Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #28101 in VHS
• Released on: 1998-09-01
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Formats: Black & White, HiFi Sound, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of tapes: 1
• Running time: 75 minutes

Customer Reviews

ZESTY AND HOT.
This 1933 film tells of the life of department store employees and its ruthless, amoral manager. Warren William, an actor I never cared much for before seeing this, gives an absolute bravura performance as Kurt Anderson. Solid support comes from 20 year-old Loretta (as Madeline) and, as the blonde flirt Polly, the now-rarely-seen Alice White is fine. The tyrannical William falls for Young, the wife of one of his subordinates: he eventually receives the comeuppance he deserves...Briskly written by Robert Presnell and excellently directed by Roy Del Ruth, this little pre-code flick is gripping, funny and outrageous.

There's Ruthless, But .....
Loretta Young stars as a young model working in a department store run by a brutal manager played by Warren William. He's hated by all his employees, since he sets a high standard and will not suffer mistakes at all. His job is his life, giving him no time for romance or even relationships. He's not above using people for what he needs, though, and Young finds that out the hard way. This is one of those pre-Code films that gets away with a lot more (subject matter, dialogue, etc) than most films made just a few years later. It's also clearly a Warner Brothers film, with it's tough talking characters and quick pacing and editing. Some of William's speeches to his employees are really hard hitting, yet what he has to say is very true, just without normal human compassion. William doesn't hold back, delivering a forceful performance that certainly doesn't soften the edges of this hard character. Young is sweet and appealing, and Wallace Ford, her love and fellow employee, is good in the beginning, although his distraught moments towards the end are less effective. It's always fun to step back into history and watch a film like this. It's surprising just how "mature" films could be back then.

Smash or be smashed!
That's the philosophy espoused by Kurt Anderson (Warren William) in this portrayal of the dog-eat-dog world of a Depression-era department store. Kurt holds nothing dear or sacred: not the 30-yr employee he ruthlessly fires, not his secretary just longing for a nice new dress (from another store, though!), not even the destitute young woman who must sleep with him in order to be hired, played by Loretta Young. Kurt doesn't expect people to like him, though, and that's what makes him AOK. You may hate him, but you've got to respect him--in his own weird way, he's fair. In his very first scene, he tells off the entire board in what would be the ordinary worker's fantasy, telling them, "I took this store when it was a heap of junk!" and made it a money maker, demanding and getting a new contract at twice his salary. As he faces being ousted by the stockholders, you find yourself rooting for him to maintain control of his cash register kingdom. Loretta Young is very appealing as Madeline, who can't seem to stay clear of the robotic Kurt; there is a very funny golddigger in the story too, who is hustling the board member who's supposed to keep his eye on Kurt, not the golddigger's shapely gams. I must say, years ago, I worked in a department store during Christmas rush, and it wasn't half as interesting as all this! By all means, take a gander at this wonderful pre-Code picture.