She Had to Say Yes

Busby Berkeley went down in cinema history for directing musicals, so it might surprise people to learn that his directorial debut was a pre-code comedy. "She Had to Say Yes" casts Loretta Young as a garment worker whose boss realizes that the company could be losing customers to other stores, so he has his garment workers moonlight as call girls for the customers.

To us nowadays this doesn't seem particularly scandalous, but it was probably these sorts of movies that led to the Hays Code's enforcement (it got created in 1930, but didn't get enforced until 1934). I wouldn't call this a masterpiece, but it does have some funny scenes, namely the meeting in the restaurant. I don't know if the movie's available on any streaming platform, so you'll have to see if a local video store has it.

If She Had To Say Yes had kept its cynical edge throughout this film might be undiscovered gem among before the Code pictures. But when it relented and allowed for a kind of happy ending the whole film was totally spoiled.

Loretta Young stars and plays a beautiful young woman working in the garment industry where at least the heterosexual men are really oversexed and expect a little something something on the side when they're buying from a firm. But the older and around the track a few too many times ex-chorus girls just aren't doing it for the buyers.

Number two guy Regis Toomey comes up with the bright idea of using the wholesome young ladies in the stenography pool as 'customer girls' for the buyers. Naturally though, Young is his private preserve. But the lure of a good commission even overcomes that.

Buyer Lyle Talbot is no better a specimen of the male side of humankind as he blows hot and cold and also lets his libido get the better of him. In the end all that seems to be proved is men are beasts.

Another beast in the film is another buyer played by Hugh Herbert. He gives a very restrained performance, mostly on the serious side without his usual manic antics.

She Had To Say Yes had the potential to be a real classic, but its cop out ending blows the whole film up. Loretta does wind up with one of these specimens, but I won't tell.

This 1933 film is surprisingly frank about the practice of using "customer girls" to promote commerce. A throw away line in this flic is an early indication of Hollywood leftist group think that now dominates the industry.

Flo (Loretta Young) explains to Maizee (Winnie Lightner) why she once loved a two-timing salesman:

Flo: He was different once. Maizee: Yeah, and so was the Republican Party.

She Had to Say Yes (1933)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Warner Pre-Code has a sleazy boss coming up with the idea of "offering" girls from his stenographic department to clients in exchange for deals. This is going well until one (Loretta Young) turns down a high-powered client (Lyle Talbot) but soon the two begin to fall in love but more shady deals might happen. This is certainly a strange film for someone like Berkeley to make a debut on but if you're a fan of Warner's Pre-Codes then there should be enough here to keep you entertained even if the film tampers off during the second half. The first half is a pretty interesting mix to the genre as it is hammered home that women are nothing more than sex objects and their only place in the world is to serve men. This certainly isn't a storyline we could see too often in the Golden Era and especially after the Hayes Office took full effect the following year. On that level this film remains entertaining just because of the sexual innuendo, riske storyline and some rather snappy dialogue including a funny little dig at the (then) Republic Party. Young turns in a nice performance because she can perfectly mix that innocent nature with a burning sexuality. Not for a second will anyone not believe she's this sweet girl but at the same time, when she needs to, she can turn on that sexual lure and it too is believable. Talbot is just as usual and he too turns in a nice performance in that Lyle Talbot fashion. What keeps the film from being a total success is the second half of the film when it loses its edge and goes into typical melodrama with one predictable turn after another.

Wow. I just saw this film for the first time. Totally stunning.

Only back in the Pre-Code era - not even today when we're supposedly so enlightened - could a movie *accurately* depict what actually happens far too often between men and women, between predators and their prey.

Bravo as well for the finale, not a conventional Hollywood "happy ending" at all, but one more solid and shocking confirmation of the dead end deal for so many women in our society. This movie may not always be pleasant to watch, but it's a worthy slap in the face, just like the one Loretta Young gave to Regis Toomey.