No Limite da Velocidade

This film was made well before Jimmy Stewart was a real headliner. And, the studios didn't yet know exactly what sort of caliber actor they had on their hands. So, they experimented with him in a variety of films--some successful, some not. This one falls in the middle and while isn't playing the sort of character you'd expect from Stewart, he isn't nearly so out of his element as he would be just a short time later in BORN TO DANCE--where he sings!!! This film is very very reminiscent of a Jimmy Cagney film from just a few years before, THE CROWD ROARS. Both are in fact pretty indistinguishable. Yes the plots differ, but they all just seem like a lot of race cars spinning around track that are obviously the result of rear projection and stunt men. Not both but not particularly good either.

Speed (1936)

This movie has a small bit of historic interest for reasons that don't make it a very good movie. First of all this is James Stewart's first official leading role. As he commented once, he got lots of small parts in big movies, and in this on he got a big part in a small movie. The movie is small because it's low budget and rather poorly written (both in its plot and its dialog).

Secondly, there are scenes of early (1935) Indy 500 racing. The most surprising part of this is having two people in each car, a driver and a mechanic who kept the systems going at their peak (or just keep them going at all in some cases). This allows for some pretty corny scenes where one of the people in one car will make faces or gestures to someone in another car (as they are cruising at 140 mph).

If you like Stewart you'll like him here despite the various limitations. He plays Terry Martin, whose love of racing at a track leads eventually to his going after a land speed record in a bizarre car with a giant fin for stabilization. (This was a special vehicle supplied by Chrysler for the shoot, not quite the real deal.) Of course this leads to a crisis and then the woman of the story, played with lackluster but reasonable ease by Una Merkel, gets her chance to win the hero's heart. This gives nothing away, believe me. It's all in lights from the get go.

A better movie, if still not even slightly brilliant, is certainly the 1950 Clark Cable movie with Barbara Stanwyck in the leading female role (and with a far more empowering part for a woman) , "To Please a Lady." And if you really want to round this out, the Paul Newman movie from 1969 called "Winning" is another faltering attempt at making this scene work on screen. Maybe if all three were played simultaneously on three screens you could get the roar and some interesting plots mixing together well. Individually they make for some fun moments and lots of stalling and pits stops. The actors, at least, are stars that hold their own in each case.

"Speed" is never slow, but that's not the same thing as getting any kind of checkered flag. Watch as filler.

That honor goes to Next Time We Love with Margaret Sullavan. Indeed, she specifically chose Stewart to play opposite her. What stands out here is how even in his early raw period, his naturalness before the camera stands out.

Most everyone's style of acting is rather dated, but not Stewart's. This is so even in the musical he did with Eleanor Powell, Born to Dance. Not even in those early roles where he was honing his skills. He even stands out against Powell and Loy and Company in After the Thin Man, where he shows an early surprising edge. Speed demonstrates that Stewart did drunk well--see The Philadelphia Story for later confirmation of this.

He's also quite sexy in some of that early stuff.

After some minor, but impressive roles James Stewart was handed the lead in SPEED (1936). A typical 'B' programmer that the Major Studios used for actors to work the 'kinks' out before they were moved on to major projects. In this one Stewart plays TERRY MARTIN a talented test driver and inventor from the wrong side of the tracks. That means he is loaded down with all sorts of class warfare hang-ups that was supposed to endear him to the mid 1930s audiences. Actually in the 21st Century he just comes off as a ASS!

MARTIN is working on a new SUPER CARBERATOR with his side-kick 'Gadget' Haggerty (Ted Healy). He duels for creative control with Frank Lawson (Weldon Heyburn) educated engineer and top intellect of the company and also for the romantic interest of Jane Mitchell/Emery (Wendy Barrie). 'Jo' Henderson (Una Merkel) wants Lawson, but just does not know how to go about it. Fear not, true love will conquer in the end and automotive innovation, money and success will follow, with a happy ending.

The idea of a engineering miracle invention like the SUPER CARBERATOR was a typical one in the 1930s. Whether for Automobiles or Aero-Planes it promised a revolution in performance. Either by stretching a gallon of gas to a 100 miles or promising speeds (in the air) in excess of 500mph. The movies though were on the wrong track. In Germany and Sweden, fuel injection was shown as the way to go, not carburetors. Don't think so, just look under the hood of your Car!

Jimmy Stewart may be only an automobile tester right now, but he's got plans: "I'm not always gonna be a mug with cylinder oil in my hair," he vows.

While he spends his working days racing, flipping and crashing test cars, he is also working on a new carburetor design that he is sure will make his mark. Unfortunately, he's having trouble perfecting the carburetor…will the company bigwigs force him to take on help from the snooty engineering department?

Stewart's ambitions and frustrations make up one part of the plot; the other half of the story is a romantic drama involving publicity agent Wendy Barrie, newly promoted auto executive Una Merkel, and bland auto engineer Weldon Heyburn, whom Stewart considers a rival both professionally and romantically but who is really not a bad guy after all.

The first fifteen minutes of the picture offer a great tour of the automobile factory where these characters all work. It's basically a commercial for the auto industry, and a pretty neat look at the inside of a production plant, circa 1936.

With this cast, you would expect some good laughs or at least plenty of snappy dialog delivery; unfortunately, the tone is fairly grim and the screenplay pretty dry. We do get a bit of comic relief from Ted Healy as Stewart's friend and sidekick; but it sure seems a shame to have both Barrie and Merkel—two really excellent comic talents—go practically a whole movie with no wisecracks!

The production is slick and includes some impressive footage from testing grounds and racetracks. And Stewart definitely shows some charisma, even though his character is so stubborn and self-pitying that it's hard to root for him completely.

Overall, it's easy to watch but probably should have been better.