Wife vs. Secretary (1936) User Reviews

suspicious minds

[blanche-2 · 8/10 · 27 December 2005]

Jean Harlow is the secretary no wife wants her husband to have in "Wife vs. Secretary" starring Clark Gable, Myrna Loy, and Harlow, with an early appearance by James Stewart. It's hard to believe, looking at this film, that Jean Harlow would be dead a year later. Less blonde than in some earlier films, and far more subdued, she plays the indispensable, smart, and efficient secretary of Clark Gable. Gable is a high-pressured businessman happily married to Myrna Loy. All is well until her mother-in-law advises her to make Gable get rid of that good-looking assistant. Slowly, Loy begins to realize that everyone in their circle is assuming an affair, which up to that point hadn't crossed her mind. It does now.

Harlow is involved with James Stewart, and he doesn't want her to work after they get married. Her job, he feels, is too exciting and important and will threaten their marriage. Harlow is half in love with Gable and refuses to quit. Stewart is adorable and gives a hint of what will be truly be one of the great screen personas.

The cast is splendid. Gable is his usual charming self; Loy and Harlow are perfect casting as unique women who are complete opposites. Their final scene together consists of only a long look. It's very effective, as is the acting of both women throughout. Loy's scene with her mother-in-law is heartbreaking.

This is a dated film but very satisfying. Although it's wonderful to see these stars together, it's sad to realize they're all gone now, and that young Harlow has been gone for 68 years. Quite a loss.

Make sure you watch the penultimate scene

[richard-1787 · 6/10 · 15 October 2014]

A lot of this is typical 1930s melodrama. The story continues because various of the characters fail to have the obvious conversations, which would have cleared things up in a jiffy.

The scene I found particularly interesting and innovative was the penultimate one. In the third from the end scene, Harlow shows up in Loy's stateroom aboard the French Liner ship she is planning to take to Europe to forget about her husband (Gable), whom she imagines, incorrectly, to have had a fling with his secretary Harlow during a business trip to Havana. Harlow tells Loy that if she leaves Gable now, he will turn to Harlow out of loneliness and Loy will never get him back. (Yes, that sounds like the mother's speech to Norma Shearer in The Women.) Loy believes, incorrectly, that she has already lost Gable, so she says she won't go back to him. Harlow tells her that that would make her (Harlow) happy.

The next scene takes place in Gable's office. He is talking with Harlow. We hear footsteps coming down the hall outside. Footsteps that take a long time. It turns out that they belong to the cleaning lady. Then, when she leaves, we hear footsteps again, very assertive footsteps, for a long time. Harlow gets up - she suspects it is Loy, come to return to her husband. And this time it is. Harlow then walks through the next, large office - more long footsteps - and leaves. The use of the footsteps is really very impressive.

Loy, Gable and Harlow shine in this great comedy

[Incalculacable · 8/10 · 27 June 2006]

In this wonderful comedy/drama, all three major stars go against their stereotyped roles. Clark Gable, for example, plays devoted husband and businessman instead of a tough guy like he usually does. Jean Harlow plays a hard working, good natured secretary, who doesn't seem to know just how damn sexy and gorgeous she is, and no wise cracks! Then there is the lovely Myrna Loy, who plays an extremely sexy wife (in contrast to her other wife roles). This could have been another formulaic, predictable film but the stars – Loy, Harlow and Gable – shine in their roles and make this a truly funny, magical film.

The conflict starts when Linda Stanhope's (a gorgeous Myrna Loy) mother in law makes a careless comment about how nice her son's (a dashing Clark Gable) – Linda's Husband - secretary (played by Jean Harlow) is. From there, a usually non-jealous Linda becomes increasingly suspicious to her husbands actions. Many things seem to point to the conclusion that Van is having an affair. Hm!

