Ann Vickers (1933) User Reviews (17)

Interesting Social Commentary

[jlanders13 · 7/10 · 25 May 2001]

"Ann Vickers" is an adaptation of Sinclair Lewis' book about an unwed social worker who becomes pregnant during World War I and is subsequently abandoned by her lover. It is a valuable social commentary on the mores and folkways of the time (1933) and explores the double standard then existent that condemned a woman for `loose living' while exonerating a man. The most interesting aspect of the film to me was the fact that it was almost a mirror's image of the sea change that took place in morals during 1920's in the aftermath of World War I.

RKO couldn't have picked a better actress to play the part of Ann Vickers. Irene Dunne was young, sensitive, brave, intelligent – everything the `modern woman' of the day was supposed to be. Her early professional career was marked by a series of skillfully done tearjerkers of which "Ann Vickers" is one of the better ones.

I highly recommend this movie. Walter Huston did a fine job as Ann's second love, and the man who restored her faith in a loving relationship. It's well directed and filmed and is a wonderful insight into life in the U.S. from just after World War I up until the middle of the Great Depression.

Top notch drama

[JohnSeal · 7/10 · 7 April 2004]

To call Ann Vickers a women's picture may technically be accurate--it was, indeed, adapted by Jane Murfin, also responsible for 1939's The Women--but it's much more than that. Quite simply, this is one of the best dramas ever produced in Hollywood. Written with delicacy and tenderness, yet planted firmly in the cruel realities of life, Ann Vickers includes a tour de force performance by Irene Dunne, ably supported by the wonderful Walter Huston as her lover, and Conrad Nagel and Bruce Cabot as would be paramours. There are some incredibly powerful moments here, especially during the prison scenes, and Dunne and Huston are magical whenever they're on screen together. Certainly daring by the standards of the time, Ann Vickers is a refreshingly honest and still topical masterpiece.

Ann Stands By Her Man

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 3 March 2008]

Essaying the title role in Ann Vickers, Irene Dunne who was never less than noble on screen manages to make a virtuous woman out of someone who has two illegitimate kids.

Even in the days before the Code this was pretty heady stuff for Hollywood to be coming out with. Then again, novelist Sinclair Lewis was never anything but controversial in what he gave the American public. In fact his own relationship with newspaper columnist Dorothy Thompson parallels the one that Dunne has with Walter Huston in the film.

We first meet Ann as a social worker at a settlement house before World War I where she has eyes for one special doughboy, Bruce Cabot even with lawyer Conrad Nagel panting hot and heavy for her. Cabot proves to be something of a rat and impregnates her, but the child is a stillborn.

Ann is a role model feminist, a former suffragette who went to prison for the franchise. She's a career person first and she moves on to various jobs in the penal system, including running a women's prison. She becomes a best selling author and eventually falls in love with married judge Walter Huston with whom she has another child. Then Huston gets himself in a jackpot, but Irene also stands by her man.

I've not read the Sinclair Lewis novel, but just viewing the film you could tell an awful lot was left out. Possibly a great deal of this film wound up on the cutting room floor. Edna May Oliver has a fine part as Dunne's mentor, but she's abandoned a third of the way through the film and we don't know what happened.

Dunne does well in a role that Katharine Hepburn would have hit a home run with and she does get good support from the rest of the cast. Still this abbreviated version of Sinclair Lewis leaves a lot to be desired.

Never less than notable

[jaykay-10 · 24 June 2005]

It is doubtful if, at this point in time, anyone needs to be reminded of the consistent excellence of the versatile Irene Dunne, whose presence enhanced drama, comedy and musical films for many years. ANN VICKERS recalls to us how effective her subtle talent was even early in her career, playing a character alternately strong and vulnerable in a story too crowded with incident to give its major players the room they require to draw the characters fully. As a capable and resolute professional woman involved in social work and prison reform, Dunne's title character is curiously susceptible to the less-than-worthy men she finds more appealing than the steady earthbound types she encounters but does not favor. This contradictions accounts for a large part of the interest in her character, discreetly but firmly abetted by the nuances of yet another outstanding performance. Irene Dunne is perhaps the most reliable of all leading ladies. If you share the admiration of many for her work, this somewhat obscure picture will not disappoint you.

it's still the same old story, circa 1933

[blanche-2 · 6/10 · 21 October 2015]

"Ann Vickers" is a 1933 film starring Irene Dunne and Walter Huston. It is told with the sensibility of the 1930s and with an eye toward female audiences.

