User reviews

Clark Gable and Constance Bennett star in "After Office Hours," a 1935 film directed by Robert Z. Leonard. Gable is Jim Branch, the go-getter editor of a newspaper, who is hot on the trial of a society love triangle. Irritated with the music critic, Sharon Norwood (Bennett), he fires her, only to find out that evening that she is very good friends with all the parties. He then not so subtly tries to find out as much as he can. When the woman in the triangle is murdered, he's certain that he knows who did it - but since it's someone Sharon is close to, he's going to have a tough time of it.

Gable and Bennett make a great team, though how Sharon ever believed a word coming out Branch's mouth is beyond me. Bennett is beautiful with outfits that match her elegant looks, and Gable makes a pretty glib Jim - also an insincere one. One assumes Sharon was in love with him and gave him the benefit of the doubt. You really couldn't blame her.

A delightful film with two wonderful stars.

A year earlier Clark Gable as a "punishment" for a recalcitrant star was farmed out to Columbia Pictures by Louis B. Mayer to make a real dog of a film about a bus trip entitled It Happened One Night.

That film essentially created the modern screen comedy as we know it and made a grand slam of the major Oscar categories including one for Clark Gable as Best Actor. Gable played a newspaper reporter in that one, on the trail of runaway heiress Claudette Colbert.

One thing about Louis B. Mayer, if he saw a trend he'd capitalize on it. If his number one star got an Oscar as a reporter, we'll make him an editor. And we'll bring the society girl into the newsroom where she's also working as a reporter. Common job interests should provide a basis for romance.

And that boys and girls is how After Office Hours came into being. But despite the naughty title, the main thing that Clark Gable and Constance Bennett are working on after work is an argument over a society murder.

Gable has a notion that the man arrested for murdering a society grand dame who was doing a little stepping out is not the guilty party. He needs Bennett to help him gain entree to the Cholly Knickerbocker set to prove it.

Bennett and Gable settle comfortably into their roles and Stu Erwin has a nice turn as Gable's sidekick.

As for Louis B. Mayer and MGM, After Office Hours did OK, but Gable made them some big money that year in Mutiny on the Bounty.

But I'll bet Mayer was mighty careful over what he assigned as punishments.

Until the murder takes place, "After Office Hours" seems tired and boring with a stellar cast going to waste, but then it turns into a fairly decent romantic comedy murder yarn. Though it is always a delight to see Constance Bennett and Clark Gable on the screen, and together they do make a dynamic pair, the funniest lines come from Stu Erwin and William Demarest. The movie comes to life when the police detective (Demarest in an uncredited role)investigates the crime scene. Demarest steals the show and it becomes obvious why he went on to become one of Hollywood's leading character actors. The most hilarious part of the movie comes toward the end when Jim Branch (Gable) is doing his own investigation at the prime suspect's house. He has Hank Parr (Erwin)talk as loud as possible to see if his voice can be heard over the music coming from the Victrola upstairs. If you don't laugh at Stu Erwin's antics in this scene then you need to have your giggle box tested. It was pleasing to see Margaret Dumont, the butt of so many of Groucho's wisecracks in the Marx Brothers films, in a brief walk on part. She makes the most of the few seconds given her. Too bad she wasn't given a larger part.

Though this is no "It Happened One Night," it is entertaining with several cleverly written scenes highlighting the comic talents of Stu Erwin and William Demarest. Add the enchanting Constance Bennett, the always debonair Clark Gable, a tipsy Billie Burke and how can you go wrong?

Take a story of no significance, load it with events of dubious credibility...and what do you have? If you also manage to include roles that are ideal for Clark Gable, Constance Bennett and Billie Burke, and if you find these players at the top of their form, and bring this mix alive with a crackling script by Herman Mankiewicz, the significance and credibility of it all are distinctly secondary. The characters talk fast, think fast, and move fast. This type of picture was done often in the 30s: part screwball, part melodrama, part love story (with sharp edges). When it worked - as it surely does here - you would be royally entertained. Enjoy.

TCM never fails to surprise me. As the centerpiece on TV today for classic MGM films from that studio's golden era, I can say that I never heard of or saw this film before it was shown and I caught it tonight, on the station.

I think Gable and Bennett are great, even better together, as are Burke et al. What surprises me is that it doesn't quite feel or seem like it's up to the quality and visual level of a typical Metro film of the era. Actually, it plays like a film coming from the studio that did It Happened One Night to which Gable had been loaned out by MGM's Louis B. Mayer the year before, ironically.

The movie's OK, not the best.. But I can watch Clark and Constance in anything, because they gave their everything to each of their films.

