Admirable film.

To all those who have watched it: I hope you enjoyed it as much as I do.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

what a great movie. I just watched it on TCM. jean Harlow,and Clark gable were a stupendous combo. both of their character portrayals were right up their ally. both had a crusty edge to them. gene Raymond continued to be a actor I am impressed with every time I see him, in these older movies. he was also very good in a later movie Mr. &mrs. smith with Robert Montgomery,and Carole Lombard. he plays a great straight guy character,and very unassuming,almost naive. Mary Astor was great as the unfaithful wife, with more polish than the character Harlow played, but not as happy go lucky,and not street wise. Mary Astor was beautiful, and a great actor. she adapted well as the years advanced in Hollywood. her rolls were always perfect, with her advancement. she was a talented and very sophisticated lady in real life,and a accomplished author as well. her roll in Maltese falcon, and little women showed her diversity,as well as a movie that the title escapes me with Bette Davis, George Brent. I have enjoyed the tribute to Harlow.

Golden Age fans will love this one, a Pre-Code film that's much like a filmed stage play - in fact, it's based on a play which, by all accounts was even racier than the movie. It was made in 1932 and certainly couldn't pass muster after the inception of the Hays Office, but nowadays anything goes; odd someone hasn't tried. They would be hard-pressed, though, to find a better cast, especially the two principals. Gable and Harlow are perfect together, the animal magnetism fairly leaping off the screen. Gable was the very model of modern masculinity at the time, and Harlow his female counterpart.Some reviewers noted an element of racism woven throughout the picture, but they should give it a rest. The world in general and society in particular were vastly different from the modern PC era. Also of interest is the support cast, headed by Mary Astor, who admittedly was a better actress than Harlow but minus the manifest 'feminine wiles'. In a departure from more dignified roles, Donald Crisp plays vulgar drunk and to excellent effect.Have you seen it? If not, do so. It's well worth your time just to see how the 'pros' used to do it, inherent plot flaws notwithstanding.

Some movie buffs seem to think that if a movie is "pre-code" it must be good. Or, if it "sizzles," it must be interesting. Well, I like a good number of Hollywood movies made before the Hays Office enforced the studios' own code. Some definitely have sizzle. Others don't but they're good. There also are some real stinkers. Most are somewhere in between. I think a film needs more than sizzle to be very good – whether "pre-code" or later. It should have a good plot and screenplay. It should have good production qualities. It should have good sets, good camera work and good direction and editing. And the cast should all give good performances. "Red Dust" has an interesting plot, and it has lots of sizzle. But unfortunately, it suffers in most other areas. The only very good performance in the film is Jean Harlow as Vantine. Harlow has true talent that never seems to be wasted in any of her films. She has a persona of a tough cookie, and often naughty girl in most of her films – comedy or dramatic. I would like to have seen her in a different type of dramatic role, and in a wacky comedy to see how she could handle such roles. Unfortunately, she died at age 26 from blood poisoning due to kidney failure.As much as I like Clark Gable as an actor, I think he way overacts here in his character as Dennis Carson. And, for the first half of the film, he's a very unlikable fellow. We know Gable can be boisterous and cantankerous, but he's loud, complaining and grouchy to the point of being obnoxious in the early part of this film. Now, in contrast, Mary Astor plays way under her role. She gives the impression of one just biding her time as this soap opera plays out. Her performance seems wooden throughout the film. As Barbara Willis, she arrives with her husband on a boat at the rubber plantation upstream in a country of SE Asia. She changes at the drop of a coin from a prim and proper attitude at the start, to a withdrawn, apologetic milquetoast in the next scene, and then to a very familiar and perky person for a short time. Talk about mood switches in a movie. When Dennis comes on to her so quickly and blatantly, she seems to easily slip into adultery with so little struggle. Tully Marshall and Donald Crisp are OK in their roles as McQuarg and Guidon. Gene Raymond as Gary Willis is just so-so. He seems too fragile and out of place – and not because he comes down with Malaria. Perhaps they made his character that way for greater contrast with the rugged, crude and vulgar Dennis. But, I think it made the direction and casting seem weaker. Willie Fung's role as the giggling Malaysian cook, Hoy, is goofy. The rest of the supporting cast are mostly native workers.Some others have noted that the set was recycled from another film or two. It doesn't appear to have weathered very well. Pun aside, most of the settings for this movie had the feel of being on stage. I am in a different frame of mind when watching a play on stage, than I have when watching a movie. With a play, I know it's constrained and confined, so I delve more into the plot. With movies, I imagine that we're looking at a scene set in a house surrounded by lawns and woods or city, or in the outdoors that runs on and on. So I know that the characters could suddenly move outside or take off in a car. It has a sense of openness and looking down on real life from an eagle's vantage point. The production quality of the DVD I watched is quite poor. Apparently Victor Fleming directed this film, but he's not credited for it. I wouldn't think he would care that much, because this is far inferior to most of his work. I give "Red Dust" six stars for the sizzle and Jean Harlow's acting. She is a hooker with a good heart who falls for Dennis. The soap opera ending was almost laughable. Although, Gable came close to convincing one that he had repented and didn't want to ruin the nice kid, Gary's marriage. This is an early look at Gable in the days before he grew a mustache.

Of the thousands of movies I've seen, I have never seen a screen couple who come anywhere near close to the sheer sexual dazzle of Jean Harlow and Clark Gable in 'Red Dust'. The screenplay is great but they lift it to a level unmatched.Full credit to Mary Astor for creating the dynamic - you'll never see a movie with as wonderful a sexual tension. While this was post-Hays code, it was released shortly before the Catholic Church-driven Legion Of Decency crackdown on perceptions of natural humanity.Being a relatively early sound film, there's little camera work other than 'kinda close-up' and 'kinda backed off'. But it matters not a whit. Harlow and Gable are the best screen couple you will ever see.