It's rather tragic that this brilliant piece of comedy is not that well known, as it should be. All three stars are exquisite and really entertaining to watch and raises above the boring, run of the mill comedy/dramas. Wife Vs. Secretary is a great movie - I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Slickly Entertaining

[dougdoepke · 12 January 2017]

It's Rolls Royce MGM hitting on all eight cylinders— lavish interiors, pretty people, well- upholstered crowds, and sprightly dialog. So who can ask for more. Not me. Gable's a hard- driving top executive with a super efficient secretary (Harlow) and a loving wife at home (Loy). Trouble is, he spends all his time making deals and neglecting his patient wife. At the office he depends a lot on the fetching Harlow, slowly making wife Loy suspicious. But getting his attention is difficult since he's so wrapped up in the latest big deal. Thus, straightening things out in expected Hollywood manner makes up the narrative.

Gable's at his charming energetic best, while Harlow gets an unusual non-vampish role, and Loy is winning in the sympathetic wifely part. Together, their characters are uniformly likable, unusual for what may be a romantic triangle. It's not hard seeing why Gable made six films with the star-crossed Harlow. There's real chemistry at work between them. Also, a boyish Jimmy Stewart turns up in an early supporting role as Harlow's sometimes swain. Not surprising for the 30's, the business world is portrayed as tricky, at best.

Anyway, director Brown keeps things moving in smooth fashion, so all the talk seldom palls. Overall, it's a slickly entertaining 90-minutes featuring three legends of their time and our own.

Darned Good Film

[DKosty123 · 7/10 · 20 May 2017]

This is one of Myrna Loy's better roles as a wife who listens to her mother-in-law and begins to suspect her husband- Clark Gable- is having an affair with his secretary-Jean Harlow. This story holds up pretty well for a film of this vintage.

What is interesting is towards the end of the film both Loy and Harlow have some of the saddest frowns I have ever seen on actresses in a movie. I almost wonder if they had to suck on a lemon before doing these scenes as the pucker looks so sad. Still, Loy who would really take off in the Thin Man Series is a perfectionist in this one- making Gable redo a kissing scene several times to make sure they got it right.

Harlow is great as the secretary who dating Jimmy Stewart in one of his earlier roles, and not a large part. At one point, Harlow gets mad at him and dumps him for pretty near half the film before getting back with him at the end. It is understandable how Loys character would suspect hankie and pansy with her husband's subordinate as Harlow looks pretty good.

Still, all the trouble is caused by the Mother-in-law here. She plants the suspicious seed into Loy which eventually blooms into divorce proceedings. Then Harlow breaks her train of thought and forgives Stewart as well. This one is worth watching, as a talented cast brings off an old warhorse of a script quite well considering this type of jealousy plot was already over-done in 1936.

They make the material seem fresher than it is.

The Genius of Jean

[falconcitypaul · 7/10 · 20 March 2008]

I treasure this film for Jean Harlow's performance, capped by a magnificent, simple line reading: "You are a fool. For which I am grateful."

She had amazing range for an actress who died at 26. Howard Hughes presented her in "Hell's Angels" (1930) as an amoral menace to civilization. (When she slips into "something comfortable" she actually puts on clothes.) It would be charitable to call her appearance in that picture acting. Yet within a couple of years she could dominate the screen by the force of genuine talent.

Her starring career blazed briefly, but with almost no wasted roles. Here she gets to behave like a normal working class woman--not a débutante, nor a tenement dweller, nor a criminal's moll, nor a voracious mantrap, nor a comic banshee, nor an adventuress working the China Seas or Malay docksides.

Clark Gable and Myrna Loy have more customary roles. A part this quiet remains a rarity for the winsome, brilliant, and doomed Harlow.

Lite Fluff from MGM

[nycritic · 6/10 · 17 March 2005]

Considered ultra-modern in its day, WIFE VS. SECRETARY is the story of a misunderstanding that leads the wife of a businessman to believe he is having an affair with his secretary. Nothing else really happens in this light comedy, but there is a slight suggestion that the secretary, played by Jean Harlow, may have had something a little closer than just a work relationship with her employer, here played by Clark Gable. That this notion is reinforced once Myrna Loy's character ponders leaving Gable makes Harlow's character only a little more willing to let loose, but the story never quite takes the risk of leaping into that direction and opts for the classic happy ending. Note for a small appearance by Janes Stewart playing Harlow's boyfriend; even in such an early point in his career he seems already showing a little hint of darker performances in the future.

Sophisticated and intelligent film belies silly title.

