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Boris Karloff runs a nightclub, unaware that his wife and one of his employees keep ducking into a closet for some reason ... wink wink, nod nod. Lew Ayres plays a drunken customer; his mother (Hedda Hopper) killed his father because she thought he was fooling around. Mae Clarke, who sings/dances at the nightclub, takes a shine to Ayres, which ticks off her current suitor (George Raft). There is a running gag involving the doorman (Clarence Muse) trying to phone his wife, who has been hospitalized.

This is essentially it. The film takes place over a few nights, so don't expect a soap opera. Jack LaRue shows up as a torpedo, Robert Emmett O'Connor plays a cop for the one millionth time, Byron Foulger plays a really, really, really gay customer, and Louise Beavers is onscreen for all of about five seconds.

It's interesting that the New York State censor board ordered some dialogue and scenes removed (notably at the climax), but the lines and scenes were intact in the version I saw.

Clarke is perky, adorable, and looks very cute in shorts. Muse comes off best as the most tragic figure in the film. The ending is crazy. Worth a look.

Yes, it's a cheap versions of GRAND HOTEL, but I think it works just fine. I'm going to disagree with some previous reviewers: I think Karloff is marvelous as the club owner, bringing a fierceness and bravado to it that others would lack. The rest of the cast is also good: Ayres, Marsh and Muse all register strongly. Hedda Hopper is indeed amazing as the bad mother. And George Raft stands out in his small part. A little of it is creaky and dated, but overall, I thought the camera-work was fluid and fine, the story moved fast and the characters were well-written. Nice little Busby Berkeley number near the top, too. Well worth checking out.

NIGHT WORLD is an interesting hour for film buffs (running time 58 minutes) It was made at Universal Studios in 1932 using cast members from their famed monster films. Of course, the headliner is Boris Karloff as Happy McDonald, the owner of a midtown Manhattan nightclub. He's a fast talking gangster who is not afraid to use his glib talk, his fists or his gun. In FRANKENSTEIN, Mae Clarke, was kinda drab, and not very pretty. Here she shows she's a spunky, funny and sexy actress. Bert Roach, of MURDERS IN THE RUE MORGUE turns up as an annoying drunk. The rest of the cast includes young Lew Ayres, Hedda Hopper, George Raft and Robert Emmet O'Connor. Busby Berkeley supervised the sparse dance numbers, and his trademark, naughty camera angles are here. I had a lot of fun with it.

Fun, saucy, fast-moving and short, Night World is a neat little movie from the early thirties, before Prohibition was repealed, when Hoover was still in the White House; and with a Depression still new there was yet a Gatsby mood in the cities.

The credits of this movie are unusual. Busby Berkeley did the choreography. Alfred Newman composed what music there is. The cast is oddball for any sort of film, but especially peculiar for this kind: Lew Ayres, Mae Clarke, Boris Karloff, Hedda Hopper, George Raft and Jack La Rue. Director Hobart Henley handles his material extremely well, and gives it pace and energy. There is joy, sadness, corruption, disillusionment and heartbreak in the movie, and the ending is bittersweet but not downbeat.

Fun, somewhat bizarre pre-coder about one night at a nightclub and the assorted people there. Worth a look for the great cast and the odd mixture of gangster movie and musical comedy. Lew Ayres plays a rich guy drowning himself in drink because his mom killed his dad. Mae Clarke plays a showgirl who helps him. The two fall in love quickly, Old Hollywood style. They have a cute chemistry. Great support from Boris Karloff, Clarence Muse, George Raft, Bert Roach, Dorothy Revier, and, hey, there's future gossip columnist Hedda Hopper. Also features a forgettable number choreographed by Busby Berkeley. Ayres is fine but upstaged by the rest of the cast, especially Clarke and Muse. It's from Universal although it seems a bit like it's trying to be a WB movie. A good way to pass an hour. There's also a Frankenstein joke, although Karloff is not in that particular scene.