... for at least awhile. This one was released six months after its adoption. In this case the code manages to neuter the precode bite of witty Warren William and the boldness of Barbara Stanwyck.
The premise is that Ruth Vincent (Barbara Stanwyck) and Attorney General Robert Sheldon (Warren William) must keep their marriage secret so that Sheldon can look into possible exculpatory evidence regarding bribery charges against Ruths' dad, the governor (Arthur Byron). To complicate matters, Sheldon's secretary (Glenda Farrell) is accused of a murder, To complicate matters even further, Ruth saw what happened and that the secretary did not shoot the other person. But she was in Sheldon's apartment in the middle of the night when she saw it, and either way - revealing the marriage or not - it would cause a scandal for her dad to come forward and absolve the girl because of where she was.
There are so many furtive glances, guilty whispers, shootings, suicides, and trials going on it is hard to keep up. But one thing is for sure. Babs is relegated almost to a supporting role in a part that is not worthy of her. What is very noticeable is that they have her traipsing about as a clothes horse in this one, almost in Kay Francis territory.
If you can keep up with the serpentine plot it is worth your while, but that plot absolutely overpowers the wonderful performers. Not much is done with Glenda Farrell as she is definitely between the precode and Torchy Blane portions of her career.
The premise is that Ruth Vincent (Barbara Stanwyck) and Attorney General Robert Sheldon (Warren William) must keep their marriage secret so that Sheldon can look into possible exculpatory evidence regarding bribery charges against Ruths' dad, the governor (Arthur Byron). To complicate matters, Sheldon's secretary (Glenda Farrell) is accused of a murder, To complicate matters even further, Ruth saw what happened and that the secretary did not shoot the other person. But she was in Sheldon's apartment in the middle of the night when she saw it, and either way - revealing the marriage or not - it would cause a scandal for her dad to come forward and absolve the girl because of where she was.
There are so many furtive glances, guilty whispers, shootings, suicides, and trials going on it is hard to keep up. But one thing is for sure. Babs is relegated almost to a supporting role in a part that is not worthy of her. What is very noticeable is that they have her traipsing about as a clothes horse in this one, almost in Kay Francis territory.
If you can keep up with the serpentine plot it is worth your while, but that plot absolutely overpowers the wonderful performers. Not much is done with Glenda Farrell as she is definitely between the precode and Torchy Blane portions of her career.