[David-240 · 9/10 · 31 January 2000]

It sounds like some sort of cheap sex farce, but this wonderful gem from MGM is actually a very sophisticated work. At its heart are the brilliant performances of five shining stars. Myrna Loy, her miraculously beautiful face subtlely registering her consumption by the green eyed monster. Clark Gable, exhaustingly energetic and effortlessly charming. May Robson, worldly wise and utterly compassionate. James Stewart, in an early supporting role displays the sincere simplicity that was to become his trademark. And Jean Harlow, luminous and intelligent - with a practical notion of love - but playing temptation better than any actor I've ever seen. Watch that scene where she takes off Gable's shoes. So sad that she died only a year after this film was made.

At the helm of this under-rated film is the great Clarence Brown, one of the great stylists of the cinema, who was able to take a simple story and give it depth - watch the gossip and the prejudice of the observers that slowly manipulate Loy, Gable and Harlow into distrusting themselves. Magnificent production and costume designs and great music flesh out the film, and make it a memorable experience. And it's very sexy for its time too! If it weren't for the slightly forced happy ending this film would be perfection itself.

A love triangle plot with some different twists

[SimonJack · 7/10 · 8 January 2017]

The cast for this 1936 MGM movies is first rate. The leads are top names of the day. Clark Gabe is Van, Jean Harlow is his secretary, Whitey, and Myrna Loy is his wife, Linda. The supporting cast is tops as well. May Robson is Mimi, George Barbier is Underwood, and Tom Dugan is Finney. And, James Stewart has a supporting role in only his second year and fourth feature film. He already had one film as the male lead, and he would have two more before this year (1936) was over.

The plot of "Wife versus Secretary" is a female love triangle (two females in love with the same man, whereas the usual is two men competing for the same woman). Only, in this case, one of the women doesn't make a move for the man. Harlow plays straight, not wanting to break up a marriage in which her boss clearly loves his wife. But Loy's Linda begins to become jealous and suspicious. Van has to work late many nights. This is an age-old scenario in appearance. Even in the day this film was made, marriages went on the rocks over such situations. Most often they actually happened - a boss with his secretary or another woman.

But in this story, Linda knows that Van loves her. His affection toward his wife is obvious always. But her suspicion lies with Whitey. She doesn't doubt the working times they have to spend together, but she begins to think that Whitey may be using those as a way slowly to pry her husband away for herself.

This is a different twist on a common story, including one for the movies. And the ending is different and very good. The performance all are very good and the direction and technical work are very good. While it's interesting, and somewhat novel, there also isn't much excitement in the story to earn it more even stars. Most adults should enjoy it for the cast, but younger audiences today will likely find it dull.

A beautiful film.

[MegaSuperstar · 10/10 · 18 September 2015]

My grandmother use to say this was a beautiful film and I think she is just right. It tells the story of a happily married couple Van (Clark Gable) and Linda (Myrna Loy) and husband's beautiful secretary Whitey (great Jean Harlow) and how she gets into her life and almost destroy their marriage but, on the contrary of most miss Harlow films, she does not play an unscrupulous woman but a sincere and honest one: she is in love with her boss but she acts honestly by advising his wife not to let him go after they have an argument. Film begins as a delightful comedy to turn later in to a drama but always convinces, especially because of an excellent actors' work and a good script including well written lines for almost everyone. Even Van's mother Mimi (May Robson) has great lines although her little time appearance on the screen. A great film.

Loaded with star power

[gbill-74877 · 7/10 · 29 November 2016]

This movie is loaded with star power – Jean Harlow, Clark Gable, Myrna Loy, and wow, even a young Jimmy Stewart. The story is straightforward – Gable is an executive, Loy is his wife, Harlow his secretary, and Stewart, Harlow's boyfriend. Harlow is incredibly helpful to Gable and works long hours with him, thus prompting rumors, but the two are absolutely innocent. Eventually Loy and Stewart get jealous of the time the two are spending together, and are concerned the two are having an affair.

I have to say, for a good part of the movie, it seemed reasonably good but somewhat false - the chemistry between Gable and Loy is just "ok", and the straight and narrow course Gable and Harlow take and the overall message of needing to trust in one's relationship seemed somehow influenced by the Hays Code to me.

