Lilly Turner

Although this film is not usually what William Wellman as director gives us. He did a reasonably good job with Lilly Turner. Ruth Chatterton delivers the goods with the title role, a girl who keeps making wrong choices especially with the opposite sex.

The first choice was bad as she was married, pregnant and abandoned by two timing rat Gordon Westcott. More of a rat than she thought as he was already married to Margaret Seddon. Seddon by the way has one great scene with Chatterton.

The baby was stillborn and Westcott had been a carnival magician. Carnival barker Frank McHugh with a real nasty thirst problem feels sorry for Chatterton and marries her. She loves him in her own way, but hates his drinking. She also attracts the the attention Guy KIbbee the owner of the show.

Which is a medicine show and the others work for him. Attractions that are come ons for his medicines. Kibbee starts taking a liking to Chatterton, but his Marjorie Gateson keeps him on a short leash. She's got a roving eye also however. Another strong performance in a small role.

Chatterton also has strong man Robert Barrat sniffing around. He's not got much upstairs, but he does have a temper. When he gets out of line he hires ambulance driver George Brent, clean cut All American kid who studied engineering in college, but in The Depression can't get a job in his field.

Chatterton and Brent were married at the time and a lot of his early roles come in her films. This was a play produced and written by George Abbott on Broadway that only ran 24 performances in 1932. Theater was a luxury that many did without a lot of material was bought by Hollywood on the cheap that turned into decent films.

Decent film this is and the ending isn't quite what might have been led to believe would happen. Good cast, good direction and too bad for George Abbott he didn't write this in better times.

This is why I watch old movies. Every once in a while you find a completely neglected, undiscovered gem. That is the case with Lilly Turner, in which Ruth Chatterton gives one of the finest performances of any of the '30s era leading ladies. Her performance is so full of nuance. She was a great actress. The story leaves nothing to be desired. At a brief 65 minutes, it hits all the bases and leaves no aspect of the (moving) story unfinished. Lilly is a woman who is married to a polygamist. She doesn't learn of this until she is already pregnant; she loses the child but receives help from a fellow carnival performer. Together they bravely make their way in a sort of underworld of crazies and carnies. It isn't until she meets a taxi driver (Brent) that she finally finds love, but the question is will he be able to accept her.

This film highlights everything I love so much about classic films: exploration of human emotions and complicated situations. There is also the aspect of being redeemed by love which I find so beautiful in the older films. Although melodramatic, it is not a completely unbelievable story. There is as much truth as fantasy in the story. The fantasy takes us out of our own lives, while momentary grains of wisdom in the dialog keep us tuned in and, in my case, amazed.

The plot involving Brent is most interesting. He has a college degree but can't find a job, so he takes up a job in a carnival. Some might laugh, but only if taken out of the context of the great depression. Interestingly enough, I graduated college a year ago and have not found work in my field. The parallels in this movie peaked my interest and held meaning to me.

I am constantly surprised by the low ratings of pre-1940s films on IMDb. It leads me to believe most people do not appreciate the real classics, or at least the undiscovered ones.

Ruth Chatterton (as Lilly Turner) impulsively marries handsome actor Gordon Westcott (as Rex Durkee). Soon, Ms. Chatterton learns Mr. Westcott is a two-timer, who can't keep a job. Additionally, Westcott beats up Chatterton's pal Frank McHugh (as Dave Dixon), who shows a fondness for alcohol. When Westcott's previous wife makes a surprise appearance, Chatterton learns he is a bigamist; but, Westcott has taken off for parts unknown. Chatterton, left pregnant, accepts Mr. McHugh's marriage proposal; and, the two try to make ends meet as carnival workers. Then, Chatterton falls for down-on-his-luck engineer George Brent (as Bob Chandler), who soon replaces carnival strongman Robert Barrat (as Fritz). Mr. Barrat has gone insane with love for Chatterton; and, she is torn between her love for Mr. Brent and her loyalty for McHugh…

Less than spectacular, but competent, star vehicle for superstar Chatterton, ably directed by William A. Wellman. During this film, Brent and Chatterton were real-life husband and wife. Brent co-starred with the most popular actresses of the time; though, he oftentimes comes across as rather ordinary, but is most appealing opposite Chatterton. McHugh gives an excellent supporting performance as Chatterton's alcoholic friend. Guy Kibbee and Marjorie Gateson are also highly watchable, as the amorous McGills.

