Grade: D+
Synopsis: A stuffy woman (Myrna Loy) falls for the free-spirited artist (William Powell) she deemed unworthy of her younger sister.
Double Wedding is a disappointment. While it does pair the always entertaining William Powell and Myrna Loy, they’re both miscast and working from an unfunny script.
Powell suffers the worst, as he neither looks nor feels the part of a bohemian artist that lives in a trailer parked outside a bar. It’s a part that gives him little opportunity to flash his urbane charm in-character, much to the film’s detriment. Amazingly, according to the IMDb, Powell’s fiancée, Jean Harlow died during production, though watching him on-screen, you’d never know. MORE »
Posted 571 days ago in Movie Reviews and William Powell. No responses
Grade: C+
Synopsis: A dying woman (Kay Francis) and a condemned man (William Powell) fall in love on a trans-Pacific ocean-liner voyage from Hong Kong to San Francisco.
One Way Passage is an efficient love story, buoyed by a strong cast and a great ending.
The film works best early on, as William Powell and Kay Francis craft a believable romance between two people desperate to make the most of their last few weeks on earth. There’s also a nice sub-plot involving supporting players Aline MacMahon and Frank McHugh, who play associates of Powell, and Warren Hymer, the lawman bringing Powell back to face the hangman’s noose. MORE »
Posted 589 days ago in Movie Reviews and William Powell. No responses
Grade: B-
Synopsis: In Vienna, a baroness (Kay Francis) falls for a debonair jewel thief (William Powell).
Jewel Robbery is insane. William Powell plays a thief who, after robbing people of their valuables, gives them marijuana cigarettes to stone them into supplication. By the time the cops arrive, everyone is giggle happy and Powell and company are long gone. Ah, you’ve gotta love pre-code Hollywood. MORE »
Posted 589 days ago in Movie Reviews and William Powell. No responses
Grade: B+
Synopsis: A newspaper editor (Spencer Tracy) convinces his fiancée (Jean Harlow) to marry another man (William Powell) as part of a scheme to trap an heiress (Myrna Loy) who’s suing the paper for libel.
Libeled Lady is an enjoyable romantic comedy thanks to a great cast and a smart script.
Despite receiving top billing, Jean Harlow is actually the weak link in this all-star cast. She’s not bad, but, despite being in a real-life relationship with co-star William Powell, lacks the on-screen chemistry present between him and Myrna Loy. That, combined with the script’s giving Spencer Tracy the most colorful part, leaves Harlow with little to do aside from whine and look glamorous, which she does. MORE »
Posted 604 days ago in Movie Reviews and William Powell. No responses
Grade: D+
Synopsis: During World War I, a Lieutenant (William Powell) eager to head to the front lines finds himself diverted to a desk job cracking enemy codes thanks to his overeager girlfriend (Rosalind Russell).
Rendezvous is an okay thriller that’s periodically interrupted by an unusually charmless Rosalind Russell.
Reduced to nothing more than a plot device and would-be comic relief, Russell’s chief function in the film seems to be to interrupt the plot with inane screwball antics, such as drugging lead William Powell’s coffee, or sneaking into high security government areas during wartime. Seriously, you’d almost think she was working for the Germans. MORE »
Posted 606 days ago in Movie Reviews and William Powell. One response
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