Overrated

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

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.

If you enjoy identifying actors in cameo roles, this movie might interest you. Spotting the likes of Mickey Rooney, Leon Ames, Allan Jones, Margaret Dumont and Paul Fix saved this movie for me. If it weren't for that little game, I'd have regarded this film as a total waste - of both my time and a deep, talented cast.The film slowly develops a plot that never seems to gel, and the characters are all very one-dimensional, except Franchot Tone, who delivers a reasonable performance. However, his character's fate comes out of the blue, and is the point at which the tone of the story veers sharply in a bizarre way.The early, light comedy part of this movie is pretty aimless, and it jumps around a lot. The second half of the movie is like a completely different film spliced onto the first half. It, too, meanders; but unlike the first half, it is maudlin and melodramatic.The final scene is preposterous. The supposed-to-be climactic speech by Harlow would not come close to turning a hostile audience in her favor. She repeats a few generalized statements that, no doubt, everybody had read many times in the press coverage of the scandal. Talk about rehash!Oh yeah, there are quite a few discontinuities, too, for those of you who can entertain yourselves by spotting them. There is a shot of Tone's yacht in broad daylight, an intervening interior scene, and then Harlow and Tone go out onto the deck in darkest night, without the slightest suggestion of any time having passed.I was drawn to this film when I saw the incredible cast. How did Victor Fleming and this impressive cast deliver such a malaise of a film? Chalk it up to the writers, I guess.

This starts off as an innocuous pleasure. Harlow & Powell both sparkle, the musical numbers are enjoyable, and "Granny" is delightfully comic. Some of the other supporting players are also excellent, including a really young Rosalind Russell. You'll also see Mickey Rooney when he was just a kid actor--no shtick.Was this movie written by a committee? Suddenly with a thud, or, you might say, a bang, the movies crashes into melodrama-land. I've never seen such a jarring shift, and totally unbelievable. You feel you've been totally had, and the slight compensations the movie offers are just not worth it. Don't just pass on this movie--boycott it.

A pretty forgettable movie starring William Powell and Jean Harlow. The plot really doesn't really come together and seems to be just thrown together. There are a few musicals numbers but they are pretty bad and don't compare to The Great Ziegfeld. Harlow looks like she's mouthing the words and her dance scene will only shows her legs and nothing else. The plot has something to do with Powell and Harlow being in love with each other but Franchot Tone comes in and steals Harlow away before Powell makes his move. Rosalind Russell is in love with Tone but she winds up getting married to someone else. The movie just doesn't work and this was directed by the same guy who directed The Wizard of Oz and Gone with the Wind.

This really seems like a Marion Davies vehicle: comedienne who really can't dance or sing is called upon to do so (but her songs are dubbed). This one has ornate, ridiculous-but-not-Busby Berkely routines, and the usual good, almost artistic, direction by Victor Fleming. But it also has William Powell and Jean Harlow! I've never seen Powell more relaxed and fun; he has obvious chemistry not just with Harlow but with May Robson as Granny! The scenes between him and May are a delight. And Harlow's acting is great! So it's a must-see for fans of Powell and Harlow. Just be prepared, the musical scenes are a joke, and the final scene is so ill-conceived it's a let-down. Otherwise, this is first-rate.