On the positive side, both Gable and Harlow are in roles outside of their usual typecasting, including Harlow with her natural hair color. Harlow also stands up to Stewart's requests that she quit her job to focus on family (hooray especially for 1936!), and Harlow confronting Loy and ultimately sacrificing herself is a good scene. And, on top of all that, the very best scene is between Gable and Harlow, after they've been drinking in Havana following closing a deal they had worked on over sleepless nights. Innocence aside, there is a moment of truth when she's in the same hotel room in the wee hours, untying his shoes. Their conflicted stares are priceless and communicate brilliantly without words, until Harlow says at last "we've had an awful lot to drink". That scene alone makes the film worth watching, and shows Harlow's ability and potential to grow even further. How sad she would die the following year at the age of 26! As for this film -- the script is good, not great, but the screen presences here surely are.

"I'm the best, aren't I?"

[mik-19 · 8/10 · 3 July 2006]

This is a perfect little film, absolutely well-rounded and exquisite. Beautifully scripted, intelligently directed, ebulliently acted.

Clark Gable is the successful publisher, newly married to society lady Myrna Loy who, although very modern and not jealously disposed, begins to suspect that he is carrying on an affair with his bleach-blonde secretary, Jean Harlow. As Gable's mother states, laconically of her son, "You wouldn't blame a boy for stealing a piece of candy".

All fluff, right? Light as air, unsubstantial? Of course it is, it takes masters of their craft to make this plot stick, to make the movie plain unforgettable. Gable was never better, he seems to relish every second he is on screen, and there is none of the masculine stiffness about him that his worst performances have. He is a joy to watch with the always delightful Loy, their scenes together bristle and self-combust, and they are a really sweet, engaging couple. Loy has to be the most sophisticated creature ever to be filmed, she is SO cool and contemporary ("I'm the best, aren't I?", she says with just the slightest sardonic hint.) Harlow isn't given as much to work with, and she has to downplay her sassy sexiness in order not to tip the scales. But she is still almost all Harlow, and they go as far as they possibly could under the Production Code. The scene with Harlow and Gable in the Havana hotel room is all about sex, as we are left in no doubt.

So, watch it and love it. It is as perfect a piece of 30's film-making as you are likely to see.

"And people aren't willing to believe that looks go with brains".

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 23 March 2011]

Fans of Jean Harlow expecting to see the Blonde Bombshell in action may be in for a bit of a surprise here. Harlow's usual persona is toned down considerably and she's made to look less glamorous than usual in her role as secretary to Clark Gable's Van Stanhope, president of a successful publishing company. It's Harlow's undeclared rival, Myrna Loy, who sports the glam look here as Mrs. Stanhope, happily married and supportive of her successful husband. The picture's title conjures up an image of a cat-fight in the making, but when you get right down to it, this is the story of a triangle that never was, and only barely approached getting to the point where the Stanhope marriage might have become compromised. Granted, Linda (Loy) did posture leaving her husband, but it was built on a misunderstanding fueled by the kind of gossipy innuendo that always seems to surround successful people with looks, money and brains. Of course it didn't help that Whitey (Harlow) answered the phone in Van's hotel room in Havana. Not even the most understanding wife would consider that an innocent circumstance. The resolution is relatively clever, with Whitey facing down Linda in a meeting of the minds. But it's not what you might expect, so if you haven't seen the film, I'd like to think the tease will get you to catch it. With your wife, or with your secretary. Just not both.

Some psychic foresight would have helped.

[bkoganbing · 5/10 · 6 May 2004]

I had never seen Wife vs. Secretary until last year and because it was the only film that Clark Gable made with James Stewart, I wanted to see what these two would be like together.

The closest Gable and Stewart have in the way of a scene together is at a roller rink where Gable has brought wife Myrna Loy and Stewart brought girlfriend Jean Harlow. Gable and Stewart are on opposite sides of the floor and never get together.

It's not the best film Gable ever did with Harlow or Loy, but it's good fun. Basically Loy begins to have doubts about Gable's fidelity because the beautiful Ms. Harlow is his secretary. And the doubt is continually being reinforced by Loy's friends, a nasty group of gossips. Innocent events are continually being misinterpreted, but everyone is on the same page by the end of the movie.

