Reviews (1)

Interesting rarity
The four stars are for the movie's interest for us, Early 1930's Pre-Code Movies' film buffs... The plot is routine and rather stilted, but this was the talkies' "stone age".

Irene Dunne appears in her first year of truly starring roles in pictures(not taking in account the odd "Leathernecking", her cinematic debut in 1930, the only movie she made that year) giving a sympathetic performance, as a woman left by her long-time lover (Lester Vail) (who marries a rich lady for his pianist career's sake) who becomes pals with Pat O'Brien, who's just lived a similar situation with childhood sweetheart Myrna Loy (in one of her vampish roles pre-"Thin Man"), the two of them eventually getting married on the rebound...and there you have the "consolation marriage" of the title.

This oldie gives us a chance of watching an early performance of Miss Dunne, who hadn't yet bloomed into the excellent comedienne (& dramatic actress too) she became afterwards in the decade...although there are many hints of what was going to come.We have the opportunity too, of watching a very young, I'd say almost sort of "boyish", Pat O'Brien, before his Warner Bros. better known roles....as for Myrna Loy, she looks radiant and beautifully sophisticated as a blonde, in those sexy early '30s outfits, she wears through the film. Johnny Halliday, as O'Brien's pal, is good as usual, looking a lot like Adolphe Menjou.

Worth the watch for early '30s fans. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

First Teaming Of Hollywood Legends Crawford And Gable
It probably wasn't realised at the time of it's release but "Dance, Fools, Dance", gave birth to one of the greatest screen teams of the 1930's in Joan Crawford and Clark Gable. Both made many noteworthy films with other costars during this decade but the personal and professional chemistry between these two was undeniable and resulted in eight screen teamings where regardless of the quality of the film in question always displayed the two idealy matched actors to perfection. At the time of this films release Joan Crawford was already a bankable star at MGM while Clark Gable was still just a rising actor of some promise. His work in this film and in others that year such as "A Free Soul", with Norma Shearer and "Night Nurse", with Barbara Stanwyck confirmed the promise already evident in the former lumberjack turned actor and a new star of enduring fame was born.

"Dance, Fools, Dance", is very much of its era and being from this early sound precode era has a certain honesty and openess about it that is refreshingly appealing to modern audiences. Certainly the slant taken on relationships or "love on approval", as it is referred to in the script would be something considered unacceptable only a few years later with the stronger censorship laws that came into place. The films most famous scene is the "notorious" underwear swimming party that takes place near the beginning of the film where the well heeled members of a society party strip down to their underwear and dive off the side of a yacht to cool off. Heady stuff for 1931 audiences! "Dance, Fools, Dance", draws on real life incidents of the time like the recent Stock Market Crash and the St. Valentines Day Massacre in telling its story of Society girl Bonnie Jordan (Crawford) and her idle and weak willed brother Rodney who lead a life of priviledge and endless parties until the Stock Market crash wipes out their father Stanley Jordan (William Holden)who dies as a result of the shock leaving the two to now fend for themselves. Deserted by their shallow fair weather friends Bonnie does the responsible thing and goes out and finds work as a cadet reporter while Rodney drifts into a life involved in the underworld dealings of bootleggers and gangster standover merchants. What first seems like a simple way to make easy money turns into a nightmare for Rodney as he becomes involved with ruthless gangster Jake Luva (Clark Gable). Simple sly grog dealings develop into much more serious activities as Rodney finds himself being forced to murder a collegue of Bonnie's on the Newspaper, reporter friend Bert Scranton (Cliff Edwards) who has learnt too much about Jake's setup. Assigned to infiltrate Jake's dealings to reveal the real murderers behind the St. Valentine's Day Massacre Bonnie goes undercover as a dancer at his seedy nightclub. Realising her brother is involved over his head Bonnie gains the information she needs to nail Jake and then attempts to warn her brother that he is now a marked man by the mob. In the ensuring shootout both Rodney and Jake are killed whereupon Bonnie breaks the story to the Newspaper. Gaining new respect for her abilitites she nevertheless leaves her job on the paper and is reunited with her old beau from the earlier carefree days Bob (Lester Vail) who only ever regarded her as a shallow party girl in her moneyed days but now sees the real integrity that Bonnie has earned from honest hard work. Having rejected his marriage proposals earlier for the reasons stated Bonnie then accepts his offer knowing it is coming from an appreciation of what she has become not from simply as in the past, who she was or how much money she had.

