances.

As another reviewer noted, this may be one of the first, if not THE first, film in which the big boss (played with dismissive invective and pure slime by the excellent Warren William) falls for his secretary (played with ultra-efficiency and rapid fire dialogue by ugly duckling Marian Marsh) by the end of the film.

The old boss-loves-secretary scenario plays fresh and funny here, setting a standard that subsequent films fail to capture.

I was surprised how much I truly enjoyed "Beauty and the Boss", and I highly recommend it. It is laugh-out-loud funny!

If you need me, I'll be working on some research!

Delightful Pre-Code Comedy

[atlasmb · 8/10 · 7 November 2019]

This noticeably pre-code comedy has a great cast and really entertains. Warren William plays the Baron---a very successful Viennese businessman who is a devout womanizer. Recognizing his weakness for the fairer sex, he is committed to having a secretary who is not very attractive or flirty. On the other hand, his personal life is overflowing with sexy women vying for his attention.

Susie Sachs, a mousy young woman who really needs a job, wheedles her way into the Baron's secretarial position by being as efficient and selfless as an automaton and as undesirable as an adding machine. Played remarkably by Marian Marsh with rapid-fire delivery, Susie turns out to be a surprise. Her all-business façade might have emotional underpinnings after all.

The source material for this film is a play and the ending is play-like and delightful.

Cute and loads of fun.

[beech488 · 10/10 · 25 July 2018]

I love pretty much anything with Warren William but had never seen anything with Marian Marsh before. She is delightful. It's a fun romp that doesn't tax the brain with over complicated plot lines but isn't a boring romance either. Predictable yes but when they do it with such sparkle and style - who cares.

Must be the Basis of "Sabrina"

[view_and_review · 9/10 · 10 February 2024]

Without a doubt, this movie has to be the basis of the movie "Sabrina" (1954) starring Humphrey Bogart and Audrey Hepburn. The similarities are too uncanny.

The main character is Baron Josef von Ullrich (Warren William). He is a stern, bossy, and busy president of a Vienna bank. He never asks for anything, he only demands. When his savvy secretary, Ollie Frey (Mary Doran), used her feminine wiles while taking dictation he fired her so that he could then see her romantically. It was a ploy of hers that worked all too well.

Replacing Ollie was the young, hungry (figuratively and literally) Susie Sachs (Marian Marsh). She was creative, assertive, and the best secretary to ever hold a pencil. She was a machine. She got the job by sheer will and determination. She showed Baron Josef how unparalleled she was at the job and how indispensable she would be. He hired her right there on the spot. She was professional, eager, excellent at the job, and she wasn't a sexual distraction as Ollie was with her low cut blouses and rising skirts.

Susie acted with the utmost professionalism, but she had feelings too. She had feelings for the Baron that showed themselves in little noticeable ways. If she was going to get his attention though, she'd need to learn the womanly tricks of the trade.

Like I said, this has to have been the basis for "Sabrina" and I really enjoyed that movie. And as much as I enjoyed "Sabrina," "Beauty and the Boss" was better. The rapid fire dialog between Susie and Baron Josef was amusing and entertaining and you couldn't help but like the two characters: the Baron because of his bossy yet lenient behavior and Susie because she was the underdog.

"Beauty and the Boss" had a wonderful script, a great compliment of characters, and excellent execution.

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