Incatenata

Even if you took out the typical yet entertaining love triangle between Gable, Crawford and Otto Kruger, you'd still have a film that offers fun each time you see it. Personally, I'd never miss a film with Gable playing the tall-dark-and-handsome heartthrob who gets the girl in the end... his natural talent for the quick-witted quips was (and still is) what attracts us men to him and his manly, muscular physique to our women. Isn't he what all of us guys want to emmulate?! Crawford, although I hate her with a passion, is an actress who I can't deny has a great flair for acting. And when it comes right down to it, how can anyone hope that Kruger would win over a man as perfect as Gable? It's the typical boy-gets-girl, happily-ever-after ending that was so popular in the thirties that audiences ate up and some still do today. It's a cute little farce worth watching every once in a while.

I was surprised when I saw this film because in all the films these two made, I don't think that either ever looked any better than they do in this film. Crawford was about 29 and Gable 33, and each was really in their prime. And the chemistry showed too.

I thought that the swimming pool scenes were especially interesting as one can easily take them very lightly. But the thought of actually acting, reciting lines and swimming back and forth across the pool is a lot easier said than done. Considering the number of scenes, I wonder how many takes it took to get that sequence filmed? It was also a good vehicle to get both stars in bathing suits for the time, and Crawford's is actually pretty revealing.

Some other reviewers believe that the Crawford character would not have wanted to stay with the Kruger character, but I thought that Crawford completely sold it. Not an unusual plot but a somewhat unusual ending especially for the time. Crawford could have come across as sleazy given her characters morals, but somehow she came across as noble, no easy feat, and a tribute to her ability. Gable? what can you say, he just had "it".

One to see for old movie fans.

Beautiful secretary Joan Crawford (as Diane Lovering) enjoys both working and sleeping with the boss, Otto Kruger (as Richard I. Field). Mr. Kruger wants to marry his willing mistress, but the wife refuses to grant him a divorce. To console a disappointed Ms. Crawford, Kruger sends her on a luxury cruise. On the ship, Crawford spurns "hot and bothered" Stuart Erwin (as John "Johnnie" L. Smith) at the bar, intending to be faithful. Then, she meets sexy rancher businessman Clark Gable (as Michael "Mike" Bradley)...

Will Crawford stay "Chained" to Kruger, or fall in love with Gable?

This is an MGM box office star power production, with Crawford and Gable doing what they do best. "When she's in his arms, it's the grandest thrill the screen can give!" Not quite, but director Clarence Brown and cameraman George Folsey handle the performers very well; the combination showed Crawford in her best light. Highlights include a fast stroll aboard ship, and a shimmering swimming pool sequence. The later includes young Mickey Rooney and pal Delmar Watson cavorting with Gable and Crawford.

****** Chained (8/31/34) Clarence Brown ~ Joan Crawford, Clark Gable, Otto Kruger, Stuart Erwin

The love triangle was and is a popular movie theme, so when Clark Gable and Joan Crawford are part of it, you can expect some good entertainment. They have very good chemistry together, perhaps because they were reportedly lovers offscreen. The third leg of the triangle is suave Otto Kruger, who never gives a bad performance, and there is also Gable's best friend, Stuart Erwin, who is there mostly for comic relief. I enjoyed the shipboard romance, which was neatly combined with some comedy, and included scenes with a young Mickey Rooney before his Andy Hardy days. I was surprised at the ending, which seemed to go against the Code.

Diane Lovering (Joan Crawford) is about to win the lottery by wresting away ocean liner CEO Richard Field (Otto Kruger) from his harridan spouse who refuses to give him a divorce. Needing more time to convince his wife otherwise he sends Diane on a lengthy cruise replete with maid and a stateroom the size of a small cafeteria. On board she meets Mike Bradley a rancher in Argentina who attempts to romance her. After slowly wearing Diane down she resolves to return to the states and break it off with Field but when she sees what the tycoon has sacrificed for her she goes through with the marriage. Wealthy beyond her wildest dreams and loved by a decent man she is still nagged by her decision when she bumps into Bradley at a gun store a year later.

Gable and Crawford never looked better in this above average entry of their numerous teamings together. In more than one scene we are treated to cinematographer George Folsey's cameras warm embrace of the handsome Gable and radiant Crawford offering concrete evidence of the icons they were and remain. The star wattage however is dimmed by the rational and civil discourse displayed by Field who maintains decorum throughout even in the face of possibly losing his new wife to Bradley. In addition Diane for a good chunk of the film has to check her passion as she attempts to keep Bradley at arm's length. But whether in conversation or a clinch these two sharing the screen together constantly reinforce Norma Desmond's Sunset Boulevard declaration about pictures with matchless chemistry.

Crawford, more restrained, sophisticated and understanding than in most of her roles gives one of the better performances of her career. Garbo director Clarence Brown might have had some influence in toning her performance down but for the most part he maintains a steady framing of the two leads struggling with coitus interruptus.

Otto Kruger as Field is decent and noble in the face of the calamity he faces, maybe too much to the film's detriment. Stu Erwin is annoying as Mike's flunky while Oona Mundsin as Diane's maid casts more glances than dialogue. There are brief moments of ethnic insensitivity with some at the expense of Akim Tamiroff who nevertheless gets the biggest laugh in this otherwise well mannered and tame romantic melodrama that succeeds solely on the merit of its well showcased charismatic leads at the top of their game.