"Dance, Fools, Dance", takes a non sentimental look at the underworld and its dealings and while it doesn't have the hard edge of some of Warner Brothers efforts of this time such as the classic "Public Enemy" it still deals with the material in an honest and noncompromising manner. Joan Crawford at this time had been a full fledged star for roughly four years and while the famous "Joan Crawford Persona" had not been fully created yet she does a sterling job in the role of the flighty society girl who learns about life in the school of hard knocks. As stated previously her chemistry with the rising Clark Gable is electric in their scenes together and Gable definately displays the star quality that made him a Hollywood legend. He is quite ruthless in his characterisation and his acting has a surprising hard edge to it that is perfect as the villian in this story. While Lester Vail as Joan's on again off again love interest has a fairly bland role, the other standout in the story is William Bakewell's performance as Rodney the spoilt society boy who gets in over his head in underworld dealings to his own personal cost. He is wonderful in his at times frantic playing and the film really comes alive in his exchanges with both Crawford and Gable. He is one of the definite strong points of "Dance, Fools, Dance", and it is a shame his career didn't develop into more leading parts based on his performance here. Directed at a fast and no frills pace by Harry Beaumont who guided Joan Crawford to real stardom in the earlier classic "Our Dancing Daughters", the film at 82 minutes doesn't waste time on developing deep characterisations but focuses more on telling an interesting story and in building up suspense.

The first of three films they would make together in 1931 the Crawford/Gable team is still in its infancy here but already displays the unique qualities that made both a constant success in their later films together. In many respects "Dance, Fools, Dance", is not your typical MGM product that we have all come to know so well from the 30's decade. However it is certainly an interesting illustration of the careers of both Joan Crawford and Clark Gable at this early time at the beginning of the sound era when both their famous screen personas were still a "work in progress".

JOAN'S LINGERIE PARTY!
Crawford plays Bonnie, a spoiled socialite who refuses to marry her beau Bob Townsend (Lester Vail). Clark Gable plays the sordid Jake Luva, a bootlegger who eventually wants to take Joanie "for a ride"...This film is famous for the lingerie party aboard the Vail's yacht where both the men and ladies are seen drinking and carrying on in their undergarments: hot stuff for 1931 audiences! Gable's characterisation of Luva was considered a vivid and authentic bit of acting in its day and although Crawford's acting was still a bit self-conscious, she managed to prove herself an actress of no little dramatic ability. Crawford breathed some life into her role and picture is swiftly moving with thrills along the way. As Joan's weak little drinking brother, William Bakewell did an admirable job.

1931 "GANGSTA" FLICK...
This 1931 gangster flick is reflective of the times in which it was made, covering, what were then, topical issues: bathtub gin, the stock market crash, the underworld which controlled the bootleg liquor, and gangland killings that were the order of the day.

The story revolves around a pair of high society brats, Bonnie and Rodney Jordan, two wealthy high stepping siblings, who like to party hearty and get their booze from a gangland source. Joan Crawford plays the role of the beautiful Bonnie Jordan, a young woman who is liberated enough to dance until dawn in her underwear and make love with no strings attached. She is in love with callow Robert Townsend, played with panache by the very handsome Lester Vail.

All is well, until their father loses all in the stock market crash of 1929 and dies of a heart attack as a result, leaving Bonnie and Rodney destitute. Unfortunately, they find that their friends are of the fair weather variety, and they are left to fend for themselves as best they can. Even Mr. Townsend comes up short, as he proposes marriage to Joan out of a sense of duty. When, sensing his reluctance, she refuses his marriage proposal out of pride, his sense of relief is palpable.

