We're on the Jury

The story begins with a death...but whether it's a murder or suicide is uncertain. The rest of the film consists of the trial as well as the jury's deliberations.

The film "Ladies of the Jury" was a ridiculous film and complete waste of the many talents of its star, Edna May Oliver. Now, five years later, the studio decided to re-make the movie...though I have no idea why! Both were terrible films...and represent the worst of the courtroom dramas Hollywood has ever made. Everyone is a caricature instead of a realistic individual and incredibly stupid and broadly written caricatures they are! Plus, so much of the courtroom drama is absolute nonsense...and no judge allowing such proceedings would be allowed to remain on the bench. Amazingly, the story (with SIGNIFICANT rewriting) would be reworked into "12 Angry Men"...one of the best movies of the 1950s. But a LOT of re-working was necessary....as so much of "We're On the Jury" is bad...such as the sole holdout in the jury arguing that the defendant is innocent because of "a woman's intuition"! Uggh!

Overall, slightly better than the original...but considering how awful that was, this isn't a surprise!

FINALLY... Helen Broderick gets a starring role in this one from RKO. Broderick stars as Mrs. Jonathan Dean, juror in a murder case. She creates a sensation as the boisterous, loud, self-centered rich old lady. Broderick was so Amazing in all those silly love stories with Gene Raymond in the 1930s. ( My favorite was "The Bride Walks Out"... Check it out if you can find it.) Also on the jury are Victor Moore as the meek Pudgy Beaver, and Billy Gilbert, who sneezed and coughed his way through Hollywood. Charles Lane, who holds the record for the most roles in films, is Mr. Smith. It's all done with some humor, as the jury asks their own questions, and speaks a fair amount of français with the witnesses. Mrs. Dean keeps calling the judge "Henry" and speaking over him, for humor. It's all in fun, and moves right along. Pretty funny, if hard-to-believe. And it's all over with no big fanfare. Directed by Ben Holmes, who directed mostly short films, with the exception of full length films in the mid - 1930s. Slow moving, but entertaining. If you can suspend belief of the trial by jury in this murder case.

We're on the Jury (1937)

** (out of 4)

Remake of the 1932 film LADIES OF THE JURY finds yet another pretty young woman accused of murdering her rich, much older husband. In the jury room eleven people believe she's guilty but Mrs. Agnes Dean (Helen Broderick) believes she's innocent and goes to change the others. Whereas LADIES OF THE JURY took a rather over-the-top scenario and did something special with it, this film here pretty much loses all of the charm. laughs and drama. There's really nothing worthwhile in this film unless you've seen the original and just want to see what they changed, altered or how the characters here were changed from the previous film. I think, on this level, the film kept me entertained from start to finish but there just wasn't any worthwhile laughs. Broderick takes over the role of Edna May Oliver but she doesn't have the charisma, charm or comic level to do much with the role. She comes off a lot more annoying than anything else here and the actress never appears overly comfortable in the role. Victor Moore plays the side kick who gets a lot of the scenes that Oliver handled in the original. He is mildly entertaining but the screenplay does nothing in his favor. Robert McWade plays the judge here, which is the same role he had in the original. Hal Roach vet Billy Gilbert is wasted as he's usually just seen smiling at things other people are doing. Charles Lane can't add much either. Everything that worked with the original is pretty much missing here and this of course includes the wonderful supporting players. Also missing is the mystery surrounding the actual case as it has very little to do with the plot here. This film runs seven-minutes longer than the original but it's pretty much just seven additional minutes of dead air.

RKO redid that favorite of the amateur dramatic society, LADIES OF THE JURY, slanting it much more towards comedy than the earlier version with two slick comedians in the leads -- Helen Broderick in prime dizzy mode and Victor Moore as.... well, in befuddled mood.

In the earlier version, Edna May Oliver had dominated the entire proceedings brilliantly, but here, although the performances are not as compelling, it isn't a one-woman show, so you may prefer this version -- which also has a lot more RKO gloss, thanks to chief cameraman Nick Musuraca and a sound track that is clean. My taste is towards the earlier version, but this one has a lot going for it.

Among the pluses is a lot of talent lurking around, including Billy Gilbert as members of the jury and sourpuss Robert McWade as the judge. If you wish to know what you like, you might sample both versions.

I saw We're On The Jury and Ladies of the Jury (1932) for the first time in fairly rapid succession, and in that order.

Ladies of the Jury is a tour-de-force for Edna May Oliver. I think it was her first leading role in a "full length" movie. Her camera presence, facial expressions and delivery make that a very worthwhile movie to watch.

But apart from Miss Oliver, the movie doesn't amount to much. We're On The Jury is more developed and complete as a comedy movie. As I mentioned in my review of Meet The Missus (1937), Victor Moore and Helen Broderick have actual comedic "chemistry" together, something entirely lacking in Ladies of the Jury, which is essentially a one-woman show (although Ken Murray manages to get in a few good licks).

There are a lot more jokes and funny lines in We're On The Jury, and it fits together better. It seems less contrived somehow than Ladies of the Jury.

The note being smuggled out of the jury room is more central to the plot in Ladies of the Jury, yet it is much more rushed and almost glossed over. It is better developed and more effective in We're On The Jury.

If you want to see a movie that has something to it besides Edna May Oliver and can stand on its own, watch We're On The Jury.