judy t Bennett's screen image was that of a sophisticated girl who knew how to take care of herself and get what she wanted. Her fans (wrote Griffith & Mayer) believed she would get out of traps that would hold them fast. Surprisingly then, in this film she's passive, unambitious and defeated at the ripe old age of 20 something. Makes me wonder what her benefactor, Menjou, saw in her that kept him interested for several years.The beginning scene in the tenement apartment is terrific, the crowded setting warm and cozy as the family members get ready to start the day. The entire cast is perfect. Gable is very watchable and it's easy to see he would soon be a star. Montgomery is charming and believable when he tells Bennett he knows about her and Menjou but he loves her and wants to marry her as long as there is no more dilly dallying with Menjou. Rambeau is especially good in the scene where she refuses to loan Bennett $100 (a lot of money in 1931), telling her to get off her high horse and do what Rambeau does to support herself. And the generous but not-the-marrying-kind Menjou is likable and his suits are beautifully cut and fitted.And Anita Page is excellent. A commenter asks what happened to Page's career. In 1930 Page was a star. In 1931 she was a supporting player. In 1933 her MGM contract was not renewed and she retired. Studio politics is what happened to the star who was second in popularity to Garbo.So there was another ending filmed but not used. My guess is that a despairing Bennett jumped onto the RR tracks, ala Anna Karenina, or teamed up with Rambeau as a I-hate-men gold digger.

whpratt1 Heard about Joan Bennett, but never viewed any of Constance Bennett's films, and in this 1931 picture she was very young and had great talent. Constance,(Laura Murdock),"Sin Town",'42, played a young gal who lived in a low income flat with her large Irish family and a father who was lazy and drunk most of the time. Laura decided to move out and go on her own when she meets Adolphe Menjou(William Brockton)," I Married a Woman",'58, who played a fat, rich, dirty old man who buys Laura's body and soul. As the picture progresses, Laura has plenty of worldly goods, but deep down is very unhappy and Bill Brockton does not intend to marry Laura, but just gives her promises. One day, Laura meets Robert Montgomery,(Jack Madison),"The Great Gatsby",'55 TV, who is a reporter and falls in love with him. You will also see Clark Gable, "The Misfits",'61, who portrays the role as a laundryman who goes house to house and eventually marries Laura's sister. The "Easiest Way", was performed on the New York City stage and was a rather sexy play for 1931, because Laura was considered a prostitute living with a man unmarried in those days. You will like this ending, but the real ending was a great deal different.

Poseidon-3 The shopgirl-turned-clotheshorse concept was a staple of 1920's a 30's films, with Joan Crawford wringing quite a bit of success out of the formula. Here, Bennett gives it a go in a story that was based on a 1909 stage play. She portrays the eldest of five children living with their parents in a squalid, cramped New York tenement. The father resists working while the mother barely manages to wrangle the kids and put supper on the table. Bennett toils behind the tie counter at a department store until one day she gets the opportunity to pose as a model for advertising artists. She doesn't stop with this modest success and proceeds to hook up with the boss (Menjou), who fixes her up with a fancy apartment and all the jewels and furs she can handle. During this, she aids her family as well, though a few of them reject her for the way she earns her keep. On an extended visit to Colorado, she happens upon handsome young writer Montgomery and quickly falls for him. She decides to give up her lavish "kept" lifestyle and return to work while he is away on assignment, knowing he will be back for her to marry him. But can she take that step backwards? Bennett, one of the highest paid and most popular stars of the era presents an appealing and attractive persona (check out that waist!) She knows that what she's doing is "wrong", yet circumstances seem to prevent her from doing otherwise unless she wants to exist in poverty. Menjou is assured and manipulative in his role. Montgomery is quite fresh and likable for the better part of his screen time. Page appears to great advantage as Bennett's far earthier sister who winds up wed to Gable in one of his very earliest roles. He's handsome though his character is a little self-righteous. Rambeau makes an impression as one of Bennett's sidekicks in the modeling biz who also reaches for the top in the mistress game. Virtually all of the cast members give vivid performances. The opening sequences in the rundown apartment are quite fascinating in their snappy dialogue and depiction of the hard times. Today's audiences will be able to see through the predictable plotting, but the film still holds interest. Though the Hays Office is sometimes blamed for tampering with the material, the 1917 silent version had at least as downbeat an ending as this one does. In fact, if the story were to end any other way than it does, there'd be very little point to it all!

drednm Wonderful story ruined by Hays Office has fabulous Constance Bennett escaping her New York slum upbringing by becoming a model and mistress to Adolphe Menjou. All is well until she runs into reporter Robert Montgomery in Colorado Springs (the Wild West in 1931). He's off to South America and asks Bennett to be good and wait for him. Well that lasts about a month. She runs out of money and goes back to Menjou. Better than it sounds until the hack ending. Solid performances by the stars, especially Bennett, and ably supported by Anita Page, Marjorie Rambeau, Clark Gable (his first MGM film), J. Farrell MacDonald, Clara Blandick, Jack Hanlon (as the sullen brother), and Hedda Hopper. The opening tenement scene is just wonderful. Gable is dynamic is his first big part. Rambeau is always terrific. Page is quite good in a supporting role. Menjou is slimy, but Constance Bennett is front and center and mesmerizing. She was a major star of her time--too bad she's mostly forgotten now.