Unknown Blonde

Nobody has reviewed this for IMDB so I thought I'd jump in since I tracked down a tattered print of this rare film with no credits on it, with Spanish subtitles and Spanish inserts replacing English letters and books that were shown within the film. The heavy-set veteran Edward Arnold carries off this film nicely as the attorney Frank Rodie. Don't read the plot summary because the film is full of cleverly plotted legal twists and turns that culminate in a bizarre (and not completely satisfying) finish. The film has some comedic sections too, most notably with Walter Catlett as an over-enthusiastic public relations expert and a very funny scene in which Franklin Pangborn is almost seduced by a strongly oversexed young lady. The scenes with Catlett and Pangborn feel extraneous to the picture which is really a drama about the bitter personal dramas that lead to Arnold becoming a famous divorce lawyer, who makes his living through staged framings of innocent people. The ever wicked Clarence Wilson is on hand as Mr. Keibel, an unscrupulous lawyer. Wilson, with his diminutive frame and bizarre looking head, graced dozens upon dozens of films as a nasty lawyer fond of foreclosing on widows and orphans. He is one of those great character actors of which few can recall the name but usually just say "oh that guy" when they see him. The film is really Edward Arnold's to showcase his considerable dramatic chops and his sly wickedness at seeking revenge for the deeply felt wrongs done to him by his golddigging and scheming wife, played by former silent film minor star Dorothy Revier. If you like old movies and well written dialogue and you can find a print of this that isn't kind of bad (the version I got hold of has several untranslated Spanish sections to read and I got through it by pausing the film and going to a dictionary), I'd call this one a worthwhile time spent. It's not a masterpiece or a superb lost gem but its plot, writing and acting are all solid and for a super low budget film it has some beautiful sets and costumes, as if everyone connected to the film was trying to make something memorable. And if you've never seen that powerful bear of an actor Edward Arnold at work, this one is a good place to start. His crisp and dominant speaking voice and his burly presence always tend to dominate any film he's in, be it comedy, tragedy or even blind detective films. He is one of our most unsung and unjustly forgotten actors and this film really should be restored if possible since it deserves your consideration. It is best enjoyed if you DON'T read anything about the plot and just let it unfold on you.

Edward Arnold is a lawyer, and business is pretty bad in the profession, it being the Depression and all. He has the chance to take a divorce case, but turns it down; the presence of a professional correspondent renders it suborning perjury, and he's got ethics. What he doesn't know is that his wife, Dorothy Revier, is two-timing him with John Miljan. On top of that, she's written a bum check to cover a margin call from her broker. To cover it, he goes through with the case he turned down before; when the correspondent -- Franklin Pangborn! -- walks out, Arnold finds himself taking his place.... and Miss Revier walks in and thereby gets a divorce. So Arnold decides that if you're going to be a villain, be a villain all the way, and goes whole hog.

There's some real talent in front of and behind the screen with this movie: Leila Bennett, Helen Jerome Eddy, Waltr Catlett, Claude Gillingwater, and Clarence Wilson have sizable parts. 1934 was not just lean times for divorce lawyers; following bankruptcies and reorganizations, not many movie companies were making money, and performers were happy to have work and paychecks. Some didn't survive much longer. It was director Hobart Henley's last film.

Given the short paychecks and Larry Darmour as producer, there are some glitches in the plot, and signs that the actors weren't getting the rehearsals they needed. Arnold himself could have used a retake in the final scene. It's not a great movie, but the confluence of talent makes it worth watching, if only once.