First half hour's great as Herman J. Mankiewiecz's typewriter functions more like a Gatling gun, spewing out wisecracks, putdowns, zingers and bon mots all over the place. Then, right after the scene at the Riverview Cafe, Mank's comic energy begins to wane and the not very interesting plot and story, something to do with high society adultery and murder, takes over and director Robert Z. Leonard's lack of visual comic skills is alarmingly exposed. So, let's give it a generous C plus for the first thirty minutes and the charm and comic timing of Gable, Bennett and a couple of the subsidiary players like Stu Erwin and Billie Burke.

Big city newspaper man and light-hearted heiress should mean a screwball comedy, but this one takes a surprising turn into a murder mystery..Some snappy dialogue by Herman Mankiewicz (Dinner at Eight) and elegant production with amazing gowns by Adrian and sets by Cedric Gibbons give this picture an air of class. Clark Gable is Clark Gable in his "It Happened One Night" mode. Constance Bennett has wonderful chemistry with Gable and shows the same light comedy flair from "Topper." I kept thinking this should be better known because it's a very stylish hybrid - society murder mystery and madcap comedy.

Clark Gable takes a wild stretch in this film and plays...well, exactly the same type of character he played in most of his films of the 1930s! On top of playing a fast-talking and rather dishonest hero, he also plays a newspaper man--something he did with great frequency. Constance Bennett appeared as the "dame" and she was just fine as the woman you absolutely KNOW Gable will end up with by the end of the film! So there aren't any real surprises and the film is pure formula...yet it does somehow work simply because it's so much fun watching Gable in action. He almost effortlessly plays a very likable rogue and letting him do a bit of sleuthing in this film was a welcome change of pace.

Now let me rate this on two levels. For Gable fans like me, I'd give it a 7---it's good solid entertainment. For non-fans, it's still an amiable time-passer and earns a 6. My advice is don't think too much about the silly plot and romance in this film--it will make you have a headache. Instead, just sit back and enjoy.

I was surprised when what I thought was a lighthearted comedy turned into a murder mystery. This seemed to be the film's biggest flaw -- neck-wrenching changes in the action and feel of the show. Is it a romantic comedy, a dark mystery, a brooding social commentary on the upper-crust of society, or what? It didn't know, and neither does the viewer. One thing I did enjoy was finding "other" stars in the movie -- Billie Burke (The Good Witch from "Wizard of Oz") as Mrs. Norwood and William Demarest (Uncle Charlie from 60's/70's TV Show "My Three Sons") as a police detective. I think the film could have used a bit of editing for flow, otherwise it was a nice diversion. Just slightly above average, but I'm glad I saw it.

Clark Gable is fun as a (maybe not so) tough-guy reporter. Stuart Erwin is wasted -- fine but he deserved more -- as his subordinate. Billie Burke is as always fun. But Constance Bennett strolls away with this.

Probably 99.9% of all living beings today have never heard of Ms. Bennett. Granted, about 90% have probably never heard of Clark Gable, either, But there is something odd about Bennett's fall from grace.

She was a huge star and her performances hold up beautifully. Yet, she seems to be viewed as a blip on the radar screen of American movie history, which she really was not.

I wonder, as an example, why "Topper" is almost never shown. I saw it once and thought it a very chic and appealing screwball comedy. Heaven knows, it spawned sequels (sot of sequels) and a TV series based on it was quite popular. Are there some sort of copyright problems? This movie, in any case, has a nice, twisting plot. It's amusing, it's stylish, it has a bit of suspense. It isn't great by any means, though it surely would have been more fun before the Code -- only a year or two before it was released.

(The title is racy but seems to have little bearing on the movie itself, just as an aside.)

This tries too hard to be amusing; the humour feels forced, the characters false and the script too wordy. There was a lot of talent involved in this but it was hardly a labour of love - more of a 'let's try and make a load of coin.'

For some reason, this was very popular at the time. Maybe that was simply because of the presence of Clarke Gable and maybe Constance Bennett? There is however no chemistry at all between the two stars. Any romance between their diametrically opposed characters, those lazily written stereotypes would just not happen, it's not believable and clearly Gable and Bennett don't believe it either.

This is meant to be a comedy but Constance Bennett is utterly unsuited to making this character remotely amusing. She is just so "Paramount." Every so often you feel you should watch a Constance Bennett film. That's because since she was was the highest paid female star in the early thirties, you figure that she must have been utterly fantastic and that that last really boring thing you saw her in must have just been a rare dud. You'll watch this and think, ok, this is just yet another rare dud and the next film I see her in will be better.

That's actually unfair, she did give a few outstanding performances and despite being as funny as a European Directive on cement manufacture in this, she was hilariously funny, delightful and totally engaging in TOPPER and a few other pictures made by the comedian's' director Norman Z. McCleod rather than by over-rated Robert Z. Leonard who made this.

