Shopworn

This fast-moving film features Barbara Stanwyck in her early period when she usually played a tough, lower-class dame with a hot temper who stands fast to her principles. This character is virtually identical to the ones she played in NIGHT NURSE, LADIES THEY TALK ABOUT and BABY FACE. Here she is a waitress who falls in love with a rather bland medical student (Regis Toomey) whose nasty and snobbish mother (an excellent and truly scary Clara Blandick) schemes with a corrupt judge (Oscar Apfel) to separate the young lovers by sending Stanwyck to one of those reformatories that pop up so frequently in films of this era. The ever-fluttery Zasu Pitts is on hand as Stanwyck's aunt - what a comedown from GREED.

In one scene Stanwyck, trying to memorize the dictionary as a means of self improvement, shows her suitor a list of words beginning with the letter "e" which she has written down. He reads them aloud, stops after "ejaculate," looks at her with some curiosity and says that even he would never use such a word. That moment immediately pigeonholes this film as pre-Code. The scene continues artfully with one-word exchanges all starting with the letter "e." Later, while Lucien Littlefeld is conversing about the Stanwyck-Toomey relationship with Oscar Apfel, a couple of lines are very clumsily overdubbed by other actors. Makes one wonder what was actually said. Late in the film there is an imaginative banquet scene in which the camera carefully pans the length of a dining table highlighting the place cards (each a little paper doll inscribed with a guest's name) while the corresponding but off-screen voices converse on the soundtrack; then the camera moves back to reveal the whole table and all of the people we have been listening to. The yard between the diner where Stanwyck works and the house where the owners live is well depicted: tattered laundry hanging on a line, overflowing garbage cans and kittens playing.

The screenwriter Robert Riskin contributes some snappy and witty dialogue. He worked quite frequently with Frank Capra, penning the scripts for IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT, MEET JOHN DOE, LADY FOR A DAY and MR. DEEDS GOES TO TOWN, among others. All of these films address the issue of "decency" – what truly constitutes decency? Saying you are decent or actually being decent?

Babs is a poor-but-honest small-town waitress in love with Regis Toomey (which in itself can't be easy), but she runs afoul of his mom, a pre-Auntie Em Clara Blandick, who is revealed to be snobbish, dishonest, unreasonable, and insufferably class-conscious. Even by the standards of the time, where lower-class gals always had a hard time of it crashing into society, Babs must endure endless humiliations, including ZaSu Pitts as an underwritten aunt. This Columbia potboiler, written and shot by folks who were also working on Capra early talkies at the time, is rather like Capra without Capra, and the anonymous direction doesn't allow for much style. But Stanwyck was always worth watching, and she gets to run through an impressive gamut of emotions before the hasty and unconvincing happy ending. And it's satisfyingly short.

Although you might think you're watching a film from 1932, you're actually watching the "cleaned up" edited version from 1938. "Edited" in this context means chopping out complete scenes, vital parts of the story which explain what's happening and anything whatsoever with a hint of salaciousness - which since it might or might not be about a girl with loose morals, it now makes no sense.

The savage editing which is no better than someone removing every other chapter from a book results in a completely disjointed story - your imagination has to work overtime to fill in the gaps. You might therefore think that this isn't worth watching?

The reviews of this even when it was complete were pretty terrible. Apparently even when complete, the story was considered ridiculous, the direction amateurish, the script laughable and the acting (apart from Barbara Stanwyck) truly awful. You might therefore think that this isn't worth watching?

Well I watched it and yes, the acting is rubbish and the story is stupid.....but I loved this. And not in "it's so bad it's good" sense, no I honestly enjoyed this as a fascinating, engrossing, emotionally engaging piece of entertainment. Had I been in the cinema in 1932 or 1938, I'd be the one standing up and clapping at the end. It's just so gloriously over-the-top and so 1932! It's like someone at Columbia one morning said to his writers: "Let's condense every story, every trope, every plot twist and tragedy you can think of into one crazy romantic-tragedy-comedy-social commentary-thriller-Broadway-prison movie......oh, and you've got until lunchtime so write the script." Well the result is anything but boring - the term 'rollercoaster ride' doesn't do this justice and I thought it was great. OK, a lot must have been chopped out but within no more than about a minute and a half, she's released from jail, it's the depression so she needs a job so somehow becomes a massive Broadway star with a brand new personality. That I love this nonsense might just be something to do with me - after all, I think CITIZEN KANE is the dullest thing I've ever endured and PADDINGTON is the greatest film of the 21st century.