Gable was a big star by then, MGM's biggest. Too bad no one knew that Jimmy Stewart was also going to be a cinema legend or some scenes would have included them together.

A golden love triangle...

[Poseidon-3 · 28 September 2004]

All of the MGM machinery is in place to make this slight little story into an enjoyable bit of entertainment. Three of the studio's biggest and most endearing stars headline the film. Gable plays a hotshot businessman who has a beautiful, affectionate wife (Loy) at home and a beautiful, dutiful secretary (Harlow) at the office. Loy has no reason to feel threatened by the curvy, good-natured Harlow until Gable's mother (Robson) plants the seeds of doubt in her mind. Once her friends chime in as well and Gable and Harlow are in the midst of a major, hush-hush deal, she begins to think that perhaps she is the odd man out. Meanwhile, (a very young) Stewart waits patiently for Harlow to give up her career and marry him. The title comes true in one, fairly-considerate, verbal sparring match near the end. Gable is extremely charming and offhanded in this film. He does as he pleases and doesn't care to answer to anyone or explain his behavior. Loy is also very witty and refreshingly forward-thinking for most of the movie. The couple shares a delightful on screen relationship in which a healthy sex life is clearly implied. Harlow (sporting hair a shade or two darker than when she's playing an outwardly sexual character) does an admirable job of portraying the dedicated, indispensable assistant who may really have some unexplored feelings for her boss. Though the plot is contrived and simplistic in the extreme, the stars do manage to put it over and hold interest. It's not a very realistic film, but who wanted that anyway during The Depression? It's a frothy, fun, occasionally dramatic piece of old Hollywood candy.

Not a classic, but entertaining!

[Matti-Man · 6/10 · 24 May 2006]

Like many other reviewers here, I saw WIFE VS SECRETARY on TCM (UK) and thought it was a pleasantly diverting 83 minutes (running times are shorter on PAL). I've never been much of a fan of Jean Harlow, but I can see that she laid the groundwork for the platinum blondes that would follow her. Gable is great in the kind of role he excelled at, this one sandwiched between star-making turns in MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY and SAN FRANCISCO and just three years before the glorious GONE WITH THE WIND. Jimmy Stewart doesn't have much to do as Harlow's troglodyte boyfriend ("Me work, you have babies!") and, honestly, any of MGM's contract actors could have handled the part as well. Hard to believe that Stewart was himself just a couple of years away from beginning his star run in Capra movies like YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU (1938).

But for me, the star of this is Myrna Loy. Already Hollywood royalty when she made this, mostly due to her winning turn in THE THIN MAN (1934), I thought her best performance of this era was her lip-smacking portrayal of Fah Lo See, Fu Manchu's completely amoral daughter, in MASK OF FU MANCHU (1932). Watch the subtlety of her expressions as she first dismisses, the considers, then believes that her husband is dallying with his pretty but brash secretary. It's this sensitive portrayal that makes WIFE VS SECRETARY a cut above the standard MGM melodramas it was surrounded by ...

Jealousy exists for one reason...there's no trust in any of us

[nomoons11 · 7/10 · 19 November 2012]

Ah how jealousy can ruin any relationship rather easily. All that's needed to prevent it is communication but alas...it rarely ever happens.

Clark Gable is a well liked owner of a magazine/publishing firm. He has that kinda personality that everyone takes to. Not a bad bone in his body. His new wife, Myrna Loy, doesn't have any doubt's about him around other women....until later of course. His super smart and efficient secretary, Jean Harlow, dotes on him. She looks after him without letting him know she loves him. Problem is, she isn't the kind of girl who will outright ruin a relationship to get what she wants. She's just always there. All his wife's friends plant the seed in her mind that the secretary is just too pretty for him not to be cheating. Heck, even his own mother tells her the same. She decides to tell him to not to keep his secretary and give her the promotion to work on another floor but he'll have none of it. He needs her cause she's too good at her job. Uh oh....there's a problem now.

