Undescribable Perfection

It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

I'm an unabashed Powell/Loy fan. Ever since I watched the Thin Man series a few years ago on TCM, I've been watching everything they appear in. After just watching the lackluster Double Wedding, I was overjoyed to find this movie on the docket as well.Powell is John Prentice, a highly successful and driven lawyer. Loy is his neglected wife (Evelyn), who always seems to come second to his job. When John has to go away on yet another business trip, he is almost seduced by a former client, Mrs, Harrison (Rosalind Russell in her debut). Through a plot quirk, Evelyn thinks he might be having an affair with Harrison so she starts an innocent flirtation with a poet, Larry Kennard (Harvey Stephens), who is actually a ruthless con man. When Evelyn asks Larry for the innocent letters she has written, he refuses and threatens to blackmail her. He soon winds up dead and his girlfriend, Judith, is arrested for the crime. Does Evelyn know more than she is letting on? When John takes on Judith's case it creates some serious tension and anxiety for both Evelyn and us, the viewer.Powell and Loy are amazing in this drama. Unlike the Thin Man movies, the tone is dark and foreboding. This movie is more Manhattan Melodrama than Thin Man. Both leads are fantastic as they try to find a way to make their marriage work as it is crashing down around them. There are no slapstick pratfalls or snappy dialogue. Its a straight drama and Powell and Loy burn up the screen with their talent. I've seen 13 of their pairings (I haven't seen The Senator was Indiscreet which has a Loy cameo) and this is right up there with the first Thin Man and Manhattan Melodrama.The courtroom scene at the end is the best part of the movie. The plot twist and revelations are great without being pandering. John's slow realization of the truth and his reaction to it are a joy to behold both from the character and the actor.

"Evelyn Prentice" is a different film in more ways than one. It's the only real heavy drama piece of the more than dozen movies that William Powell and Myrna Loy made together. And, it's the only one in which Loy's character was the bigger role. She performs it marvelously. It's also out of the character of the Thin Man series and most of the rest of the Powell-Loy pairings which were comedy-crime films or genuine mysteries. IMDb lists this as a drama, mystery and romance. It's a mystery in which the audience in let in on most of the goings-on. So much so, that one can guess the outcome without too much difficulty. So, it doesn't' rank up there with the good mysteries of the period or with the very clever and intriguing Agatha Christie whodunits. But this film has something else that I haven't noticed anyone else comment about. Many call it a romance, but it's more than that. The plot involves a couple – Powell and Loy, who play John and Evelyn Prentice, who are very much in love with each other. Viewers will be quick to notice the workaholic in John, and the developing martyrdom persona of Evelyn. But one very different thing that I noticed about the film was the role of Evelyn's friend, Amy Drexel, played very well by Una Merkel. Some friend! She know that John and Evelyn are deeply in love. Yet, when she sees a handsome man (Lawrence Kennard played by Harvey Stephens) show interest in Evelyn, she encourages Evelyn to see him. We know of Evelyn's true love for John because of her apprehensions and decisions to end her innocent meetings with Lawrence. And, we see the outcome. So, this film makes a point – intentional or otherwise – about one's friends. There's an old saying from years ago in the national campaign against drunken driving. "Friends don't let friends drive drunk." Well, a similar one might apply here, in the plot of this film. "Friends don't encourage friends to step out on spouses they love." Another might be, "Friends don't tempt friends to be unfaithful."There's not a lot of intrigue here, but it's a very good drama with excellent performances by all, especially Loy. Definitely worth seeing. And an especially goof film to watch with friends. And, then raise the point afterwards.

Other than crackling film due to the fact that this was made in 1934, we have a great picture here. You can forget the inane Thin Man series as William Powell and Myrna Loy deliver dynamite performances in this drama.It's the old story of the neglected wife of a big-time lawyer finding herself in the arms of another man, only to have him blackmail her with his murder ensuing.Loy watches the trial as her husband defends Isabell Jewell who is perceived to be the killer. In an emotional outburst, Evelyn (Loy) proclaims her guilt with Powell coming to her defense with a surprise ending. Jewell is terrific and was always so when she was emotional. Who can ever forget her brief appearance as the condemned seamstress in "A Tale of Two Cities?" (1935). Note that Rosalind Russell had a small part in this film as a young widow with designs on Powell, especially after he got her off in an accidental death case. Jesse Ralph is reliable with that Irish brogue that she possessed. That would serve her well 2 years later in the memorable "San Francisco.""Evelyn Prentice" is a picture of the human heart with a woman doing the right thing that she felt she was supposed to do. A story of forgiveness and ultimate redemption on all concerned.

Despite having Myrna Loy and William Powell in the lead roles, this is a thoroughly forgettable film due to a ridiculous plot and poor writing throughout. Oddly, while this wasn't a very good film, they remade it just a few years later as STRONGER THAN DESIRE--complete with the same plot problems.The film begins with work-a-holic lawyer, Powell, winning a case for his client, Rosalind Russell. At this point, Russell throws herself at Powell even though he is a married man. At this point in the film, you aren't certain if Powell reciprocated, but his behavior would seem to indicate he did--as he was rarely home and worked 4954 hours a week--a recipe for marital disaster. This and Loy's desire for love would have made a fine film. However, the writers decided to chuck the entire setup and have Loy be blackmailed by a man with whom she really didn't do anything!! And in a move that makes absolutely no sense, she appears to kill the guy instead of just walking out of his apartment.There's more to the film than this, but it's all pretty contrived and tough to swallow--particularly in the last half of the movie during the courtroom scene in which Powell (the defense attorney) works hard to prove his own client is guilty!! Wow, I'm sure the Bar Association would have felt proud to have him as a member! The bottom line is that you've got two excellent actors in a sticky and poorly written film that is simply beneath their abilities. See it if you are curious but don't watch it if you'd like to be entertained!By the way, take a look at the entry for this film in the Leonard Maltin Guide--the entry is pretty funny. He describes Cora Sue Collins (who plays Powell's and Loy's child) as "an obnoxious brat"! This is uncharacteristically candid for this book but also rather true. While she isn't as hatefully dreadful an actor as Lee Harcourt Montgomery (from such movies as BEN) or David Kory (from DONDI), she is a pretty obnoxious and saccharine-sweet little....kid. Despite her inability to act, she did appear in almost 50 films!