Dois Contra o Mundo

Constance Bennett stars with Neil Hamilton in "Two Against the World," a precode film from 1932. When a compact is found left on a bed, it just has to be precode.

Bennett plays Dell Hamilton, a beautiful socialite who falls for an attorney (Hamilton). This leads to problems when she tries to protect her family and winds up on the witness stand, with Hamilton on the side of the prosecution.

Decent drama, melodramatic as was the style, with Bennett looking dazzling in a variety of '30s outfits. She gives a lively performance -- flirtatious, charming, and warmhearted. Hamilton is solid and an unlikely candidate as a romantic lead. Thirty-plus years later, he would play Commissioner Gordon on "Batman." I always love watching Constance Bennett in films, and this one was no exception.

So, 1932 is the height of the Depression and millions of folks are out of work. And yet, despite this, Hollywood is cranking out tons of films where you'd never think a depression was on and the stars are all rich and happy...like "Two Against the World". And, you make the rich folks in this particularly self-absorbed and loathsome. This must have been a hard sell back in the day.

When the film begins, the Hamilton family is meeting with their lawyer. It seems that an employee in the company they own died and he is asking them how to proceed. Not one of the family asks if the family of the deceased has a valid claim...they just seem bored and instruct the lawyer not to accept a settlement. At this point, I really HATED the Hamiltons and wanted them to pay and pay dearly. Adele (Constance Bennett) is roused from her boredom about all this when the lawyer for the deceased family arrives. Dave Norton (Neil Hamilton) is handsome and instantly Adele is smitten and pursues him vigorously throughout the film.

Later, in a weird plot twist, Adele's brother murders someone. She witnesses it and she runs. Soon the murder case is dropped because they have no leads. But Norton pushes the Defender's Office to re- open the case...and he doesn't realize that Adele is caught up in it.

The bottom line is that Adele and her family are amoral jerks...so how is the audience supposed to care one bit about her and her brother?! The story is also completely unbelievable and rather silly. Because of this, I disliked the film intensely and see it as a seriously flawed movie. Nice production values but a seriously messed up story that should have left viewers storming out of the theater!

This film was made right after the successful What Price Hollywood, which was a departure from Bennett's string of confession stories that made her the highest paid actress in the business. In this film, Bennett is even better. The plot is familiar - the only surprise being that Bennett's wastrel brother doesn't get what he deserves - but the plot doesn't matter. This is the story of a girl who meets the man she can happily live with for the rest of her life, though there is a big bump enroute to the happy ending. Bennett is reteamed with Neil Hamilton - her love interest in What Price Hollywood - and he proves that he's the man who can tame this privileged rich girl, who thinks traffic signs and no smoking in the elevator don't apply to her.

In 1932 Bennett was getting bad press for her high-hat ways and big spender habits, so the scriptwriters wrote a scene in Hamilton's law office where she gives $100 to his destitute client with a promise of more to come. Hamilton says approvingly, "That was a very nice thing for you to do", which the audience could hardly fail to approve of as well, thereby softening her image.

Bennett/Dell is confident and flirtatious, a young woman who goes after what she wants, and it's immediately evident that she wants the not rich Hamilton, who is smitten with her at first sight. Bennett is gorgeous, stunning in her furs and hats and gowns. Her acting throughout is spot on, and in the climatic courtroom scene she is impressive. Her moods on the witness stand shift from haughtiness to fear to relief and then to suspense as prosecutor Hamilton stares at her for a nerve wracking minute before speaking.

Bennett had a wider range than she's reputed to have, wider than Shearer and Crawford, neither of whom could do comedy. This film should have been the beginning of a long career with one triumphant film following another. Instead, it was the beginning of the end of her stardom. And why Hamilton didn't become a major star like Bennett's frequent movie partner, Joel McCrea, is another mystery.

The unlikely romantic pairing of Constance Bennett and Neil Hamilton somehow works in this fast paced critique of privileged society. Constance is a spoiled rich girl (something she's always good at playing!) who tries to bend the rules once too often in a desperate attempt to protect her family. It doesn't help that Neil Hamilton, in one of his warmer performances as a do-gooder attorney, has to grill her on the witness stand despite his being in love with her. These two headstrong people are forced to bend a little in each other's direction as circumstances dictate: she learns that being privileged doesn't necessarily mean being better; he that being ethical may have its moral limits.

Constance Bennett's energy and wit find an unusual focus in her romantic pursuit of Hamilton. She may not be willing to give up caviar for the luncheon special beans he prefers, but she's game to keep on trying!

Two Against the World (1932)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Rich socialite Adele Hamilton (Constance Bennett) begins dating an honest lawyer (Neil Hamilton) but soon she's mixed up in a murder, which her brother committed. Trying to shield her brother, everything goes as planned until the lawyer becomes the prosecutor on the case. TWO AGAINST THE WORLD is a fairly entertaining courtroom drama that's certainly far-fetched but the performances make it worth sitting through. Obviously, it would be nearly impossible for the lawyer to have to go up against a woman he's been dating and seen with socially but we'll just pretend that doesn't matter. What works the best with this film is that Bennett gives an extremely good and believable performance as the rich woman who is constantly just in the wrong place at the wrong time. I liked how the screenplay made her a very strong woman who believed in doing what it takes to protect those around her and I really enjoyed the final showdown in the courtroom. Again, it's far-fetched but the charm and toughness of Bennett really comes across. Hamilton is also very good in his role as the good-hearted lawyer who finds himself in a tough situation. The supporting players include nice performances from Roscoe Karns, Galvin Gordon and Helen Vinson. Director Archie Mayo could handle this type of film in his sleep so obviously he has no problem keeping it going at a very good pace. At just 70-minutes the film never seems too long and instead it flows at a good pace.