Husband Hunters

Mae Busch, Jean Arthur, and Duane Thompson are three chorines sharing an apartment and a copy of Bradstreet in their search for rich, marriageable stagedoor Johnnies. Robert Cain is the show backer who's going to marry the girl as soon as his divorce comes through. Other interesting cast members include Charles Delany as the guy Miss Arthur is sweet on, and Mildred Harris as the previous girl Cain was going to marry as soon as his divorce comes through.

Usually I think of pre-code movies as a talkie phenomenon, but this is about as pre-code as you can get. You also get some interesting camerawork of the stage revue they're appearing in that looks like Busby Berkley shots; they aren't held long enough to produce Berkley's spectacles, but there's clearly the impulse here. I was surprised that John Adolfi was the director. Usually we think of him as the front man for George Arliss, but he shows he's in command of the camera, even if he's not so good with the actors. There's little subtlety in the pantomime, and Miss Arthur is particularly broad.

The copy I looked at was not in particularly good shape, with a lot of chemical damage to the images. Nonetheless, the combination of performers and the aforementioned revue shots makes this an interesting, if not particularly original movie.