From all that you'll get circumstance upon circumstance where things never get solved because of one reason...lack of communication. Sound familiar? If they would only sit down and talk about how they feel in depth, and not in passing, things could easily work themselves out. Gable plays one of those guys that people from all around would like but he has no clue how he makes others feel...in this case...women. They love him but he has no feeling for them like he does for his wife. He's too friendly and that's where the issue is. Anyone would be jealous under those circumstances so you can't really blame his wife for her reaction. If he cared for her, he'd acquiesce, but he takes a stand instead.

A younger crowd probably won't enjoy this but those who have been in relationships, this is a really good film about trust and boundaries between a married couple. Trust can only go so far until a seed is planted and you just don't know anymore. The one-eyed monster "Mr. Jealousy" comes out and it usually can ruin everything.

Top talents vs. an unsurprising script...

[moonspinner55 · 6/10 · 19 April 2008]

Clark Gable gives a giddy, frisky performance as a happily-married magazine magnate in New York City who works closely but professionally with efficient though somewhat demure secretary Jean Harlow; his wife (Myrna Loy) and her fiancée (James Stewart) misconstrue the business-only relationship as something more vital, and pretty soon a subtle attraction does develop between the two workaholics during a conference trip in Havana. Carefully elongated from a women's magazine short story, the screenplay here hits on some issues regarding even satisfying marriages which are still relevant today (mostly that gossip breeds mistrust, and it can come from all corners); still, it doesn't give Gable much to do except talk fast at the office and kiss Myrna in doorways. Loy suffers rather ridiculously (after discovering her hubby took his secretary along to Havana--she thinks in place of her--Loy refuses his calls and starts dressing like a widow!), but Gable obviously enjoyed working with her. Odd to find Harlow so low-keyed (her performance is really the only surprising thing the picture offers), but a Harlow without fizz is rather like a soda gone flat--tolerable, but disconcerting. **1/2 from ****

Don't Look for Trouble Where There Isn't Any because if You Don't Find It, You'll Make It

[claudio_carvalho · 8/10 · 17 November 2012]

In New York, the magazine publisher Van "V.S." Stanhope (Clark Gable) and his beloved wife Linda (Myrna Loy) have been happily married for three years and are in love with each other. Van is a dynamic executive of the Stanhope Publications and works very close to his dedicated and efficient secretary Helen "Whitney" Wilson (Jean Harlow), who is a beautiful young woman engaged with Dave (James Stewart).

When Van's mother Mimi (May Robson) poisons Linda about the relationship of her son with his secretary, Linda becomes jealous of her. Whitney and Dave have an argument and she breaks with him. Meanwhile Van is secretly planning to buy a magazine owned by Underwood (George Barbier) and Whitney helps him with the strategy. When Whitney discovers that the competitor Hanson House is also disputing the magazine, she travels to Havana to help Van to close the business with Underwood. They are well- succeeded in their intent and celebrate until late night. When Linda calls Van at 2:00 PM, Whitney answers the phone call and Linda believes that Van is really having an affair with Whitney. In the end, don't look for trouble where there isn't any because if you don't find it, you'll make it.

"Wife vs. Secretary" is an adorable romantic comedy by Clarence Brown with Clark Gable, Jean Harlow and Myrna Loy in the lead roles. The intelligent screenplay is very well written, with funny situations. James Stewart in a supporting role in the beginning of his career has the final and most important line of this movie. The talented Jean Harlow passed away on the next year of cerebral edema caused by uremic poisoning, in a great loss for the cinema industry. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Ciúmes" ("Jealousy")

A very good movie.

[aeo · 7/10 · 5 July 2006]

I give this 7 out of 10. I love American movies made during the 1930's. They are smart but funny. The female roles are strong but vulnerable. Perhaps it is because of the Depression Era but whatever it is, the movies were made with certain something that made them special. I found this movie to be more realistic than I had anticipated. The outcome may or may not be satisfactory to some, including myself but it was still entertaining, although I certainly could see it going the other way. Whatever the case, I highly suggest renting or buying it and seeing it for yourself.

In this story, Clark Gable plays a president of a publishing empire, who is in love with his wife, played by Myrna Lloyd. Gable has a secretary, played by Jean Harlow, who becomes an indispensable part of his company. Lloyd's character has no qualms about Gable and Harlow working late at night until her friends and family member put seeds of doubt on Gable and Harlow's relationship. Lloyd tries to put faith and trust in their relationship but subsequent events put that trust into doubt. All of the parties involved now have to decide what course of action to take which will forever alter their lives.