Dunne is Ann Vickers, a social reformer dedicated to her career and not interested in men or dating. Nevertheless, due to her attractiveness, men are interested. One is a soldier about to be shipped out during WW I (Bruce Cabot) with whom she enjoys a one-night stand and becomes pregnant. She has promised to marry him if he still wants her upon his return; he really doesn't. She goes off with her friend Malvina (Edna May Oliver) to her country place.

In one scene, she talks about how much she wanted the baby girl, and it was a shame that the baby died. So either she miscarried or had an abortion. We're left hanging. If she and Malvina were going out of the city, I understood that it was so she could be pregnant and no one would know it. Maybe not.

Ann throws herself into her work for prison reform, and meets a judge (Walter Huston) whose wife lives in Europe and won't divorce him. And complications ensue.

You can tell by the way I've related this story that this is not about a woman ahead of her time, independent, an early feminist, although that is supposed to be what it is.Instead the story is skewed toward her love life, and she marvels at how the Huston character has "killed her ambition."

As in so many other movies, ambition and careers mean one thing - spinsterhood - and a happy ending can only be achieved if she forsakes her career for the man she loves.

It sounds like I'm knocking this philosophy - I'm not. This was the attitude back then and in some places, it's still the attitude. The Vickers character was unconventional sexually, a feature of precode.

Once the '40s hit, she would be in tailored suits up to her neck, aggressive in business, and softened by love, which removes all that frustration.

After seeing a few of these, the message is clear.

So rather than focus on her reform work, although it's mentioned, the movie focuses on her love life. And spoils what could have been a good story.

Dunne is wonderful as Ann, and you sense that she has a real backbone. Her character doesn't allow herself to love at first, perhaps for fear of being hurt.

Huston as the judge with more than a few issues is always good, and Edna May Oliver gives an earthy, practical performance.

All in all, I did not think this was very good. It would have been a lot better with more balance between Ann's private life and career, and if she had found one.

Strong women's empowerment film

[HotToastyRag · 7/10 · 12 March 2020]

Is anyone in the mood for a cross between Back Street and Night Court? Following those 1931 and 1932 dramas, and combining the stars, comes Ann Vickers, a drama about a strong woman who falls in love with a married man, a judge who doesn't let the law rule his personal life. If you liked both of those precursors, I know what you're renting tonight.

This is an extremely racy movie, and it's a miracle it received a seal of approval from the not-yet mandatory Production Code. The beginning of the film follows Irene Dunne as she has a romance with a soldier, Bruce Cabot. She gets pregnant, and while it's not explicitly spelled out, it's made extremely clear that she goes to Havana to have and recover from an abortion. She's seen resting, wincing, and crying, and no further mention is made of her impending pregnancy. If you don't know how much of a big deal that was to include in a 1933 movie, you're probably not ready to watch it yet.

Her best friend, Edna May Oliver, is another strong female figure from the silver screen, so it's no wonder Irene gets back up on her feet and takes another stab at life. This time, the strong feminist takes a job at a women's prison. This is one of those great silver screen flicks that show how terrible prison conditions were, as well as the interactions between female prisoners and the process of becoming a hardened criminal. Irene tries her hand at drastic prison reform, but since she's a woman and she's trying to improve conditions for women, she's ignored, belittled, and dismissed. This is Irene Dunne, so don't think for a second she'll take that treatment lying down.

