Grade: C+
Synopsis: A young woman (Barbara Stanwyck) seduces a slew of men in her rise to the top of a New York bank.
Baby Face is a rarity. Though made in 1933, it could be remade today without changing much of anything, and it would probably be a sizable hit.
Heavily cut upon its release to appease the censors, Baby Face was one of the films that forced Hollywood to begin enforcing the motion picture code, and thus, Baby Face was the last of its kind for quite some time.
And it’s a shame, because the film is actually pretty solid. Stanwyck is great in the lead, able to play coy and manipulative without losing the audience’s sympathy. Further, she’s believable, that is, attractive enough to seduce the men around her, but also tough enough to throw them away once they’ve outlived their usefulness.
Supporting Stanwyck is a descent, if unspectacular, supporting cast. Look fast for a very young John Wayne as one of Stanwyck’s early conquests.
The script’s brief 76-minute running time keeps the plot cruising right along, and gives Stanwyck a lot of great lines flush with innuendo.
Bottom Line: A great performance from Stanwyck in a film that ages well.