"If you want to keep a man honest, never call him a liar"

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 5 December 2019]

Despite the story not being anything extraordinary, the cast for 'Wife vs Secretary was something of a dream one. Clark Gable, Myrna Loy and Jean Harlow were of immense talent and already knew that both Gable and Loy and Gable and Harlow pairings were of classic status. Seeing all three in the same film and also featuring James Stewart in a very early role was enough to make me squeal in delight. Clarence Brown was one of those directors that when he was on good form his films were very good and more, when not so his films were rather eh.

Luckily, 'Wife vs Secretary' is a good example of the former. It sees all three leads on sparkling form, one can see what people saw in all three when judging them individually as actors, it was a good representation of Gable and Loy having such good chemistry together and an even better representation of Gable and Harlow's chemistry. 'Wife vs Secretary' had all the makings of a gem, and while its potential was still even bigger than it turned out not an awful lot disappoints here.

'Wife vs Secretary's' story is admittedly very slight and is also very predictable.

Have seen much better performances from Stewart, who does the best he can but has little to do and is not as into the material as the rest of the cast.

Gable is full of charisma and charm, while Loy is classy and poignant (especially in the film's latter stages) and Harlow is sass personified. All in roles tailor made for them, with equally pitch perfect support from May Robson also perfectly cast and beautifully complemented by Brown's direction. It looks beautiful too, sumptuously designed and costumed and the photography not only doesn't cheapen those qualities but it also makes all three leads look great on screen. The score doesn't intrude and matches the tone of the writing and story.

The script is snappy and intelligent as one hopes from this type of film, with some witty banter and with the more serious moments not trivalised and actually not feeling that out of date. While the story is slight and with few surprises, it still manages to not be dull and is both light-hearted and thoughtful.

In summation, not a classic but very nicely done that does not waste its stars in any way. 8/10

"You're a Fool, for which I'm grateful." Thanks to this Sweet Film for giving this Insanely Philosophical Quote in Love-triangle.

[SAMTHEBESTEST · 7/10 · 22 September 2021]

Wife Vs Secretary (1936) : Brief Review -

"You're a Fool, for which I'm grateful." Thanks to this Sweet Film for giving this Insanely Philosophical Quote in Love-triangle. I am not sure whether I'm gonna remember this film or this story for a long time, but i am surely gonna remember coulple of quotes. I might just not forget the story too because this is an old-school formula which is hard to forget. The same old story (I'm not sure of it was old for 1936)- A happily married Husband-wife's relationship gets disturbed once the faithful wife starts suspecting her husband's professional relationship with a gorgeous secretary. It is a sweet little film but with some big philosophical words and couple of scenes are damn too good. So, as we know this suspicious nature of wife isn't anything innovative but this film is extremely faithful about it and the characters of it. First, it has cute chemistry between husband and wife. Loved Gable-Loy totally. Two, it shows professional friendship of company owner and his secretary without crossing the limit. Towards the end i suspected that it might just spoil ethical values when Gable looks at Harlow with that look in hotel room but then suddenly he comes to himself when he learns that his wife has just called and hung up. Three, there is another love story of that secretary and even her boyfriend is suspecting about the same. At the end he goes on saying on the finest quotes of 30s decade, "Don't look for trouble where there isn't any. Because if you don't find it, you'll make it." Kisses to James Stewart for that dialogue delivery. Fourth and the last, the insanely philosophical confrontation between wife and secretary. Just a 2 minute scene which shows that even the secretary has a secret crush but her Boss was a one-woman-man. She says to wife, "You're a Fool, for which I'm grateful." And for me, the job was done here. Don't miss it if you're looking for a good fun+romance+drama.

RATING - 7/10*

By - #samthebestest.

Very close to a perfect movie

[thomculbertson · 10/10 · 8 May 2002]

It goes without saying that the best Myrna Loy movies have William Powell - but this movie has enough cast that it can virtually throw away Jimmy Stewart and still carry you along with the strength of the character performances. Clark "Big Ears" Gable is not my favorite star, but he plays the role of the loving but thoughtless husband perfectly. He believably pulls off being shrewd in business, but naive enough of his personal life to be almost innocent while looking completely guilty.

