Il faut payer

"Paid" is the story of a young woman, Mary (Joan Crawford), who is wrongfully convicted of theft in the workplace. She promises to get even with her employer after she serves her time in prison. The film might have been better if they had included more scenes of Mary in prison, demonstrating the rough and dehumanizing conditions she had to endure (as a way of explaining her motivation).

While in prison, Mary becomes friends with Aggie (Marie Prevost), a young woman who lives in criminal circles. She has plans for them both after their release.

After prison, Mary hooks up with Aggie again when she has financial problems. Aggie introduces Mary to Joe (Robert Armstrong)--a thief/grafter with a kind heart. With Mary's intelligence (she even studied law while in prison), this small group works a con that lets them live the good life. Still, Mary wants to be repaid for the three years she spent in prison. She gets to her former boss, Mr. Gilder, through his son.

"Paid" is an early talkie in the pre-code era and is interesting for that alone. It also includes a couple of phrases that, though racist in nature, were deemed acceptable at the time. Obviously, Joan Crawford made the transition from silent films to talkies without a problem. Though I am not a big fan, I find that I enjoy her earlier performances. She definitely had acting skills.

It is interesting to note those times that the director allows the camera to move. Also, the action that takes place on a rooftop--including a fall--was very well done.

I recommend this film, though it is a little wordy in the last third.

This is one of Joan Crawford's best pre-code films. It is very hard to find, but worth the effort! Through her character's evolution, Joan is able to show off a wide variety of emotions, proving she did have good acting skill early in her career.

Typical of the early Talkies, most of the acting style is a bit theatrical, so viewers not used to watching early classics may feel it has a dated quality. But if that doesn't bother you, you will find that the story is riveting, the characters are colorful, and the performance by Crawford is fabulous.

Crawford's character, Mary Turner, is by far the most fascinating, and commands attention. We see her begin as a confused, frumpy simple girl unjustly imprisoned for a crime she didn't commit. Then we watch her grow into a hard-boiled, intelligent, sophisticated criminal, hellbent on revenge. She grew to become what she had been wrongly accused of. You can't help but pity her lost innocence and respect her determination, despite its criminal intent.

A must-see for anyone who loves pre-code film, gangster films, or Joan Crawford.

This was a find. Good acting, a good plot and dialog way ahead of its time. I know of no other 1930 movie with its sophistication of dialog. Great directing by Sam Wood making sure that all of the intricacies of plot were brought out.

Joan Crawford was a wrongfully convicted convict out to exact revenge upon the store owner/magnate who sent her up the river who teams with Robert Armstrong to become rich shadily but by means "Within the Law".

The final confrontation in the DA's office requires that you pay attention. This movie is ripe for a remake. I see George Clooney as Robert Armstrong's character and Leonardo De Caprio as the son. Robert Armstrong was very strong in this role.

It's TCM keeper.

Joan Crawford plays a woman wrongfully convicted of theft and sentenced to prison. She vows revenge on her former boss who accused her and the prosecutor who was so harsh. Total misfire that could have been a great film. The first few scenes, where Crawford is sentenced and enters prison, are powerful. But instead of spending any time with the prison, the movie skips ahead to after she's released. Worse yet, she seems exactly the same as when she went in. Devoting more time to Joan in prison and showing her become hardened would have worked better. As it is, she gets out of prison, hangs out with some disreputable characters for a short while and suddenly she's Ma Barker. It made no sense and the only thing I can figure is that the studio was afraid of having her character be too hardened. After all, they tacked on a terrible love story to "redeem" her character. Absolutely terrible ending. Too bad, this could have been a classic.

"Paid" is the story of Mary Turner (Joan Crawford), who spent three years in the pen for stealing from her boss (Gilder's Department Store)--a crime which she didn't commit. She vows revenge as she's dragged away. We see the sentencing phase of her trial with an inept defense lawyer and a vicious, contemptuous DA who keeps interrupting her. Indeed, one recurring theme of this film is its criticism of the justice system--the DA and the cops care only about pleasing the rich by harassing the poor.

According to Vieira, Sin in Soft Focus: Pre-Code Hollywood p. 19 (1999), Crawford got the role when Norma Shearer went on maternity leave. Vieira also says that a five-minute fight scene in the women's shower in prison was cut from the film by the studio. There are stills of Crawford and the fight scene at pp. 24-25.

Mary learns some law while in the joint and she and her prison friend Aggie find some clever ways to make money and frustrate the cops by staying just "within the law" (the title of the play from which the film is drawn as well as the 1939 remake). Mary hangs out with Aggie's gang of petty criminals led by Joe Garson. Joe is, in fact, a kind and decent person who just can't say no to the big payoff. Meanwhile, Mary seduces and marries Gilder's son--just to take revenge on the man who falsely accused her of stealing.

While the final portions of "Paid" get rather contrived (there's a major heist which goes badly wrong) and the ending is melodramatic, I think "Paid" was pretty good and Crawford was excellent. The low ratings assigned by IMDb users to this film are not justified. The film is involving and it has some important things to say about class and justice.