When I got this I thought it was going to be about Ella Raines being a prostitute. But no it's about George Raft being a bail bondsman. I'm a fan of Ella Raines. She was superb in Phantom Lady. However this movie was boring. There's better noir and better Ella Raines' movies.
Loretta Young plays a pianist who goes after David Manners to New York. He already has a girl so she has to make new plans. She becomes a pianist for a show that her friend Una Merkel is in. Only the boss is dishonest. I liked the ending. It was different from what I expected to happen. Una Merkel was really fun as her friend. She stole the show away from Loretta at times. This is a good precode.
This was one of Debbie Reynolds' best movies. I liked The Mating Game and Singin' in the Rain more though. This one was different from the others in that it was a black comedy. Debbie Reynolds is a successful Broadway star but she is being blackmailed for some racy pictures she did in the past. Her husband ends up killing the blackmailer and hiding it underneath the gazebo. But just who was the man in the gazebo? There's a number of plot turns and twists.
Dorothy Lamour gets shot backstage with her lover. The story of her success is told by her ex-husband. Before George Montgomery met her he was a lawyer on the brink of a career, later he becomes a struggling boxer. Meanwhile Lulu Belle makes it all the way to Broadway with the help of a rich admirer. However she realizes that may not be all she wants in life. I liked the ending. It had a twist and it didn't end the way I thought it would. Dorothy Lamour stole the show as the captivating though sometimes heartless woman.
This is more or less Jeanette Macdonald's A Star is Born. Her husband, a songwriter, struggles while she becomes a huge star. It was two hours and it felt long. Frankly there's better Jeanette Macdonald movies. Check out her early movies with actor Maurice Chevalier. Those are her best.
Good girl Esther Ralston and Gary Cooper are in love with each other. Unfortunately on a wild night he marries Clara Bow. The two can't get divorced. The issue with divorce in this movie is the outdated aspect of it. Naturally nowadays the two would just divorced and move on with their lives. However in the 20's it was a more scandalous procedure. The ending seemed unnecessary for me. I don't think that Clara's character had to go down that road. I also wished that Clara Bow were more in the movie than she was.
George Brent has an affair with Bette Davis. Ann Dvorak, his wife, is heartbroken. I felt the happy ending was rushed. I think it needed another fifteen minutes. This movie was just ok. I need to get into Dvorak's work more. She was my favorite thing about this movie.