Where does Walter Huston come in? you might be asking. I'm sorry to tell you, you're going to have a very long wait ahead of you until he shows up. Keep in mind the movie is called "Ann Vickers" not "Judge Dolphin". He has such talent, it's too bad he doesn't take up more screen time, but since he is so talented, he adds a lot to the scenes he's in. Among the supporting cast, you'll see Conrad Nagel, Mitchell Lewis, Rafaela Ottiano, and J. Carrol Naish. Check this forgotten drama out if you like Irene Dunne, racy pre-Code movies, or early feminist pioneers. This movie is screaming for a remake, so don't be surprised if one of the top modern actresses takes on his powerful role in the future.

Immorality has never appeared so chaste.

[mark.waltz · 6/10 · 12 December 2018]

Over a 20-year film career, the nearly forgotten Irene Dunne had one of the most versatile resumes of films, with westerns, women's weepers, screwball comedies, light operettas and epics. Before the Hays code, Dunne had a series of dramas of scandalous, nearly fallen women who suffered in sable and face the judgment of a harsh society, at least on screen. Her reign as a major star lasted throughout the 1930's and 40's, and today, many of her films (allegedly unseen for years because of remakes) are considered classics.

Along with "Back Street" and "The Sins of Madam Blanche", "Ann Vickers" shows the life of a beautiful woman who dared to live life according to her rules. She goes from small-town girl making a fool of herself because of her love for a big city swell who leaves her for another woman after being drafted to social worker in a prison who fights for the fair treatment of inmates, ending up as warden, and ultimately the mistress of a married man (Walter Huston) whose son she bares. Her greatest challenge is facing life alone after he goes to prison.

Although obviously episodic in nature, this film (based upon a novel by Sinclair Lewis, a favorite author of women's novels), this thrives on Dunne's multi-dimensional performance. she starts off the film as sweet and naive, becomes determined as she sees the cruelties prisoners face, challenges the system and later takes on the scandal of her personal life by writing of her findings about the prison system. At times, it feels like you are watching a bunch of different films rolled into one, but somehow it all rolls together properly in the end. I wish there was more of Edna May Oliver as Irene's equally commanding aunt, but for some reason she disappears halfway through the film although her character is mentioned as being around somewhere. Huston as always is very good, while Bruce Cabot as Irene's lover in the first half of the film girl shoots several different changes during the plot line surrounding his romance with her. This is a film that may not quite stand the test of time but certainly shows the type of films that women could dominate when the writing was strong and in their favor.

They couldn't leave well enough alone

[samhill5215 · 5/10 · 18 December 2007]

This film starts out wonderfully. The protagonist, Ann Vickers, is an independent woman, a suffragette pursuing a career, a woman who knows her mind and is determined to lead a life without a man's stamp of approval. She even has two illegitimate children. For 1934 this was definitely forward thinking, even dangerously revolutionary. And so the first half of the film goes on this vein with Ann being refreshingly modern. I suspect that many women viewers identified with her dreams and struggles.

And then the story grinds to a halt and Ann's life comes apart, and all because her lover, a corrupt judge, is convicted and sent to jail. When she is forced to abandon her career it is made eminently clear that she owed her success to her once influential lover. All her hard work amounted to nothing once her powerful protector disappeared. Moreover, she betrays her own ethical standards by pleading for her lover's freedom. So the implication is that love is the paramount motivating factor in a woman, and Ann is reduced to a stereotype. She even waits for her man to get out of jail and learns to cook for him.

Frankly I felt betrayed. I became involved in this woman's life and cheered her on only to discover that Hollywood lacked the courage to present a truly alternative lifestyle. I guess I shouldn't have been surprised. After all 1934 was the year the dreaded morality code went into effect. Still, "Ann Vickers" would have been a much better film if they had left well enough alone.

According to this film, nice girls DO....again and again!!

[planktonrules · 3/10 · 19 April 2007]

This is a bad film, as its central message is very muddled and the plot seems like it was the result of merging several disparate scripts. As a result, it often makes absolutely no sense at all and certainly is not a film Miss Dunne or Mr. Huston should have been proud of making. However, the film IS worth watching if you are a fan of "Pre-Code" films because it features an amazingly sleazy plot that strongly says that nice girls DO put out--even if they aren't married and even if their partner IS!!

