The Golden Bed

Absorbing morality play from Cecil B. DeMille about a poor boy who becomes a rich boy and his affinity for two upper class sisters. He likes the pretty one and abides the plain one and marries the pretty one when he hits it big with his candy business. But she is a gold digger and a big spender, with predictable results.

He is jailed as an embezzler as she spends his money, while the plain one becomes a true blue employee. Stopping here before I become a 'spoiler' but suffice to say the story is very well done, as expected with CB at the helm. Rod La Rocque is particularly good as the candy tycoon and Lillian Rich is lovely as his unprincipled wife.

Don't normally care for this type of movie but I was pleasantly surprised. I saw it at Capitolfest, Rome, NY, 8/23.

******* 7/10 - Website no longer prints my star ratings.

Having run up debts of over a million dollars with 'The Ten Commandments', and drawing exorbitant weekly advances, DeMille produced his last film for Famous-Players Lasky before setting off an independent production phase in his career.