Politics

A stubborn widow creates quite a stir when she enters local city POLITICS to run for mayor.

MGM fashioned this pleasant little comedy/drama to showcase their surprisingly popular actress, Marie Dressler. She was beginning her meteoric rise to commence her reign as Hollywood's most popular star, a supremacy that was only cut short by her untimely death in 1934. Massive & shapeless, with a face that could stop a bus, Dressler embodied pure grandmotherly affection and the country gladly took her to their heart. She was also an excellent actress, equally adept at eliciting laughter or tears from her audiences, sometimes almost simultaneously. In the end, when cancer took her, the Mighty Marie proved utterly irreplaceable - truly one of Cinema's Grandest Ladies.

Receiving equal billing is Dressler's frequent comedy partner, Polly Moran. Diminutive & buxom, Polly was a fine comedienne in her own right, and MGM kept her very busy in the early 1930's. Acid-tongued & brash, Moran was adept at slapstick and in every way was an enjoyable sidekick for Marie. Here, gentle Dressler plays Moran's benevolent landlady, uninterested in Polly's political enthusiasms until sudden violence prompts Marie into galvanizing the women of the community, with Polly giving her full encouragement. Each is rewarded, as can be seen in the movie's final moments.

Stuttering Roscoe Ates appears as Polly's grumpy husband. Pretty Karen Morley is Marie's slightly duplicitous daughter, while William Bakewell is her wrong-side-of-the-law boyfriend; each are kept in the background to let the old girls shine. Also effective in very small roles are John Miljan as the local crime boss, Tom McGuire as Lake Port's corrupt mayor and lovely Joan Marsh as the tragic catalyst for the plot.

Movie mavens will spot an unbilled DeWitt Jennings in the role of the Police Chief. They will also notice the movie poster Joan Marsh gazes at in her first scene. It is for THE STOLEN JOOLS (1931 - aka THE SLIPPERY PEARLS). This was a comedy charity two-reeler in which more than 50 Hollywood stars appeared, including Polly Moran.

With a nod to Aristophanes' Lysistrata, the film's undercurrent is its sly look at the battle for equality between the sexes, as it explains in its preamble: "This story is dedicated to women - who have been fighting for their rights ever since Adam and Eve started the loose-leaf system."

Even tho this is a slight film, Politics is entertaining and moves along nicely. Marie Dressler was one of the very best star actresses of her time. She could swing from comedy to drama in a heartbeat. After a big comeback in late silent films, Dressler charged into talkies and became a top star. Teamed with Polly Moran in 3 starring roles, Dressler struts her stuff here as a widow who gets pushed into running for mayor in a town plagued by gangsters and speakeasies. Nothing special plot wise but solid performances by the stars. Karen Morley, Roscoe Ates, William Bakewell, Claire de Brey, Robert Dudley, John Miljan, and Joan Marsh co-star. But Dressler is the main reason to watch this 1931 comedy/drama, and she is tops.

Hard to believe that this dowdy old woman was one of the biggest box office draws in movies during those Depression Days. But ex- vaudevillian Marie Dressler was a very funny woman, especially when aided and abetted by Polly Moran as she is in Politics.

Dressler is a widow with daughter Karen Morley and her neighbor is Polly Moran and her husband Roscoe Ates. When a gangland shooting at a local speakeasy results in the death of a young woman hit with a stray bullet, Dressler goes on the warpath. It's good to remember that the 19th Amendment giving woman the right to vote was only 11 years old at the time and women were just starting to flex some political muscle.

Marie declares herself a candidate for mayor to replace pompous old windbag Tom McGuire. And the women get behind her candidacy and start a Lysistrata like effort to put her over.

The subplot here is that Karen Morley is in love with William Bakewell who was fingered falsely for the shooting. Bakewell was also slightly wounded and Morley has him stashed in her house attic to heal. I think I can safely say that that situation is also cleared up nicely and all is right with Dressler's corner of the world.

Politics is a wonderful satire on same and I think it could easily be remade today. Just think of the funny women of today as to who could replace Marie Dressler and Polly Moran.

Polly Moran loves her new-found prestige as a political organizer. Though she's definitely got a low-level position, she has great visions of grandeur. However, the man she's supporting as mayor isn't doing a particularly good job, as he turns a blind eye to bootleggers and the crime associated with them. It all comes to a head when there is a shooting in one of these dives and someone familiar to Moran and her friend Marie Dressler is killed. So at the next political rally when the mayor asks for questions, Dressler confronts him about the bootleggers. He makes many excuses but the bottom line is that he won't do anything--at which point Marie makes an impassioned speech and is roundly applauded. Giddy with success, Polly urges Marie to run against the incumbent mayor--at which point the sexist men gang up on poor Marie. However, instead of giving up, the ladies dig in their heels for a battle of the sexes.

When I watched this Marie Dressler-Polly Moran film, I couldn't help but recognize the familiar plot. That's because in the television age this same plot was recycled many times--the most notable being on "The Andy Griffith Show" when Ellie ran for office and the men of Mayberry were against her simply because she was a female. You certainly can't blame the makers of this film, as the idea was fresh in 1931! The film isn't especially deep and won't change your life but it excels on a very simple level--it's fun light entertainment. Dressler and Moran made eight movies together and the surviving films from the series are all very pleasant and fun thanks to good writing and especially to Dressler's wonderful screen presence and charm. The only serious negative about the film is Roscoe Ates--a guy whose claim to fame in films was his stuttering schtick. Not only wasn't this "politically correct", but also wore out its welcome long before this film.

"Politics" is a good comedy and drama that stars Marie Dressler and Polly Moran. They are friends, Hattie Burns and Ivy Higgins, the latter having moved in to share lodging in Hattie's home. A fine supporting cast include Roscoe Ates as Ivy's husband, Peter; Karen Morley as Hattie's daughter, Myrtle; and William Bakewell as Myrtle's boyfriend, Benny Emerson.

Ivy and Peter go at one another all the time, and Hattie's a good-hearted soul who tries to keep peace among them. Ivy is active in the women's league and thinks she'll be a bigwig in politics one day. But, after a shooting at a speakeasy that kills the daughter of a friend, Hattie goes to a political rally for Mayor Tom Collins. He's a consummate glad-hander and pleasing talker who says all the right things. But when Hattie asks a question that leads to the connection between the mayor and the speakeasy owner, Hattie speaks her peace.

Another woman jumps on the opportunity to declare Hattie their candidate for mayor. Well, there's a little more to the story, including balking by the men and then the women turning the tables on them. But the new candidate for mayor promises to clean up the corruption in the city. The humor is mostly light, but it's a decent film that comes out with a good ending for all but the crooks and speakeasy

In the end, Hattie makes good on her promise and makes Ivy the new commissioner of garbage. Here are some favorite lines from this film.

Ivy Higgins, "Oh, put that foot where it belongs." Peter Higgins, "If I did, you wouldn't be able to sit down for a month."

Ivy Higgins, "It's those foreigners that come over here and ruin our city." Hattie Burns, "Is it?" Ivy, "Mm hmm." Hattie, "Well if it hadn't been for a foreigner named Columbus you'd never of met Peter." Ivy, "Well, I'd be better off if Columbus had stayed at home."

Ivy Higgins, "That the kind of a mayor we want - somebody who won't take anything."

Ivy Higgins, "Oh, Hattie, stop that. Do you wanna sit in the mayor's seat with red eyes?" Hattie Burns, "Can't I blubber if I'm happy?"