The film begins with Miss Dunne as a social worker assisting troops heading to Europe for WWI. In the process, she meets a scalawag (Bruce Cabot) who eventually convinces her to sleep with him. She becomes pregnant and he then goes on to the next unsuspecting woman. However, Miss Dunne does NOT want him back, as she realizes he's not worth it, but later her baby dies at child birth. While all these very controversial plot elements are used, they are always alluded to--almost like they wanted the adults in the audience to know but hoped that if they phrase it or film it in just the right way, kids in the audience will be clueless (after all, films were not rated and kids might attend any film at this time).

Surprisingly, this entire plot involving a stillborn baby and Cabot ends about 1/4 of the way through the film and is never mentioned again or alluded to. It was as if they filmed part of a movie and abandoned it--tacking it on to still another film. In this second phase of the film, Miss Dunne unexpectedly begins working at a women's prison (though we actually never really get to see her doing anything there). What we do see are countless horrible scenes of severe abuse and torture that were probably designed to titillate. And, as a result of all this violence, Miss Dunne goes on a crusade to clean up the prison and becomes a reformer and famous writer.

But then, out of the blue, another type of film emerges and the women's prison reform business goes by the wayside. Dunne meets a judge (Walter Huston) who is married but he desperately wants her. Now throughout the film, Dunne is portrayed as a very good girl--even though she did have unmarried sex with Cabot (she was more or less tricked into it). But now, single Irene, who is a tireless reformer and good lady begins sleeping with a married man. He tells her that he and his wife are estranged and are married in name only, but she never thinks to investigate if this is true, and with his assurance, off flies her clothes and they are in the baby making business! BUT, while she's pregnant with his love child, he's indicted for being a crooked judge. He assures her he's innocent, but he's convicted and it sure sounds like he's a scoundrel--using inside information from people that have come before his bench in order to amass a fortune. Then, in the final moments of the film, Miss Dunne tries in vain to get him freed and vows to wait with the child until Huston is released. The film then ends.

So, we basically have three separate films AND a bizarre early 30s idea of what a nice girl should be like. I gathered that she should be a strong-minded working girl who instantly becomes an idiot in her personal relationships! This really undoes all the positives about Dunne's character and it's really hard to imagine anyone liking the film. A strong women's rights advocate might easily be offended at how weak-minded and needy she was and religious people might see her as totally amoral or at least morally suspect! With a decent re-write, this could have been a good film or at least interesting as a lewd and salacious film, but it couldn't make up its mind WHAT it wanted to be and was just another dull Pre-Code film.

A Wonderful Women's Film

[cng4 · 9/10 · 2 June 2003]

This is what a woman's film ought to be in this era, not just 70 years ago. The Ann Vickers character is a strong woman devoted to her career and to those who depend on her at the women's prison. She is not without her flaws as any hero or protagonist, but she overcomes so many obstacles and definitely has control over her life. What has happened to strong and complex female roles in modern motion pictures? This movie is well acted, well-written and has a tremendous message. I recommend it to anyone who can get their hands on it, as I believe it is still not available on video. It ranks up there with Norma Shearer's character Jerry in "The Divorcee" as far as a well-developed complex strong female characters. We need more movies depicting our gender this way not just as sex objects but as sexual subjects, with career goals and sex drives. Watch this movie!

Irene Dunne deserved better than this...

[Doylenf · 5/10 · 6 April 2010]

ANN VICKERS is a bizarre tear-jerker from the early days of sound movies featuring IRENE DUNNE as a woman who is well-intentioned but makes all the wrong choices in life, including the men she thinks she loves.

BRUCE CABOT is her first mistake, a man proclaiming great love for her but abandoning her not long after she bears his child. In a weak supporting role, she treats CONRAD NAGEL as a man she cannot love but values as a friend. He's not too happy about that arrangement.

