La bella rebelde

Ann Sothern stars in "She's Got Everything," a 1937 film also starring Gene Raymond (her frequent costar in those days), Helen Broderick, Victor Moore (a "horse broker," not a bookie), Billy Gilbert, and an uncredited but cheery Jack Carson.

Sothern plays Carol Rogers, who thinks she's from a wealthy family. When her father dies, she finds out that all he's left her is debt. In fact, while she sleeps upstairs, his creditors are taking his furniture and anything else they can get their hands on. When she awakens, the only thing left in her room is her bed.

Daddy's biggest creditor Waldo the bookie, has high hopes for Carol marrying a wealthy man from South America who is crazy about her. However, he's a miner, and Carol hates miners.

Carol decides it's time she stood on her own two feet and went out and worked. Waldo has just the job, as secretary to a coffee mogul, Fuller Partridge (Raymond). When she arrives at his office, she finds out part of her job is as a coffee taster. She hates coffee. It makes her sick.

Anything with Ann Sothern is worth seeing. Add the wonderful Helen Broderick as her aunt, and you should have a winner. Unfortunately both actresses are better than their material.

The second part of this film has a lot of music in it, including a nice rendition of "It's Sleepy Time in Hawaii" by Sothern.

Gene Raymond was an attractive man but not right for light comedy.

Ann Sothern looks beautiful and is delightful, but overall the script is as thin as paper.

Ann Sothern plays an heiress who returns from a European trip to discover that her wealthy father has died and left her with enormous debts. She's determined to get a job to pay them off, and through a series of somewhat contrived circumstances winds up working as a secretary for coffee magnate Gene Raymond. The script is predictable-- you KNOW they're going to wind up together after a series of misunderstandings separates them--and Raymond, as another reviewer has noted, is as stiff as a board, but the supporting cast, especially Billy Gilbert and Victor Moore, is good. It's Sothern's show, however, and she's more than up to it. She's funny, perky, sexy and has great comic timing, which Raymond utterly lacks (she tries to connect with him, but despite her best efforts there's no chemistry there whatsoever).

All in all, it's an inconsequential comedy that owes whatever success it may have had to the extraordinary talents of Ann Sothern. It's worth a watch for that, but not much else.

Impoverished heiress Ann Sothern is happy to pick up a job as secretary for confident young coffee magnate Gene Raymond. The young couple hit it off but don't know that they are being set up by Sothern's aunt and Raymond's bookie friend.

Aunt Helen Broderick and bookie Victor Moore hit it off themselves, meanwhile, as they manipulate the romance between the younger couple. Also hanging around are a trio of Sothern's creditors, eager to see Sothern marry Raymond and thus acquire the cash pay off her debts. Billy Gilbert, Parkyakarkus, and William Brisbane are amusing as the creditors - they are greedy, yes, but also inept enough that they allow Victor Moore to talk them into investing $500 each in his scheme to arrange the rich match.

Misunderstandings abound, naturally - Raymond figures out it's a set up, Sothern doesn't know it but he thinks she does, and so on. It's a cute plot that doesn't need to make much sense and is happily rushed along without too much worry about logic or reality.

The familiar cast does well, with Broderick and Moore looking perfectly comfortable as the second couple, and Raymond fine as the handsome if not overly interesting leading man. Sothern is definitely the star here, funny and likeable.

Bonus: Sothern sings a pretty song called "It's Sleepy Time in Hawaii," a quiet moment in an otherwise noisy and hectic picture.

I think "She's Got Everything" is a pleasant little film. However, I also think it would have worked better had the film been allowed to take place a bit more slowly and naturally. As it was, it sure seemed rushed--and I guess that's because tit was a B-movie and they are only about an hour in length.

The film begins with creditors descending on a mansion after the master dies. His daughter, Carol (Ann Sothern) doesn't realize he was heavily in debt but promises to go to work and try to pay off his debts. However, her conniving Aunt Jane (Helen Broderick) wants her to marry some rich guy instead. When Carol gets a job with a rich coffee tycoon, Fuller (Gene Raymond), Jane and her new partner (Victor Moore) are intent on getting the pair hitched--even if it means trying to use a hypnotist!

This is a nice little comedy. However, the last five minutes seem like about 15 or more all condensed into five. After all, why would she be so angry with him even once she learns that her Aunt is the villain and why would she then instantly relent and marry him?! She comes off as a bit strange and the ending is good but way, way too rushed.

"She's Got Everything" makes no bones about it from the start. This is a screwball comedy. Its wacky plot will have one laughing out loud at times. The cast is absolutely first rate for this type of comedy and this plot. Ann Sothern is Carol Rogers, Gene Raymond is Fuller Partridge, Victor Moore is Waldo Eddington, Helen Broderick is Aunt Jane Carter, and Billy Gilbert as Chaffee heads a bunch of goofy, but tireless, bill collectors from various firms. Their hanging around is mostly funny and stops just short of becoming irritating.

Carol Rogers isn't even out of bed in her mansion before the various companies have their delivery and sales crews there picking up everything that isn't nailed down to return to their stores. Carol has just returned from Europe when her dad died, and left her penniless and in debt. Waldo Eddington hangs around after Aunt Jane has chased the rest of the men out of the house. He has a scheme for Carol to marry a rich man and pay them all off and end all of her problems. Aunt Jane likes the plan, and when Fuller Partridge calls Waldo to see if he'll buy his race horse because he doesn't have time for it anymore, Waldo sees the opening.

Well, everyone can guess where this will wind up, but it's in the winding up that this film is so hilarious. The Partridge coffee empire ultimately comes to rescue after Carol has trained her palette for coffee over champagne. Victor Moore ("It Happened on Fifth Avenue" and some other gems) is a delight as the match-maker and soother of all the businessmen's worries

This is a fun film that should still get many laughs well into the 21st century. Here are some favorite lines from this film.

Waldo Eddington, "Suppose you and I put our heads together." Aunt Jane Carter, "Do you think they'd look well together?" Waldo, "What?" Aunt Jane, 'Never mind."

Aunt Jane, "Say, what are you, a bookie?" Waldo, "Well, I prefer to be called a horse broker." Aunt Jane., "Hmm. It's all right with me if the horses don't mind."

Aunt Jane, to Waldo, "You know, sometimes you come dangerously close to making sense."

Aunt Jane, to Waldo, "Don't look now, cupid, but I think you just laid an egg."

Waldo, "That young fellow is standing too close to Carol for my comfort." Aunt Jane, "What's wrong with him?" Waldo, "He's broke." Aunt Jane, "Oh, that's awful."