Man Wanted

Moderately amusing romantic comedy, stolen by a dazzling Kay Francis. Her commanding presence just about out-shines everything else, including even the scene-stealing Merkel. The story's about upper-class folks trying to get their love life sorted out. Manners is drawn to Francis, but she's married to Thompson who philanders with Dodd, while an aggressive Merkel chases after Manners as a brawny Devine looks on. Worse, they've only got an hour to sort things out. The B-flick's well mounted with a good look at early 30's high fashion. There's some good snappy dialogue, and even though infidelity is treated casually, there's not much pre-Code innuendo. Note too how the script elevates Francis as the competent chief executive of a large firm. In fact, there's something of a subtle feminist thread running through the screenplay. In my book, the movie's main drawback lies with Dieterle's pedestrian direction that lacks the spark needed to blend the parts into a memorable whole.. Anyway, for fans of Francis, it's a showcase, showing again why she's become a cult legend.