After Office Hours (1935)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

A hard nosed editor (Clark Gable) hires a society girl (Constance Bennett) as a reporter but he's actually using her to try and crack a story on a playboy (Stuart Erwin). The editor gets in over his head when a murder takes place and might put the girl in danger, which is even worse when he falls for her. This is certainly minor fair but it's made entertaining by the terrific performance by Gable. It's somewhat shocking to see how great he is even though the story is pretty bland and unoriginal. For the most part Gable plays the part as a fast talker and he comes off very charming in doing this. He certainly keeps the film going with his performance and almost makes the viewer forget how silly the actual story is. Bennett is also very good in her role and the two stars work well together. The film borrows some from Gable's Oscar winning role in It Happened One Night and there's also a funny scene where Gable plays Popeye. The first thirty-minutes are actually pretty involving but the second half of the movie completely falls apart when the love story is brought in. There's also some slapstick comedy that comes out of no where and really seems like a scene from another movie accidentally edited into this one. Henry Travers of It's a Wonderful Life has a small role.

NYC newspaper editor Jim Branch (Clark Gable) has an on-again off-again relationship with the paper's columnist, Sharon Norwood (Constance Bennett), as he tries to solve a murder case. He is hard-driving, street-wise kind of guy and she is a refined socialite who he regards as elitist, despite his attraction to her.

Complicating matters is Tommy Bannister (Harvey Stephens), who is a long-time friend of Sharon. Branch dislikes him because of their close relationship.

The viewer knows who the murderer is, so this is not a whodunit; instead, the suspense lies in whether or not Branch can discover who the criminal is and prove it.

Despite the crime elements of this story, it is a cute film. The relationship between Branch and Sharon is very entertaining thanks to the charms of Gable and Bennett. Watch for Billie Burke as Sharon's mother.

I also appreciated the direction of Robert Z. Leonard, which uses some interesting camera movements.

Newspaper editor Clark Gable fires society editor Constance Bennett, then pursues her for romantic interests and her entry into society to investigate and solve a murder.

It's clearly an attempt to cash in on Gable's turn in IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT; Miss Bennett had been slated to play what became Claudette Colbert's role. The script alas, isn't what it might have been; MGM's rather diffuse production methods lacked the focus that Capra could bring to a movie at Columbia. Director Robert Z. Leonard compensates by giving Gable his head and offers a couple of small roles played to perfection by Billie Burke and Henry Armetta. The result is fun, if no classic.

Socialite Sharon Norwood (Constance Bennett) decides to be a newspaper reporter for a few months. Her editor Jim Branch (Clark Gable) fires her for a music review. He falls for her. Her high society friend gets killed. He needs her to get inside the home. He continues to investigate even after getting fired.

I got real antsy with Jim trampling around the crime scene. I guess it's another time. It's a fine romance mystery movie. There is plenty of heat being pumped into these two, but I'm not shipping them. I want Clark Gable with someone less superior. Constance Bennett was a big star back in the day. I do get the casting. I wonder if it would work better without the boyfriend. They aren't together on screen enough anyways.

AFTER OFFICE HOURS (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1935), directed by Robert Z. Leonard, leaves the impression of this being a story set in an business office involving overtime between a secretary and her employer. Taken from the story by Laurence Stallings and Dale Van Every, the story does take place in an office, a newspaper office, revolving around an editor and his gal journalist. Starring Constance Bennett and Clark Gable for the first time since THE EASIEST WAY (MGM, 1931), for which Gable was not Bennett's male co-star, AFTER OFFICE HOURS is a grand mix of comedy and murder mystery combination in the manner of MGM's earlier success of THE THIN MAN (1934) starring William Powell and Myrna Loy, but minus the wit and sophistication of Powell and Loy and more of the amusing style of wits by Bennett and Gable.

