Not bad, considering the strictures under which a sound movie was being shot in 1931 or 1932. And the story isn't stupid either. A viewer may learn something about the law from watching it. It's not "Law&Order" but it's informative. Some characters are ethically black and some are white but the central figure, Warren William, is nicely developed. Even when he's working for the mob, he's suave.
Aline MacMahon is Warren's secretary, fond of her boss, maybe in love with him, but never very serious about it. One of the chief heavies is Jack La Rue. In French, his last name means "the street." I have no idea why he changed his name from the original Gaspere Biondolillo except that it's easier to spell. Now, this is important, Jack La Rue is not to be confused with the actor who could have been his twin, a certain "Lash" La Rue. Lash La Rue was born in Gretna, Louisiana, a muddy suburb south of New Orleans, under the name of Alfred Wilson LaRue. No one has any idea why he introduced a space into his last name. There are some things man was never meant to know -- but the difference between Gaspere Biondolillo and Alfred Wilson LaRue is not one of them. I hope we've all got that straight.
The chief weakness in the story is the heroine, Sidney Fox. To begin with, she's no taller than Shirley Temple. This isn't necessarily a lethal disadvantage when you consider Shirley Temple's career although, until she was nubile, I always suspected she was a forty-year-old midget. Fox was from New York City and it may be that hapless attempt at a Kentucky accent that does her in, but whenever she's on screen a big black hole seems to appear. A little bell tinkles somewhere and a voice whispers "acting." Fox's function in the film is to prove to the cynical William that there are still decent people on the face of the earth. She at least gets the job done, although William would have been materially better of if, instead of rethinking his ethics, he'd just dismissed her with a snort and a wave of his hand. Yet, the tale is a very moral one and worth thinking about. The message is: Never trust any woman less than five feet tall.
Aline MacMahon is Warren's secretary, fond of her boss, maybe in love with him, but never very serious about it. One of the chief heavies is Jack La Rue. In French, his last name means "the street." I have no idea why he changed his name from the original Gaspere Biondolillo except that it's easier to spell. Now, this is important, Jack La Rue is not to be confused with the actor who could have been his twin, a certain "Lash" La Rue. Lash La Rue was born in Gretna, Louisiana, a muddy suburb south of New Orleans, under the name of Alfred Wilson LaRue. No one has any idea why he introduced a space into his last name. There are some things man was never meant to know -- but the difference between Gaspere Biondolillo and Alfred Wilson LaRue is not one of them. I hope we've all got that straight.
The chief weakness in the story is the heroine, Sidney Fox. To begin with, she's no taller than Shirley Temple. This isn't necessarily a lethal disadvantage when you consider Shirley Temple's career although, until she was nubile, I always suspected she was a forty-year-old midget. Fox was from New York City and it may be that hapless attempt at a Kentucky accent that does her in, but whenever she's on screen a big black hole seems to appear. A little bell tinkles somewhere and a voice whispers "acting." Fox's function in the film is to prove to the cynical William that there are still decent people on the face of the earth. She at least gets the job done, although William would have been materially better of if, instead of rethinking his ethics, he'd just dismissed her with a snort and a wave of his hand. Yet, the tale is a very moral one and worth thinking about. The message is: Never trust any woman less than five feet tall.