****** Lilly Turner (5/13/33) William A. Wellman ~ Ruth Chatterton, George Brent, Frank McHugh, Guy Kibbee

Absolutely loved this. It's one of those gritty Depression melodramas where the amount of misery and misfortune piled upon our hero can only happen in Warner-land. Coupled with Forbstein's familiar jaunty score to lighten the mood, this is everything you want.

Leo Forbstein's jolly score is cleverly based on the old tear-jerker 'Till We Meet Again' and 'Spin a Little Web of Dreams' from FASHIONS OF 1934. That's one example of how Warners blended strains of tragedy into an upbeat tone. Despite the unmitigated misery of the story, weirdly the mood of this is positive and optimistic - well, as optimistic a Depression audiences could hope for.

Poor Ruth Chatterton marries an abusive bigamist, gets pregnant, loses her job, loses her husband, loses her home, loses the baby and ends up in poverty working in a carnival side show run by a sexual predator with just one friend who's s hopeless alcoholic. All of that's just the first fifteen minutes! ... then it speeds up! It's astonishing how much story is squeezed into an hour whilst still fully developing the characters. One example of how Wellman condenses superfluous plot to allow him to focus on character is when McHugh helps out his friend Lilly. To save her from the stigma of becoming an unmarried mother he marries her but this whole story is handled in about ten seconds. McHugh says: 'I'll see you alright.' Then we simply see a marriage certificate.

In the best tradition of a Warner early thirties melodrama, just when you think things can't possibly get any worse for poor Lilly...it does. It's like every cliché, every story and plot twist from every pre-code movie ever have been squeezed into one wild and wacky hour. Any pre-code fan must see this - it's like all your Christmas presents rolled into one.

One reason for watching early thirties pictures is because they usually star a sexy young lady like Joan Blondell or Claudette Colbert and I must confess that foolishly I wasn't going to watch this simply because Ruth Chatterton isn't on 'my list.' My shallow stupidity almost made me miss this near classic. Ruth Chatterton is (as I've now learned usually is) fantastic in this. She's just so real. Her naturalness and ordinariness makes her so completely believable - which is a real feat considering the story.

One reason I decided to watch this is because it's directed by William Wellman. He's not someone you'd associate with melodramas, he didn't really enjoy having to do this but his genius turns this absurdly over-the-top story into a totally absorbing grown-up drama. He really captures the seedy, shabby and unstable world these poor victims of The Depression are forced to inhabit. He truly transports you body and soul back to 1933.

And another reason to watch this is because Frank McHugh and Guy Kibbee have both got proper parts. McHugh isn't just the five minute comedy relief drunk, Kibbee isn't befuddled old 'Pop'. No, they're both superb actors here portraying genuinely realistic and believable actual living people.

Can't believe I nearly didn't watch this - it's exactly the sort of movie a pre-code fan like me loves.

Lilly Turner (1933)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Ruth Chatterton plays the title role, a woman who gets married but then loses her husband when it turns out he is already married to another woman. She loses her baby and then joins a traveling medicine show where she meets another man (George Brent) but her pass might catch up with her. Here's another Pre-Code from William A. Wellman but the screenplay doesn't do anyone justice. The performances are all very good with Chatterton really stealing the show as the tough as nails woman. Brent also turns in a fine performance as does Frank McHugh, Robert Barrat and Ruth Donnelly. The screenplay is full of cliché material from the wrong men falling for Lilly up to the ending, which anyone will see coming from a mile away. The bigamy plot twist might have been shocking for the day but it too is pretty watered down even for the era.