The Devil to Pay!

Ronald Colman plays a prodigal son. While he is NOT a bad guy, he is a bit flighty and hasn't done a lot with his life other than travel the world and have a jolly good time. Now that his latest venture in Africa has failed, he's on his way home to England. His rich upper class father plans on tossing him out on his ear, though thanks to Ronald's winning style, he is reluctantly welcomed back with open arms.

At this point, there are two women in his life--showgirl Myrna Loy and rich girl Loretta Young (who is already engaged). How will all this work out and will Ronald wise up and act like a responsible adult--these are the main themes of this pleasant little film.

This isn't a great movie and certainly won't change your life, but it certainly is very entertaining and fun. Most of this is due to the always genial acting of Ronald Colman. Heck, in the heyday of his career in the 1930s, he could have played in REEFER MADNESS or some other dreck and still made it entertaining and likable due to his charming persona. His seemingly effortless style in this movie make it very easy to like him and it's easy to see why both Loretta Young and Myrna Loy are in love with him in the film! Plus, the writing is very witty and make this a nice romantic-comedy.

"The Devil to Pay" is an early sound comedy romance that has some very terse and sharp dialog from its male lead, Willie Hale, played by Ronald Colman. Opposite him are two young actresses who would go on to film stardom. Both Loretta Young (as Dorothy) and Myrna Loy (as Mary) had been in the silent films a few years before this. Still, this is a very young Ms. Young. She was only 17 when this movie was made, and she had already had the female leads in eight sound films and been in more than a dozen silent films. Myrna Loy was 25 and had been in more than 50 films since her start at age 20 in 1925. Her star was on a slower ascent in Hollywood. Not one of any of the earlier films of these two stars were memorable, or even very good compared to the films they would be in and the roles they would play in the decades ahead. This is by far, the best film for both of the ladies to that time in their careers.

But, the main character of the film, around whom the whole plot revolves, is the more well-known actor at the time, Ronald Colman. His career too began in the silent films. He was 26 when he made his first film in 1917, and he was a popular star by 1930. He had 30 films to his credit, some of which were silent classics. Colman was 22 years older than Young when this film was made - his 39 to her 17. But, besides being a standout talent already in her teens, Loretta Young was a girl who looked much more mature and older than her age - but just the right number of years.

While this is a good comedy, it has a feel of being somewhat disjointed. There are no apparent holes in the plot, but there's no stream that holds together the earliest scene of Willie Hale's (Colman) disposition of his property and goods in South Africa, and then his appearance back home after an absence of two years. Colman gives a nonchalant treatment to his character that is a trademark in his comedies. But, in this case, his wistfulness with his father, Lord Leland (played by Frederick Kerr) is so pronounced that it's hard to take him at all seriously. So, did he fear his father's reaction and treatment, or was that just nonsense?

The story has a nice ending - a type that should be familiar to fans of old black and white movies. There isn't any great acting in here, but Colman's presence is commanding in his scenes. That's most often because one is waiting for and expecting the next bit of comedy or witticism to come from him. Indeed, without the comedy in the dialog, this film wouldn't be much worth watching.

Fans of Colman, Young and Loy should enjoy this film, and others who like the older movies may be entertained by it. But modern audiences would probably struggle to sit through this film. Here are some favorite lines.

Willie Hale, to his father, Lord Leland, "Oh, come now. How could anything I do disgrace you?... Anything disgraceful that I may do merely gains for you an unfair sympathy from a sycophantic world."

Lord Leland, "Now...now you're blaming me for bringing you into the world!" Willie Hale, "Heh, heh, I should be extremely mortified for your sake if I had to blame anyone else."

Willie Hale, "Have you had a moment's boredom since I've been in the wrong? No! Your only trouble is, you have the father complex - 'Here's my son and he hasn't done any of the things I should like him to do and for that reason I should kick him out.'"

Mary, "I'd shoot anyone who tried to take you from me, Willie." Willie, "Are you a good shot?"

Lord Leland, "Well, then, what do you want to go to New Zealand for?" Willie Hale, "Because, if I ever want to go to Australia, I'll be near."

Ne'er-do-well bon-vivant Willie Hale (Ronald Colman) returns to England in the hope of procuring his 11th 'start-in-life' hand-out from Lord Leland (Frederick Kerr), his wealthy but cantankerous father. Rebuffed but granted 100 quid, he promptly charms family friend Dorothy Hope (a youthful Loretta Young), who becomes enamoured with his casual, fun-loving approach to life. The comedy is an appealing pre-code romance with a few subtle but sly adult jokes and some very sexy outfits. Coleman is great as the irresistible prodigal son as are his three lovely co-stars, Young, Myrna Loy, and Florence Britton. Paul Cavanagh is also quite good as Grand Duke Paul, a stiff, supercilious, humorless toff who is Willie's self-assured but perhaps mercenary rival for Dorothy's affections. For lightweight rom-com fluff, the story, albeit a bit dated and predictable, is good and the film is generally charming.

The title notwithstanding, this is a cute little romantic comedy from 1930, and features a lot of star power in Ronald Colman, Myrna Loy, and a very young Loretta Young. Colman is the devil-may-care son of a rich old man who has squandered various opportunities, and is returning home from his most recent in British East Africa. He's so charming and smooth, and you can't help but like the lightness with which he approaches life. He's got a girlfriend in theater star Myrna Loy, but soon falls for the engaged daughter of a friend of the family, Loretta Young. It's interesting to consider the ages of these actors: Young, fresh-faced and just 17(!), Loy, 25, and Colman, 39, but somehow he pulls it off. Young is a bit too girlish in the early scenes in the film, but settles in eventually, and is also quite endearing. Watch it for the two of them.

Ronald Coleman had been a star of the screen for several years when talkies came in, and what a boost it was to his career. His Oxford English accent is so enthralling I could listen to him recite the farmer's almanac and not be bored.

Coleman plays Willie Hale, a 30ish playboy from a wealthy family who spends his time womanizing and gambling. Yet, he's a likable rogue - not only likable from the standpoint of the audience but by family and friends too. He has yet again gone broke due to his constant gambling and sells off his possessions in a foreign location to settle his debts and provide passage back home to England. When he gets there, he at first is met by a father who insists he'll kick him out - he's had it with Willie and his layabout ways. However, five minutes alone in a room with Willie and his charm, and Willie is not only forgiven by dad, dad has given him one hundred pounds to boot.

Willie then goes for a day's recreation with his sister and her friend, Dorothy Hope (Loretta Young). Dorothy is set to be engaged to the Grand Duke Paul that very night, mainly just because her dad wants royalty in the family, and there is nobody else special in her life. That changes after her day with Willie, and soon there is a scandal brewing as Dorothy refuses to go through with the marriage as planned.

Ronald Coleman is always a delight to watch in these early talking films he did for Sam Goldwyn where he is playing the confident adventurer or cad or both. He has a demeanor akin to Errol Flynn, but he is unable to display Flynn's physical agility due to a disabling wound he received during World War I. However, what he lacks in physical agility Coleman always made up in agility of soul. Loretta Young, only 17 when this picture was made, shows the beginning of her trademark sweet girl that can erupt into a ball of fire when the occasion calls for it. Myrna Loy plays Willie's girl from the past - Mary Crayle - a showgirl. Here Myrna is still playing a part similar to the exotic vamp parts she got stuck with so often over at Warner Brothers when she was a contract player from 1926 until shortly before this movie was made in 1930.

This is pretty much a light and breezy romantic comedy from start to finish. If you're in a mood for the kind of escapist entertainment that lightened the hearts of audiences during the Great Depression, this little film fits the bill.