Actually, it is the pair of leading ladies that makes this movie so great - Myrna Loy and Jean Harlow. Myrna is great in everything she does - and so is Harlow. Harlow is proof that the original is nearly always the best. Anyone who has ever enjoyed a Marilyn Monroe movie is simply watching second best - Harlow was the original "blonde bombshell" - and is still the best. Her usual forte is comedy, but she nails this light dramatic role perfectly. There are times when you don't know who to cheer for - the Wife or the Secretary - and that's the movie. The whole tension rides on which of these two ladies Gable chooses - or, rather, which one the audience wants him to choose. Myrna may have been the only actress who could have given Harlow a run for her money - and Harlow may have been the only one who could challenge Myrna Loy.

Myrna Loy and Jean Harlow teamed up in another movie - "Libeled Lady" - another tour de force of casting with William Powell and Spencer Tracy along for the ride. "Lady" is a very good movie; a comedy with both drawing room and slapstick elements. This type of comedy is usually more my cup of tea, but as good as "Lady" is, "Wife vs. Secretary" is better - mainly because "Lady" doesn't let Harlow bust loose until the end of the movie.

The light touch that these two great actresses bring to "Wife vs. Secretary" offsets one of the fundamental conflicts and tragedies of life - that though we are often presented with two paths in life, we can only choose one - knowing that we will always wonder about the other....

Cute slice of 1930s marital life

[HotToastyRag · 6/10 · 17 January 2021]

If this movie were made today, you wouldn't know going in whether the wife or secretary would come out on top. However, made in 1936, in the thick of the Hays Code, it's a safe bet to say the secretary doesn't successfully wreck a home without any consequences. It's actually written into the Production Code that a villain either has to see the light and repent or be killed - to show a positive role model to the audience.

Myrna Loy and Jean Harlow play the titular characters, and it takes no guessing at all to figure out which plays which. Though happily married to Myrna, Clark Gable has an "office wife" relationship with his devoted secretary, Jean. Jean's clearly in love with him, but will he really cheat on the wife of the Thin Man? You'll have to watch this quintessential 1930s view of marital life to find out. If you do, you'll see two remarkable things: Jean Harlow without her blonde hair, and James Stewart before he was famous. Jean's publicity campaign wanted to soften her bombshell image, but she really went darker because the continued platinum was starting to cause hair breakage. Jimmy plays Jean's hapless suitor, and if you know your trivia, this is the movie he famously kept messing up the takes so he'd have to keep kissing her!

My, what dirty minds they have in high society...

[mark.waltz · 5/10 · 16 September 2013]

O.K., is it even thinkable that wealthy business man Clark Gable would think of having an affair with secretary Jean Harlow when he's married to none other than Myrna Loy? Well, he'd probably think about it, but other than checking her out now and then, the odds are he'd remain faithful. But thanks to his mother (May Robson), Loy thinks hanky panky is possible, and everybody in her social group views Harlow with suspicion, albeit gleefully as if they want to see something happen to break up this happy home. James Stewart is around as Harlow's brooding man who spends more time waiting for her in a car than doing anything really to keep the home fires burning.

Sound a bit like "The Women" with a few men around? Harlow is as far from Joan Crawford's Crystal Allen as can be, and other than the dark hair, Loy has nothing in common with the oh-so-sweet butter wouldn't melt in her mouth Norma Shearer. With the exception of the well-meaning but buttinsky mother-in-law, the major leads are all nice people. Snobbish socialites played by Cora Witherspoon and Gloria Holden(back from the dead after playing the lead in the same year's "Dracula's Daughter") add to Robson's paranoiac demand that Loy have Harlow fired. There's never anything to indicate a possible interest other than mutual admiration, that is until one drunken evening in Cuba, and then, it's a major misunderstanding.

If there is a real point to this movie, it is the warning of suspicion and gossip, and as a result, there's no real tension. If it wasn't for the three major stars and the typical MGM gloss, this would rank lesser in my ratings.