While slight and insignificant, Upperworld's performances keep it interesting, and it entertains throughout its overstuffed 73-minute runtime.
The film follows Warren William, whose society-obsessed and self-absorbed wife Hettie (Mary Astor) leaves him lonely and wanting more. As a result, he meets Linda (Ginger Rogers) and begins to spend more time with her, becoming infatuated. Her "man" (J. Caroroll Naish) wants her to con William for his money, but she loves him and refuses. A confrontation leaves Rogers and Naish dead, with William eventually being acquitted of their murder (he shot Naish but only after Naish killed Rogers).
The plot is a bit overstuffed and tries to cover too much ground, from the murder to the trial to the investigation and it ends up a bit rushed. But William is handsome and solid, without coming off as a selfish rich jerk like he might have. He has great chemistry with Rogers, and you can tell he genuinely cares about her. He illustrates his competing affections well.
Astor is beautiful and funny in her role as his wife. She is undeniably self-absorbed, but Astor puts enough touches of genuine caring and love throughout that we can clearly see she cares for William deeply. This is a woman who is caught up in her own life (her biggest flaw) but she is not mean-spirited or careless, and she genuinely appreciates her husband and son even though she doesn't always treat them well or give them as much attention as she should. Rogers gives a fresh, sensitive, and touching performance of a young woman in over her head and caught between conflicting emotions and motives.
The morality lessons about not straying from marriage ultimately feel a bit rushed and cheesy toward the end, and the film is a bit dated in this respect. But William's scenes with Ginger Rogers are wonderful, and if you love pre-code cinema I'd certainly recommend giving it a watch.
The film follows Warren William, whose society-obsessed and self-absorbed wife Hettie (Mary Astor) leaves him lonely and wanting more. As a result, he meets Linda (Ginger Rogers) and begins to spend more time with her, becoming infatuated. Her "man" (J. Caroroll Naish) wants her to con William for his money, but she loves him and refuses. A confrontation leaves Rogers and Naish dead, with William eventually being acquitted of their murder (he shot Naish but only after Naish killed Rogers).
The plot is a bit overstuffed and tries to cover too much ground, from the murder to the trial to the investigation and it ends up a bit rushed. But William is handsome and solid, without coming off as a selfish rich jerk like he might have. He has great chemistry with Rogers, and you can tell he genuinely cares about her. He illustrates his competing affections well.
Astor is beautiful and funny in her role as his wife. She is undeniably self-absorbed, but Astor puts enough touches of genuine caring and love throughout that we can clearly see she cares for William deeply. This is a woman who is caught up in her own life (her biggest flaw) but she is not mean-spirited or careless, and she genuinely appreciates her husband and son even though she doesn't always treat them well or give them as much attention as she should. Rogers gives a fresh, sensitive, and touching performance of a young woman in over her head and caught between conflicting emotions and motives.
The morality lessons about not straying from marriage ultimately feel a bit rushed and cheesy toward the end, and the film is a bit dated in this respect. But William's scenes with Ginger Rogers are wonderful, and if you love pre-code cinema I'd certainly recommend giving it a watch.