Then comes married man WALTER HUSTON, unhappily married who finds Dunne a refreshing bit of love interest. She has a career that keeps her busy and stands by him when he is accused of mismanaging funds. He's soon imprisoned but she finds a way to get his case some political attention and eventually he is free to marry her.

That's about it, all handled in dreary fashion with hardly a note of music on the soundtrack to lift it out of the doldrums when it gets too soggy to bear. As social commentary on conditions in the 1930s and women's issues, it's a failure. Miss Dunne plays a social worker who rises to play an important role in the penal system for females.

IRENE DUNNE suffers nobly, but it's a weak vehicle for a strong actress and she can do nothing to give the film a sense of real life struggles. Chalk this one up as a failure, even if it was based on a novel penned by no less than Sinclair Lewis. Evidently, not too much has been retained from his novel.

Summing up: Not worth your time. Any film that wastes the talents of EDNA MAY OLIVER as a Duchess has got to make you wonder what they were thinking. It's her dullest role ever.

Miss Dunne a Delight in a Pre-Code Drama

[lbbrooks · 28 November 2016]

Only three years into her Hollywood career (after the initial misstep of "Leathernecking" (1930), Irene Dunne shines in this pre-Code drama. Her portrayal of Sinclair Lewis' "Ann Vickers" is complex, layered and multi-faceted. She is a modern woman and she is determined to change the world as Edna Mae Oliver's character states "if it takes her all winter". But the world almost breaks her. She is impregnated and then emotionally abandoned by Bruce Cabot's cad "Lafe", sent to work in a Purgatory of a women's prison, and finally saved by the love of Walter Huston's Judge Barney Dolphin. In him, she has met her equal--morally, intellectually, and emotionally. Their love is here to stay, as we see when she not only proudly bears their son out of wedlock but stands by him when he is sent to prison on political corruption and graft charges trumped up by his opposition. She too suffers in that she loses a top-tier professional post and must makes ends meet by writing freelance newspaper articles. However, she is undaunted and toughs it out until such time that Barney is paroled and reunited with her and their young son. It is so refreshing to see Dunne in this early role, so far removed from both the screwball comedy and perfect wife and mother roles she would play in the middle and latter phases of her long career. We mourn with her the loss of her first child, the death of whom is ambiguously depicted as coming about by abortion. We rejoice in her finding her soulmate, Barney and cheer them for their unaffected love and affection and the joy they express over their impending parenthood. While this is a "weepie", the Queen of which she would become, Dunne's performance is superior to that of her similar roles of this era. Her talent is just as complex and strong as that of her character and she inhabits the role exquisitely.

A rare mis-step for Miss Dunne

[BrentCarleton · 3/10 · 28 December 2007]

What can have been on Irene Dunne's mind when she accepted the role in this distasteful account of a woman of negotiable morals? Certainly, the Irene Dunne of the 1940's, whose reputation as a faithful Roman Catholic who publicly abhorred smut, and shunned any film scripts or Hollywood society, that might be even be remotely construed as corrupting public morals--would never have become associated with such a dubious project as this.

Perhaps, New York's Cardinal Spellman, in his private audience with her, gave her a good dressing down over this role? That we will likely never know, inasmuch as she never spoke of it in later years, though she did denounce her morally suspect, (though quite successful) 1932 film, "Back Street" as "trash".

Certainly by the time she received the distinguished St. Robert Bellarmine Award in 1965 for exemplary public Catholicism, "Ann Vickers" was no longer recalled by the general public.

Suffice it to say that "Ann Vickers" works neither as entertainment or social commentary.

Miss Dunne's role as an adulterous social worker, who sleeps around, (between reforming prisons and writing a best seller on correctional rehabilitation) doesn't dovetail with her temperament or on screen demeanor, and one keeps suspecting that the whole thing is a kind of tongue in cheek gag, (what else can we think when we witness a montage of Miss Dunne's sympathetic beatific gaze superimposed over a shot of a female prisoner being scourged?) By films end, she has renounced careerism in favor of marriage, (to crusty convict Walter Huston no less--and what kind of lunacy would ever conceive of pairing these two romantically?)

