Going Highbrow

"Going Highbrow" is entertaining, yes, but it definitely also is lacking an uncertain something. I just couldn't help thinking during the entire film that it was a shame for this notable cast and the attention to production to be pretty much squandered on a story that is so under-developed as well as begging for another edit.

The sets, for example the diner, the hotel, the party venue, and even the streets are filled with extras and appointments that were carefully chosen and liberally placed. Edw Everett Horton gets carried away at times with his antics, but the cast does a credible job here and it is fun to see Ms. Pitts and Mr. Kibbee play their cards. But, gee, a little more care and ten minutes more of exposition here and there could have resulted in a far more satisfying picture. Nonetheless, it should be fun for movie fans of the 1930's to see once.

If you like the silly comedies of the 30s then check this movie out.

Everybody is good in this movie but Edward Everett Horton steals the show. He is excellent.

ZaSu Pitts is also top notch. But as I say all the actors show their stuff in this funny uptown romp.

I was really full of anticipation before i viewed this film.What a great cast,full of great comedy actors from the 30s.I was about to uncover a forgotten masterpiece.How wrong i was.This was an extremely lame comedy,of the sort spawned by production requirements that one film a week be shipped out to the theatres.It just goes to show that you can have great talents but if you do not have a good script there is no likelihood that you will have a good film.Guy Kibee as usual plays a business man flirting with a younger woman,Zasu Pitts as so often plays the fretful wife and Edward Everett Horton plays Edward Everett Horton.Ross Alexander sings,if that is his own voice,a rather pleasant song.So the best that you can say about this film is that at 66 minutes it doesn't linger around too long.

This film is a wonderful example of a rotten plot yet wonderful characters. It appeared as if the film were actually written by two people--one for the plot and one who strictly designed the characters and wrote the dialog. As for the plot itself, it's easy to sum up with one word--"stupid". Instead of trying to describe it, just let it go with that! But as for the characters, I have always been a sucker for colorful character actors and this one has Edward Everett Horton, Guy Kibbee and Zasu Pitts (in a rather restrained performance, thank goodness). And the writers infused these characters with wonderful personalities that were very much in line with their normal screen personas. Kibbee was a not overly bright but decent "normal guy", Zasu played a bumpkin of sorts who wanted "class" and Horton played a rich but decent schemer. Together, they helped to infuse the film with enough warmth and humanity that I was able to overlook the films MANY deficiencies and just enjoy it. While this is certainly NOT a film you should rush to see, it's a very amiable time-passer and a good example of a quality B-movie.

Guy Kibbee made a lot of money in the stock market in 1929 when his broker sold when Kibbee told him to buy. Now he spends some of that money granting his wife's wishes. Her latest is to break into New York society. Matron Nella Walker is down to her residences and the furnishings, but she still has prestige. So Edward Everett Horton suggests they can enter society by marrying Miss Walker's son, Ross Alexander, to their daughter.

They don't have a daughter, but Kibbee has taken a shine to June Martell, the waitress in the diner he likes to eat at. They fit her up as their daughter and throw a party to introduce her to Alexander, not knowing they've already met, and Alexander is smitten.

It's a Cinderella story, with Kibbee's checkbook serving as a magic wand. Although it occasionally gets a bit tiresome by its reliance on Horton's nitwittery, there's enough of the old-style Warner Brothers' rapid-fire editing to keep this moving along amusingly.