Lo zio in vacanza

I've always immensely enjoyed comedies involving deception of sorts, where the audience is in on who a person really is, while most of the cast in the movie are not (The Devil and Miss Jones (1941) comes to mind as an example). This film is one of the best of that type, with wealthy shoe manufacturer George Arliss overhearing his nephew (Hardie Albright) saying he should retire so he can run the business and do it better. A little angry, Arliss goes on a fishing vacation to Maine where his old buddy J. Farrell MacDonald lives, and quite by accident meets up with the heirs (Bette Davis and Theodore Newton) of his chief competitor, who had just died. Arliss uses an alias, and they think he is somewhat of a bum when they take him back to New York with them because of a minor injury to his hand. There Arliss sees the sorry state their finances are in and how their shoe plant is purposely being run down by Gordon Westcott, who wants to buy it at a cheap price. Arliss somehow convinces the trustees of the estate to make him Davis' and Newton's guardian, and the fireworks begin as he takes charge of his competitor's shoe plant. Only MacDonald knows who he really is, and he keeps Arliss informed about any mail sent by Albright, who thinks he still is on vacation in Maine. So Arliss plays both ends against the middle, so to speak, and in the process teaches Davis, Newton and Albright a thing or two about life and business.

The real joy in the film is the very clever screenplay, but George Arliss is also terrific in the lead, with Davis and Newton not far behind. Arliss knew the role well having done it in the 1924 silent called "$20 a Week." And Gordon Westcott makes a good heavy. This is a very underrated gem of a comedy.

You know as soon as you hear Leo Forbstein's opening music from 42nd Street that this is going to give you that warm, slightly edgy but comfy high you only get from a Warner Brothers pre-code movie. This one's witty, it's upbeat but maybe a bit too 'nice.' Some reviewers seem to love this more than life itself - I thought it was ok.

It's got a nice vibe about it and although it's not at all sentimental it does have one of those 'let's celebrate the human spirit' types of moral message. The grown-up story and script however are cleverly written so its Capra-like message is delivered in a non-preachy way without ramming any of it down your throat. Like one of Capra's late 30s films, this also leaves you quite uplifted and inexplicably pleased with yourself for being one of those nice humans! If you're feeling a bit down, you'll feel better about life when you've watched this.

The one thing which lets this down is the acting - we're talking extras in FLASH GORDON skill levels here! During the early thirties, director John Adolfi was synonymous with George Arliss - he directed Mr Arliss quite well but he seemed to have ignored the rest of his cast. Being a silent film director, he didn't seem to notice how dreadful and totally unnatural the rest of the actors are. There doesn't seem any consistency in the characterisations - some are blustering with gestures like a villain from a Chaplin film whereas others just seem bored. One person does stand out - Theodore Newton gives one of the worst acting performances ever: you feel embarrassed for him. Obviously Bette Davis is predictably and annoyingly perfect actor but as for the rest of them, including George Arliss, it all seems a bit under-rehearsed. Coming from Warner Brothers, that's probably true - the whole thing was shot in just over a fortnight so maybe if they'd devoted a little more time to this it could have been less amateurish. I'm thinking it was the timescale because Adolfi did CENTRAL PARK with Joan Blondell a year earlier and the acting in that was perfectly fine.

Overall it's surprisingly more entertaining than you think it's going to be. It's a happy film - and an intelligently written film too. I'm not sure I'd call it a comedy though.

This obscure "Bette Davis" film is obscure enough that I had never seen it. I had heard that this was another of the minor programmers Davis made towards the beginning of the Warner Brothers career. I had also seen a number of George Arliss films and while I enjoyed them, I always thought Alriss' style of theatrical acting was quite out of date in 1933.

What a pleasant surprise! This was shown on TCM today, and is a cleverly written story about a man helps a rival company out of his problems due to his prior love for the late rival's late wife, and the fact that he met and like her children! This is not a typical Warner Brothers programmer....in many ways it's one of the brightest, most enjoyable Warner Brothers films of the period.

Gee, it would be swell to see Warners put it out on DVD.

New York shoe tycoon George Arliss (as John Reeves) clashes with nephew Hardie Albright (as Benjamin Burnett) over managing the family business. To show how the company will do without him, Mr. Arliss goes off on an extended vacation. While fishing, Arliss meets young swimmers Bette Davis and Theodore Newton (as Jenny and Tommy Hartland), inheritors of his deceased rival's shoe company. Arliss is immediately taken with Ms. Davis and Mr. Newton; he once courted their mother, also now deceased...

But the young duo party while manager Gordon Westcott (as Fred Pettison) runs their business into the ground...

Arliss decides to teach all the youngsters a lesson by assuming the identity of "John Walton" and taking over the rival shoe company. With a typically masterful performance, Arliss makes this lightweight story work beautifully. The younger players glow in his presence; this was acknowledged by Davis, who would eventually possess a similar magical screen presence. Arliss and director John G. Adolfi obviously work very well together, and with the cast. An Arliss picture had to be great experience for the actor.

******** The Working Man (4/20/33) John G. Adolfi ~ George Arliss, Bette Davis, Theodore Newton, Hardie Albright

This was the second of two films that a young Bette Davis made with the great English actor George Arliss. In both films this one and The Man Who Played God, Arliss plays an older man who enjoys manipulating events and people for their own good as he sees it. In fact that other title is rather self explanatory.

The Working Man casts Arliss as a wealthy shoe manufacturer who is taking a long needed vacation and he leaves his nephew Hardie Albright in charge of the company. While on that vacation he meets the children of a recently deceased rival who are nice kids, but are wastrels and spendthrifts without a thought as to how the money they spend is made. In fact dad's company is tobogganing into bankruptcy due to bad management.

Bette Davis and Theodore Newton could have been his kids. The great manipulator gets him appointed the man who administers their trust and installs some discipline in both their lives. The end absolutely rights itself.

Bette Davis was never known for praising her colleagues save for a few. But George Arliss was one of the few who saw some of the talent and the fire in that woman to succeed and said so loudly and publicly to the brothers Warner. She writes in her memoirs how ever grateful she was to him for the rest of her life.

The fire in Davis burns rather brightly here because it contrasts with both Theodore Newton and Hardie Albright, a pair of young actors who give good performances, but really are rather bland next to Davis.

And Arliss is always a delight in comedy or drama. You've got to love that foxy old guy. And love The Working Man as well.