Rich People

Rich People begins with Constance Bennett getting her car stuck in the mud during a storm. A man drives up, offering to drive her to a local gin joint, clearly with sinister intentions. Luckily Regis Toomey arrives, pretends to be an old friend of hers, and scares off the other guy. He offers to let her dry off and wait out the storm at his home, which is just ahead. She hesitantly agrees, and he spends the evening showing her his passion for statistics. After she returns home to her mansion and fiancée, he finds she forgot her undies and brings them to her. She is attracted, but he doesn't see a way to make their two worlds meet.

For a silent film, this is dialogue-heavy and looks very much like an early 30s drama; it was made as both a talkie and a silent to accommodate more theaters, and now only the silent film survives. Toomey always seemed to play the sidekick, but he is standout here in the lead and he and Bennett have incredible chemistry. Their first kiss was one you could just FEEL when it happened.

This may have been my favorite movie of the 2021 Capitolfest weekend.

Constance Bennett faces a dilemma; will she choose the rich guy or the ordinary Joe? Naturally, Connie has the answer in time for the final credits. Rich guy is played by Robert Ames and regular guy is Regis Toomey, whose hobby is creating statistical business charts and life trends. A lively picture that moves right along and wastes little time.

This was Bennett's return to the screen after retiring in 1925, having just married Philip Plant. She divorced him in 1929 and made "Rich People". The little known Ames was an alcoholic and died in 1931, aged 42. Regis Toomey made 271 films and died in 1993, aged 91.

The film was restored by the Library of Congress and was shown at Capitolfest, Rome, NY, 8/13/21.