Ganovenbraut

Jean Harlow and Clark Gable star in "Hold Your Man," a film from 1933.

Gable plays con man Eddie Hall who runs into the apartment of Ruby Adams (Harlow) as he races to escape from the police. She's taking a bath and isn't happy having a strange man in her apartment. But Ruby has no problem taking care of herself.

Though she is dating a sturdy businessman (Stu Erwin) whom she attempts to con for her rent money, Ruby falls for Eddie. She falls for him so hard that she helps him with a con and winds up in prison. One day she gets dizzy. Well, we know what that means. But Eddie hasn't been in touch. Then, one day, she gets word of him from an unlikely person.

The highlight of this film is the snappy dialogue and the wonderful Harlow who, when she's offered a look at Gable's bedroom says, "Send me a picture of it." There was criticism here that when she went into prison, her personality changed, but I disagree. It's obvious in the beginning that she's interested in Eddie, and why wouldn't a woman in love, in prison, and pregnant, show vulnerability? That was the great thing about Harlow - underneath the street-smart wise cracks, there was a sensitivity.

Gable had been ascending the Hollywood ladder by leaps and bounds, and he is delightful here. Both he and Harlow play characters who put up a front, but ultimately their defenses come down.

I enjoyed it.