Sunday 22 September 2019

Blonde Crazy (1931 Roy Del Ruth)

Story by Kubec Glasmon and John Bright.

Smooth operator Jimmy Cagney (a bit lechy, but also hilarious in places) seduces cute Joan Blondell into life of schemes but she's a good girl and ends up marrying Ray Milland - but then he's a crook too. It ends moralistically. Although a little creaky, film fair zips along, expecially compared to the same year's oh-so-slow Man of the World (I like the word 'expecially'- it makes me think of Barcelona).

Familiar faces are Louis Calhern (The Asphalt Jungle), Guy Kibee and Nat Pendleton, with Noel Francis and Polly Walters. Photographed by Ernie Haller and Sid Hickox.



Warner Bros. Ending makes no sense whatsoever. The stolen bonds wouldn't have been found on Cagney and so if he'd told Milland's story they would more likely have believed it. Even better - Blondell works it out and saves Cagney from prison. There you go.

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