La passagère

Joan Crawford is "Chained" in this 1934 film, but alas, it's not to Clark Gable, but to Otto Kruger. Crawford and Gable were a wonderful team, and this is one of the eight films they made together.

Crawford plays a young woman, Diana Lovering, whose married boyfriend Richard (Kruger) is unable to get a divorce from his wife. She goes on a long cruise to South America and on the boat meets Mike (Gable), who has a horse ranch in Argentina.

And guess what. She feels that she needs to return to tell Richard that she's fallen in love with Mike. When she returns home, however, she finds out that Richard has gotten a divorce from his wife and had to give up seeing his children in order to do so. She then believes she's obligated to marry him and writes a Dear Mike letter. However, she and Mike cross paths again a year later.

There isn't anything special about this film, directed by Clarence Brown, except for the chemistry of the two stars. They made better films together - "Possessed" (the '30s one) and "Strange Cargo" being two off the top of my head. But I have to admit that I always love seeing them, and Crawford was so striking in those days, it's worth a look.

The love triangle was and is a popular movie theme, so when Clark Gable and Joan Crawford are part of it, you can expect some good entertainment. They have very good chemistry together, perhaps because they were reportedly lovers offscreen. The third leg of the triangle is suave Otto Kruger, who never gives a bad performance, and there is also Gable's best friend, Stuart Erwin, who is there mostly for comic relief. I enjoyed the shipboard romance, which was neatly combined with some comedy, and included scenes with a young Mickey Rooney before his Andy Hardy days. I was surprised at the ending, which seemed to go against the Code.

Even if you took out the typical yet entertaining love triangle between Gable, Crawford and Otto Kruger, you'd still have a film that offers fun each time you see it. Personally, I'd never miss a film with Gable playing the tall-dark-and-handsome heartthrob who gets the girl in the end... his natural talent for the quick-witted quips was (and still is) what attracts us men to him and his manly, muscular physique to our women. Isn't he what all of us guys want to emmulate?! Crawford, although I hate her with a passion, is an actress who I can't deny has a great flair for acting. And when it comes right down to it, how can anyone hope that Kruger would win over a man as perfect as Gable? It's the typical boy-gets-girl, happily-ever-after ending that was so popular in the thirties that audiences ate up and some still do today. It's a cute little farce worth watching every once in a while.

Beautiful secretary Joan Crawford (as Diane Lovering) enjoys both working and sleeping with the boss, Otto Kruger (as Richard I. Field). Mr. Kruger wants to marry his willing mistress, but the wife refuses to grant him a divorce. To console a disappointed Ms. Crawford, Kruger sends her on a luxury cruise. On the ship, Crawford spurns "hot and bothered" Stuart Erwin (as John "Johnnie" L. Smith) at the bar, intending to be faithful. Then, she meets sexy rancher businessman Clark Gable (as Michael "Mike" Bradley)...

Will Crawford stay "Chained" to Kruger, or fall in love with Gable?

This is an MGM box office star power production, with Crawford and Gable doing what they do best. "When she's in his arms, it's the grandest thrill the screen can give!" Not quite, but director Clarence Brown and cameraman George Folsey handle the performers very well; the combination showed Crawford in her best light. Highlights include a fast stroll aboard ship, and a shimmering swimming pool sequence. The later includes young Mickey Rooney and pal Delmar Watson cavorting with Gable and Crawford.

****** Chained (8/31/34) Clarence Brown ~ Joan Crawford, Clark Gable, Otto Kruger, Stuart Erwin

Sparkling with stardust and glitter from the gowns and jewelry, "Chained" is romantic fluff from the Golden Age of Metro Goldwyn Mayer. Elegant Diane Lovering is the mistress of wealthy shipping magnate Richard Field, a middle-aged man, whose wife refuses him a divorce. After a confrontation with his wife in front of Diane, Field sends Diane off on an ocean voyage to think about their future together. Bad idea, because Mike Bradley, a handsome wealthy ranch owner from the Argentine, is aboard the liner, and the predictable sparks ignite.

Ah, the problems of the super rich are many in this glossy bauble. Joan Crawford as Diane parades sequined gowns and various hairstyles, while she ponders, suffers, and weeps glycerine tears and weighs her alternatives: wealth and social position in New York or wealth and a hunky husband in Argentina; either way, she eats and dresses well, while outside the movie theater Americans endured the Great Depression. Undeniable star power propels this short light-weight drama. Stunningly photographed by George Folsey and directed by Clarence Brown in gowns by Adrian, Crawford glows as the epitome of 1930's movie glamour. Clark Gable as Mike is equally glamorous and bigger than life; his instantly likeable personality and legendary looks captivate.

Beyond the two above-the-title stars, the supporting cast is more than capable to carry the gossamer-thin storyline; led by Otto Kruger as Gable's rival for Crawford, the character players include Stuart Erwin as Mike's buddy, Una O'Connor as Diane's maid, and Akim Tamiroff as a gourmet chef. Future star Mickey Rooney is hard to miss in a brief stint in the ship's swimming pool. Escapist entertainment like "Chained" distracted audiences from the pain of the Depression in the 1930's. However, contemporary viewers may chuckle at the whimsical problems amid the excessive wealth displayed on screen: lunch at the Colony, lodging at the St. Regis, luxury liner suites, vast haciendas, and cavernous apartments. Despite the predicable feather-weight story, MGM had stars that merited their stardom, and Crawford and Gable were at the pinnacle. For them alone, "Chained" merits watching.