Despite the many shortcomings of this inexplicably enjoyable film, the one shining beam of talent is Barbara Stanwyck. Her presence in this is the only thing which makes this not just watchable but mesmerising. Her character evolves from fresh young bubbly innocence to sultry sophistication but throughout her transition her natural raw sex appeal constantly transfixes you to everything she says and does. She's exceptional.

She's exceptional in the sense that she's got exceptional talent and also in the sense that she's the one in this film with talent. In films made from the mid-thirties onwards, you only see Regis Toomey in minor supporting roles - if you want to know why, watch this. Of dear, he's dreadful - he's got just two expressions: serious face and angry face - even Kay Francis had three. He's got to be Barbara Stanwyck's worst leading man - you can't build up any empathy for him whatsoever and as for the film getting us all worked up hoping that Barbara Stanwyck will get back together with him, that certainly doesn't work. I think we'd all like to tell her: "you can do a lot better than him, love. "

Besides animatronic Toomey, the rest of the cast, including Aunt Em are just one dimensional caricatures serving one purpose; to be cruel and nasty to Barbara Stanwyck's 'Kitty'. They're all so ridiculously vindictive, uncaring and horrible that you can't take them seriously or accept that they are real people which is a big problem with any film! We know that life for young women in the 20s and 30s could be absolutely terrible, we've seen it explained in much better films than this. That all the evils of society, bad luck and a deluge of wickedness all happen to Kitty at the same time leads you to the obvious revelation: you're watching CINDERELLA and Aunt Em is the wicked stepmother.

This is an early Barbara Stanwyck film, Shopworn, from 1932.

After her father dies in a construction accident, Kitty Lane (Stanwyck) keeps her promise to her dad and goes to live with his sister (Zasu Pitts). There, she works as a waitress.

It's a college town, and the guys are ga-ga over her, though she turns them all down. She falls for a bookish man, David (Regis Toomey), a medical student who doesn't seem to pay attention to her.

David comes from a good family - his father is a Judge, and his mother is possessive. She does not approve of Kitty. She fakes an illness and David finds that he must take her to a specialist in Vienna. Before he leaves, he proposes to Kitty, intending that she join them.

Everyone pretends to go along, but while packing, the police show up and arrest her for violating the public morals act, after she refuses the $5000 offered her. She is sentenced to prison for 90 days. David is told she took the money.

Upon her release, Kitty joins the Follies and makes a great success. Six years later, David visits her dressing room. She leads him on just to reject him, but later, the two talk it out and get back together. But his mother is still a pain, referring to her as "that shopworn woman."

One major scene was cut from this film - while in prison, Kitty miscarries a pregnancy, so it seems that she and David had quite the romance going.

I wouldn't say that Regis Toomey, who became a prolific character actor, and Barbara Stanwyck are well-matched. In the beginning, his role is that of an easily-influenced young man where his parents are concerned, and back in those days, this wasn't unusual. Later on he seems better able to stand up for himself. But as a couple, even when she was just starting out, Stanwyck had star quality, so it doesn't really work.

Stanwyck was a petite ball of fire, versatile, strong and charismatic, with a beautiful figure to boot. What a pleasure to see her in these early films. Watch it for her.

Kitty Lane (Barbara Stanwyck) loses her father in a construction accident. With his dying breath, he tells her to be tough. She goes to work for her aunt as a waitress in a college town. The college boys are all after her. She falls for stiff medical student David despite clashing at first. His father is a powerful judge and his mother does not approve. David is going away with his mother for 6 months. He proposes marriage. The family pretends to go along in front of David but then the judge puts her away for violating the public morals act after refusing to accept his $5000 bribe. David is told that she took the payout when she's actually sentenced to prison work for ninety days. She joins the Follies upon released and becomes a big time star. Six years later, David comes looking for Kitty. His mother still refuses to accept "that shopworn woman".

This is a rather simple and weak romance. The guy is stiff and his character is lacking. He is nothing special but she is another story. A young Barbara Stanwyck is starting to gain traction and one can see the reason. She has amazing screen presence and a powerful personality. She's a rising star and overpowers her acting partner. She is something to behold.