Bonnie goes to work as a reporter, while Ronnie drifts into an unsavory involvement with the underworld, as his former bootlegger seeks to have Ronnie, who still owes him money for prior liquor shipments, work his debt off by having him get his former society friends to change bootleggers. You see, someone has moved in on the territory staked out by gangland boss, Jake Luva, played with style by the dashingly handsome Clark Gable, and he doesn't like it. He is seeking to reclaim his stolen territory. The unemployed Rodney, seeing this as a way to make some easy money, gets involved with this crew, but lives to regret it, as a high profile gangland killing ensues.

Consequently, Bonnie gets her big reporting break, going undercover as a dancer in order to solve the gangland murder. As hoped, she comes to the attention of the roving eye of Jake Luva, who puts the moves on her. What she ultimately discovers about the killing, however, goes beyond her wildest imagination and leads to personal heartbreak for her.

This is a very enjoyable, thirties style film. As it is pre-code, it has its share of risque moments. Joan Crawford can certainly dance and does a wonderful job with the role of Bonnie, as she transforms from high society flibberty gibbet to hard hitting news gal. Clark Gable is terrific as the gangland boss, appropriately menacing and romantic. This was the first of seven such pairings of Crawford and Gable, and together they light up the screen. They are both very young and appealing in this film. Even though Gable plays the bad guy, he is still irresistible. Pretty boy Lester Vail does a credible job with the role of Robert Townsend. This entertaining film was directed by Harry Beaumont, who directed the film "Our Dancing Daughters", the film which catapulted Joan Crawford to stardom.

Joan Crawford and Clark Gable fans will enjoy this film, as will all those who love vintage films.

Reporter Crawford goes undercover to nail Gangster Gable
Joan Crawford and Clark Cable are the big names in this 1931 pre-Code film directed by Harry Beaumont that mixes gangsters and journalism with a bunch of melodramatic twists and turns. Crawford plays Bonnie "Bon" Jordan, who likes to go swimming in her underwear, has modern notions of love, and smokes cigarettes to keep thin. But when her father loses the family's money in the stock market crashes and drops dead from a heart attack, Bonnie ditches boyfriend Bob Townsend (Lester Vail) and gets a job as a cub reporter. Meanwhile, her brother Rodney becomes the wheelman for bootlegger Jake Luva (Gable). After a gangland massacre one of Bonnie's reporter friends, Scranton (Cliff Edwards), gets the goods on Luva, but the gangster forces Rodney to kill the reporter. Bonnie goes undercover and worms her way into Luva's mob as an entertainer, only to discover the truth about ther brother's involvement in the gang. You have to respect the fact that even if this is a melodrama, the film does not offer anything approaching a convenient happy ending. Crawford does a nice job of flashing her eyes dramatically throughout the film and Gable plays his gangster character with a certain raw style that he would later hone into his formidable on screen persona. One of the more interesting aspects of "Dance, Fools, Dance" is how they manage to work some songs into the drama. You have to check out any movie that offers Joan Crawford playing Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata" on the piano, especially when she offers a swing version as well. This film is worth checking out if you are fans of either of the stars.

See Joan Crawford in her Underwear!
Only in pre-code Hollywood could you see young men and women disrobing on the deck of a gorgeous yacht, and jumping into the ocean clad only in their underwear. But heck...in the movie they turn the lights off first, so nobody could see anything...well at least that's what they think!! In one of my personal favorite movies, Joan plays rich deb Bonnie Jordan, who after the loss of her family's fortune, must go to work like everyone else. While Bonnie becomes a cub reporter on the local newspaper, her brother Rodney becomes a bootlegger to an ultra rotten mobster, played by the one and only Clark Gable. Bonnie's assignment to discover who murdered the newspaper's leading reporter leads her to a shocking discovery.

Things to take note of: 1)Joan uses a metallic blow drier on board the yacht that looks almost exactly like the blow driers we use today! 2)Attitudes towards cigarettes sure have changed! When asked by her dad why she smokes before breakfast, she replies, "Well I must, darling, if I want to stay thin!"

This is a wonderful example of what movies were like before the production code was enforced. Give this one a try! ... Read more