Set in the Wall Street district of New York City, the story introduces Sharon Norwood (Constance Bennett), a socialite, exiting her chauffeur driven limousine entering the New York News Record Building where she's a music review critic. With Mr. Jordan (Charles Richman) as its publisher with Jim Branch (Clark Gable) as breezy editor, Branch's main goal is to get a scoop on Tommy Bannister (Harvey Stephens), a wealthy man about town, reportedly romancing Julia (Katherine Alexander), the wife of Henry King Patterson (Hale Hamilton), a notable bank president seeking divorce. Because Patterson may be running for state senator, Jordan refuses Branch permission writing further stories that might cause a libel suit. Displeased with the music review copy about to go to press, Branch fires Nancy Sheridan, better known as Sharon Norwood, for sloppy writing. While taking his date (Rita LaRoy) to the Playhouse to see "The Cat and the Fiddle" Branch spots his fired employee Sharon in attendance with Tommy Bannister, a close friend of hers. Hoping to get the real scoop involving Bannister, Branch uses Sharon to get the news he wants for the newspaper. As Bannister entertains Sharon in his houseboat, he is approached by the jealous Julia, leading to an argument. Later that night, Julia is found murdered with her drunken husband being the prime suspect. With Branch having his suspicions, he teams with newspaper photographer Hank Parr (Stuart Erwin) to gather enough evidence to prove to Sharon and Jordan his theory is not pure gossip but news that's fit to print. Co-starring Billie Burke (Mrs. Norwood); Henry Travers (Cap); William Demarest (The Detective); and Herbert Bunston (Harvey, the Butler). Look quickly for Margaret Dumont in a cameo as Mrs. Murchinson.

With wisecracks and material that resembles newspaper comedies produced by Warner Brothers, one would think of Pat O'Brien and Joan Blondell in the Gable and Bennett roles, or Ralph Bellamy and Jean Arthur in similar roles for Columbia. Yet, Gable and Bennett have a style all their own that make AFTER OFFICE HOURS watchable. Typically casting Billie Burke in a ditzy mother role, with characters slamming doors leading to broken glass, Gables shows his flare for comedy by fast talking himself in and out of any situation; riding on the handle bars of a police driven motorcycle; and purposely his poor method of fist fighting to learn more about his advisory fighting technique. Though not quite the classic many would want this to be, AFTER OFFICE HOURS makes a satisfactory 72 minute old-style journalism background mystery from its now bygone era.

Never distributed to video cassette, AFTER OFFICE HOURS is available on DVD and often makes front page news whenever upcoming broadcast turns up on Turner Classic Movies cable channel program guide, whether scheduled morning, noon, night or after office hours. (**1/2)

CLARK GABLE and CONSTANCE BENNETT never seem to run out of fast talk and wisecracks, giving this romantic comedy/mystery a lift simply by lending their star presence to a breezy newspaper tale that seems to be the forerunner of more substantial news stories like THE FRONT PAGE or HIS GIRL Friday.

It has a strictly '30s look, with Bennett outfitted in clinging costumes that show off her slender society gal figure, spouting smart and sassy lines with great effect--as she did in TOPPER. Gable is surprisingly adroit with his newspaper man guy, brash and confident as only Gable can be, equally good at delivering the sharp dialog, especially when he's barking orders over the phone at his assistant, HENRY TRAVERS. BILLIE BURKE is Bennett's society lady mother, fluttery and featherbrained, as usual.

The film hits a snag when the story involves the murder of a young woman and Bennett is assigned to cover the story. The unexpected change from breezy comedy to murder mystery has an uneven feeling. WILLIAM DEMAREST is wasted in a brief role as the lead detective. STUART IRWIN has the thankless role of Gable's sidekick supposedly supplying the comic relief.

It's Gable who suspects who the real murderer is (after the wrong suspect has been nailed by police), and he spends the last fifteen minutes solving the crime.

Summing up: Not too bad, but not very original either, saved by the combined talents and good chemistry of Gable and Bennett.

"After Office Hours", directed by Robert Z. Leonard was shown as part of a Constance Bennett retrospective the other day on TCM. This 1935 film was written for the screen by Herman Mankiewicz.

The wonderful world of New York's high society and the sensational news by the tabloids of the thirties are combined in this movie to give us a fast paced comedy in which most of the comments submitted to this forum express a surprise in the turn it takes when the happy situation at the start of the film and the illicit romance being investigated by a newspaper changes into a different, and unexpected climax.

The gorgeous Constance Bennett and the handsome Clark Gable are a delight to watch in the movie. Both these actors had great chemistry, and frankly, it's a shame they weren't seen together more often. Ms. Bennett was at, perhaps, one of the best times in her career and as the society girl turned newspaper music critic, she makes quite an impression. Also, the newspaper editor portrayed by Mr. Gable is one of his best characterizations in the movies.

Also in the cast some famous faces, the luminous Billie Burke, who plays Ms. Bennett's mother is a welcome presence in any film. Stuwart Erwin, Harvey Stephens, Henry Travers, William Demarest and Margaret Dumond are seen in supporting roles.

This is an excellent movie because of the fine contributions of Constance Bennett and Clark Gable.

A film starring Clark Gable, Constance Bennett and Billie Burke can't go wrong, can it? Think again. This movie is one big yawn. So slow moving you wonder why they bothered making it at all. Too bad too, because Gable and Bennett made a great team.