The central character of 'Employee's Entrance' is Kurt Anderson (Warren William). William is great; he plays the cruel head executive with relish. The scene where he drops the pomeranian into the waste paper basket is a fantastic idea - you probably got his character before then, but still. It is perfectly credible that someone like him is unable to have relationships that are not exploitative: It is labour exploitation with the employees of Munro's, and sexual exploitation with the women in whom he takes an interest. Nothing else works for him, as his failure to establish a relation of trust with Martin West (played by Wallace Ford) shows. For all that, I guess audiences in 1933 had an ambivalent view of Anderson. Unemployment in the US stood at 25% when this picture came out, so a boss who did not react to a fall in profits by reducing his workforce, and who rather opted for a 10% cut of the salary, must have seemed not so bad.
Loretta Young, who plays Madeline Walters - the women whom Anderson exploits and with whom West falls in love - looks lovely but is a far less remarkable character. That is not to say Young does not do well. She portraits Madeline convincingly - up to and including her decision to committ suicide. Neverthless, next to Warren William she looks somewhat pale. The same applies to Wallace Ford: He is nice enough, but pale.
The plot is fairly simple and most of it takes place within Munro's department shop, which makes for a rather claustrophobic atmosphere. Typically for a pre-code picture, this one comes straight to the point where issues such as one night stands and non-consensual sex are concerned (which does not mean that it shows much skin). All in all, 'Employee's Entrance' is a highly interesting and entertaining film - not excellent, but well worth watching.
Loretta Young, who plays Madeline Walters - the women whom Anderson exploits and with whom West falls in love - looks lovely but is a far less remarkable character. That is not to say Young does not do well. She portraits Madeline convincingly - up to and including her decision to committ suicide. Neverthless, next to Warren William she looks somewhat pale. The same applies to Wallace Ford: He is nice enough, but pale.
The plot is fairly simple and most of it takes place within Munro's department shop, which makes for a rather claustrophobic atmosphere. Typically for a pre-code picture, this one comes straight to the point where issues such as one night stands and non-consensual sex are concerned (which does not mean that it shows much skin). All in all, 'Employee's Entrance' is a highly interesting and entertaining film - not excellent, but well worth watching.