THE OLD MAID

THE OLD MAID (1939). Director: Edmund Goulding.

"Don't you know what happens to you means more to me than anything?"

So says young Charlotte Lovell (Bette Davis) to the man she loves, Clem Spender (George Brent), who has come back to town to discover that the woman he loves, Charlotte's cousin Delia (Miriam Hopkins), is that very day marrying someone else. Charlotte consoles Clem, who goes off to war and never returns, leaving Charlotte with a child that she disguises as a civil war orphan. Then Delia, who has a "good" marriage with one of the wealthy Ralston brothers, learns about Charlotte and Clem and is enraged ... with expectedly dramatic results. She eventually takes both mother and illegitimate daughter into her home and usurps the mother position from Charlotte. 

Bette Davis

Yes, this film has some of the elements of soap opera, but it's on a much higher level, and the film is virtually perfect in all departments, from Goulding's direction to Max Steiner's evocative score (which incorporates some old songs but also has original music), to the accomplished acting from the entire cast. This is easily one of Davis' best portrayals, years before she became much too affected and artificial in certain projects. Mariam Hopkins is her match in the more flamboyant if less dramatic role of Delia. Jane Bryan as the daughter, Tina, Donald Crisp as the wise friend and doctor, Cecelia Loftus as the wily old grandmother, and Louise Fazenda as the maid Dora are all superlative, and while he's not entirely successful at showing us the hurt and trauma beneath his light-hearted, sardonic air, even George Brent is solid. Very moving and a genuinely touching finale. A real gem of a tearjerker. Based on a novella by Edith Wharton and a Pulitzer prize-winning play by Zoe Akins. NOTE; This was my late partner, Lawrence J. Quirk's, all-time favorite movie. I was forced to watch it half a dozen times until I grew to love it, too. 

Verdict: Another in the category of 'They don't make 'em like this anymore.' ****.

THESE GLAMOUR GIRLS

Lana Turner and Lew Ayres

THESE GLAMOUR GIRLS (1939). Director: S. Sylvan Simon.

"Darling, I'm in the most awful man-jam!"

Upper-crust Philip (Lew Ayres) sort of has a fiancee, but when he's inebriated he invites a dance hall girl, Jane (Lana Turner), to the big dance on campus over the weekend. It's a little awkward when she actually shows up where she has to deal with all the college snobs. Other characters include man-hungry Daphne (Anita Louise); stalwart Carol (Jane Bryan); chatty Mary Rose (Ann Rutherford); Jane's roommate, Mavis (Dennie Moore); Betty (Marsha Hunt), who hangs around college in desperate fashion even though she's older than the rest; and Joe (Richard Carlson), who isn't too proud to be a waiter in the dining hall. The movie leads into highly melodramatic developments concerning the character of Betty. Most of the performances are good, with Turner, Hunt [Raw Deal], and Moore getting top honors. Rutherford [Fighting Marines] basically plays Polly Benedict in college -- where's Andy? Simon also directed The Fuller Brush Man and many others.

Verdict: This glamor you can keep. **.

THE CAPTAIN'S KID

THE CAPTAIN'S KID (1936). Director: Nick Grinde.

Aunt Marcia Prentiss (May Robson) doesn't want little Abigail (Sybil Jason) hanging around with disreputable Uncle Asa Plunkett (Guy Kibbee) because he drinks too much, among other things. Little Abigail, who sings the title song at one point, importunes kindly Asa to go look for a treasure that he's been talking about for years. A wicked brother and sister team try to take it away from him and Asa winds up getting in trouble with the law. None of it is as serious as it sounds, as this is a light-hearted, overly "cute" film with a couple of mild chuckles now and then. Kibbee and Robson are as good as ever. Jane Bryan of The Old Maid plays Betsy Ann. Mary Treen is the housekeeper, Libby. Sybil Jason is a talented little monkey-face, although some might find that her appeal runs out about halfway through the movie.

Verdict: Paging Shirley Temple! **.

CONFESSION

CONFESSION (1937). Director: Joe May.

A young music student, Lisa (Jane Bryan), is pursued by an older, famous --and somewhat seedy -- concert pianist and composer named Michael Michailov (Basil Rathbone). The two are at a nightclub one night when the singer stares at them, faints, and a little while later pursues them with a gun and shoots Michailov to death. This is just the beginning of Confession, a rather grand melodrama and mother-love soap opera that features an excellent performance from Kay Francis as opera star Vera Kowalska. On trial for murdering Michailov, Vera at first refuses to defend herself, but then reveals (in flashbacks) what led up to the murder and her motives for committing it. Absorbing, with fluid camera work, vivid musical backgrounds, and expert performances, Confession is one of Francis' best starring vehicles and she rises to the challenge in every scene. With his acting and star charisma Rathbone makes you forget that he doesn't exactly look like Tyrone Power. Bryan offers another lovely performance as Lisa, and there are many other notable supporting players. Laura Hope Crews plays a lively, likable variation on her Prudance from Camille, and even Veda Ann Borg is memorable as Xenia, a singer who's jealous of Vera. Donald Crisp and Dorothy Peterson are solid, as always, as the judge and Lisa's mother. Once you adjust your thinking to the film's somewhat outdated moral codes, it becomes poignant and effective. NOTE: This was a remake of the German film Mazurka.

Verdict: Possibly Kay's finest hour and a half! ***1/2.

THE SISTERS

THE SISTERS (1938). Director: Anatole Litvak. NOTE: This review contains some important plot points.

Now this is pure soap opera. The movie follows three sisters – Bette Davis, Anita Louise, Jane Bryan -- and their romantic up and downs over the years, and even features (somewhat unnecessarily) the San Francisco earthquake. Louise marries an older man but falls for a much younger one. Bryan finds happiness with her sister's cast-off boyfriend, Dick Foran. Davis falls for failed writer Errol Flynn, who goes off to sea in desperation and leaves her in the lurch. Both Davis and Flynn felt the film should end with Davis rejecting Flynn when he shows up years later and marrying her devoted boss Ian Hunter, but the studio and audiences of the time preferred the “happier” ending of Davis being reunited with Flynn. The picture is well-acted (even Flynn is uplifted by Davis' obvious on and off-screen love for him) and well-produced, but it remains a minor soaper with an unrealistic and unsatisfying conclusion. Flynn's character is not developed that well, and the two other sisters are given short shrift. Another half hour added to the running time might have helped.

Verdict: For Davis fanatics primarily. **1/2.