Irene Dunne completists will no doubt wish to see this curiosity, if only for the chance to hear her promise to rehabilitate a cocaine addict under her charge: "I'm going to get you off the snow cold turkey" !!!

Well, if nothing else such sordid goings on, do present her light years from her usual milieu of operatic trills, furbellowed chiffon and strawberry phosphates--cocaine addiction not being the first subject one associates with the irreproachable Miss Dunne.

Would've Made a Good Prison Movie

[utgard14 · 5/10 · 21 December 2013]

Lackluster romantic drama with feminist elements. Basically it's Irene Dunne spouting off about wanting to have her own career and being involved in relationships with douchebags. All of the success she has career wise is ultimately attributed to a man and the film's message seems to be that a woman's happiness only comes from the love of a man, so I really don't see where feminists are supposed to find much to love about this film. The brief middle part of the film dealing with the brutal goings-on at a women's prison are most interesting. They should've made an entire film of that. The rest is forgettable. The cast is fine. No standouts. Edna May Oliver is wasted, which is just criminal.

The Story of a Noble, Independent Woman

[kidboots · 10/10 · 28 June 2010]

When Merian C. Cooper replaced David O. Selznik as production head of RKO, he continued the habit of acquiring literary works for filming. "Ann Vickers" was one of Sinclair Lewis' most controversial books that covered such "hot topics" (for the time) as abortion, women's voting rights, sex and divorce, not to mention a realistic appraisal of life in a women's prison. It was written in 1933 and by the end of the year had been turned into a glossy woman's picture starring an intelligent actress who was making Martyrdom movies her own domain - Irene Dunne. This is a super movie - why don't they make movies like this anymore! Yes, it is a women's picture but not the sudsy "Mrs. Miniver" type that would become popular in the 1940s. Superlative Irene Dunne makes you believe in every scene she plays.

"She's going to make the world over - if it takes all winter" says Malvina (wonderful Edna May Oliver) of her friend Ann Vickers (Irene Dunne). Social worker Ann has a passion for helping people and when she meets disillusioned soldier (Bruce Cabot, playing a heel as usual) she spends a blissful week, with promises of marriage when he returns from the front. His letters become less frequent and when they accidentally meet at a restaurant, she realises that he has forgotten all about her. After her baby dies, she finds a job at a women's prison. Copperhead Gap Prison is grim,especially under Captain Waldo, a lecherous "Simon Legree" type, who yearns for the "good old days" of public floggings with the cat 'o nine tails and other nice amusements!!! Ann is appalled at the harsh treatment the women receive - she witnesses lashings, even hangings and when she is forced to leave writes a best seller that exposes the conditions of prison life. The publicity helps her secure a job as Governor at Styvessaunt Industrial Home. "I'm going to get you off the snow - cold turkey" (words I never thought I would hear Irene Dunne speak), "Show a little respect - I'm a A.M. and a Ph.D, - Well, I'm only a A.B.A. and a SOB" -the racy dialogue sprinkled through the film shows it was made in pre-code times - There's even a joke about going "cold turkey" later in the film.

At a party she meets Judge Barney Dolphin - it is nice to see Walter Huston playing a pretty down to earth guy for once - yes, he is a Judge, but he is certainly not stern or forbidding. He is the man who, through his high praise, helped make her book a best seller and when they meet there is an instant attraction. Ann has found her soul mate - they are both intelligent and have high ideals. He is married - to a grasping woman, who prefers to live abroad and will not give him a divorce. they embark on a relationship and when he is sent to prison, by standing by him Ann loses her prestigious appointment. Trying to get friends to rally around her, she has a showdown with Lindsay Atwell (Conrad Nagel), an old admirer and a part that probably made more sense in the novel. Ann is reduced to writing articles about prison reform from her small upstairs flat and when Barney is released, finds Ann and their little boy waiting for him.

With other stars, this film may have been maudlin - but the superior acting skills of Dunne and Huston make this an extremely fine movie. J. Carroll Naish has a "blink and you'll miss him" part as a drunken doctor, Gertrude Michael has a small scene as Barney's wife and if there is a prison matron in a movie, chances are it's Mary Foy.

