This early sound film from MGM is all over the place, cramming an awful lot of plot and a large group of characters into its lean running time. The result feels like the cinematic equivalent of an appetizer plate -- it gives us just enough of each character to want more but not enough to ever really satisfy us.
And what a shame, because those characters are played by a powerhouse cast who between them have enough screen presence to start a fire. Wallace Beery is the closest thing the film has to a main character, playing a lunkhead turned crime boss who's brought down by the Secret Six, a collective of government agents who are rooting out organized crime. Beery's performance is all over the map -- he can't decide whether he wants to play his character as a menacing hood or comic buffoon, so he takes turns playing it as both. Ralph Bellamy, in his first film role, is truly scary as the gang leader whose death grants Beery his promotion. Jean Harlow is that old gangster movie cliché, the moll with a heart of gold. Clark Gable is a sharp reporter who feeds intelligence to the government. And Marjorie Rambeau, in the smallest but in many ways most memorable role, is the wronged floozy who ultimately brings Beery to justice. Rambeau's boozy hysterics, especially in the scene where she turns Beery over to the police, are a sight to behold.
This film isn't anything special, and it's not the kind of film that would ever even have come across my radar had it not been for TCM. It's one of those movies that's more interesting as an artifact than it is for any entertainment value, but that doesn't mean it's a waste of time.
Grade: C+
And what a shame, because those characters are played by a powerhouse cast who between them have enough screen presence to start a fire. Wallace Beery is the closest thing the film has to a main character, playing a lunkhead turned crime boss who's brought down by the Secret Six, a collective of government agents who are rooting out organized crime. Beery's performance is all over the map -- he can't decide whether he wants to play his character as a menacing hood or comic buffoon, so he takes turns playing it as both. Ralph Bellamy, in his first film role, is truly scary as the gang leader whose death grants Beery his promotion. Jean Harlow is that old gangster movie cliché, the moll with a heart of gold. Clark Gable is a sharp reporter who feeds intelligence to the government. And Marjorie Rambeau, in the smallest but in many ways most memorable role, is the wronged floozy who ultimately brings Beery to justice. Rambeau's boozy hysterics, especially in the scene where she turns Beery over to the police, are a sight to behold.
This film isn't anything special, and it's not the kind of film that would ever even have come across my radar had it not been for TCM. It's one of those movies that's more interesting as an artifact than it is for any entertainment value, but that doesn't mean it's a waste of time.
Grade: C+