Highly, Highly Recommended.

Nothing Special

[Michael_Elliott · 26 February 2008]

Ann Vickers (1933)

** (out of 4)

Static version of Sinclair Lewis' play has Irene Dunne in the title role of a social worker who gets dumped by an American soldier (Bruce Cabot) and then puts all her attention on her work. She eventually falls for a controversial judge (Walter Huston) but this here might cost her everything she's worked for. This RKO film was produced by Merian C. Cooper the same year he made King Kong but that's the only thing the two films have in common. Dunne is good in her role but the film is all over the place and it's easy to see that the film is trying to cover several parts of the book but can't take everything in within the short running time. Huston stays under control and gives a winning performance as does Cabot and Conrad Nagel in his supporting role. Edna May Oliver and J. Carrol Naish also have small roles.

One of the best!

[JohnHowardReid · 9/10 · 28 March 2018]

Copyright 28 September 1933 by RKO Radio Pictures, Inc. New York opening at the Radio City Music Hall: 28 September 1933 (ran one week). U.S. release: 13 October 1933. U.K release: 7 May 1934. Australian release: 21 March 1934. 9 reels. 72 minutes.

NOTES: Irene Dunne was super-popular world-wide, though Ann Vickers was more successful in cities than the country; and in carriage and middle-class suburbs rather than working-class districts.

COMMENT: Ann Vickers is the sort of movie I really like. Here we have a fast-moving plot, packed with incident; a sympathetic lead and interesting support characters; smart, witty dialogue; all abetted by stylishly inventive, pacy direction and highly polished photography. (Production values only fall down in a couple of minor matters, like the obvious use of models for the Stuyvesant Building and the clumsy superimposition of Irene Dunne's close-up over the prison scenes. Maybe this latter device was designed to disguise the fact that these scenes were extracted from the stock footage library; - but if so, they were darn good).

Two photographers were employed, David Abel doing the bulk of the work like the lovely soft-focus close-ups, the dynamically-framed two-shots and the dramatic reverse angles of Miss Dunne; whilst Eddie Cronjager contributed the more high contrast material, such as the single take with Dunne and Oliver in the taxi.

Dunne carries the bulk of the action. I think she is in every scene, though of course she does take a back seat as a spectator in the trial sequences. Attractively photographed, styled and dressed, Miss Dunne brings Sinclair Lewis' plucky heroine to sympathetic life.

Led by Walter Huston and Edna May Oliver, the support cast is enlivened by a highly skilled array of players, including Bruce Cabot (in a small but meaty role), Gertrude Michael (making the most of her one brief scene), Edwin Maxwell, and especially Mitchell Lewis. It's easy to spot other favorites like Arthur Hoyt and Jane Darwell (both Stuyvesant board members), J. Carroll Naish (a nonspeaking bit as a drunken doctor), Irving Bacon (also no dialogue) as a waiter. Huston himself has only one brief scene in the first half of the film, but comes into his own in the second half where he plays with his usual feisty vigor.

Unfortunately, Huston's self-confident and self-possessed sincerity is not echoed by Conrad Nagel who makes his part as Irene's social worker colleague, a little too prissy (though maybe this is true to Lewis' vision of the character). In any event, his role is small. Also mercifully brief is Rafaella Ottiano's impersonation of Irene's secretary at the Stuyvesant Home. Luckily, she doesn't come on until the latter half of the picture, but she's a bit hard to take, what with her constant facial grimacing that serves no purpose other than plain camera-hogging.

Max Steiner has obliged with a melodic music score, the film editing is exceptionally adroit, the movie is always attractive to look at and often scintillating to hear. Perhaps one or two dull sequences, but all told, a lively and engrossing 72 minutes.

OTHER VIEWS: Packed with incident, the movie seamlessly crosses the boundaries of a number of genres: The brutal prison scenes align with classic film noir, the wronged woman with traditional weepies, the final silver-lined clouds with storybook romance.