Une fine mouche

It's always a pleasant surprise to run into one of Myrna Loy and William Powell's legendary pairings. "Libeled Lady" was even more pleasant than usual! Spencer Tracy is marvelous as the too smooth operator, while Harlow shrills her way through the film, stealing every scene.

Still and all, the real selling point of this film is the clever drawing room dialogue and rat-a-tat-tat delivery! One does not see this type of intelligent comedic script come out of Hollywood these days. Full of double entendre, perfectly honed sarcasm and beautifully timed quips, this film keeps you smiling, even as you wince at Powell's adept physical comedy, full of falls and falls and falls.

As for his co-star, watching Loy glow on screen is always magic, the moments that she raises an eyebrow and drops in a gem of a line, well, there's the real abracadabra...

Man oh Man. Harlow, Tracy, Powell and Loy in one film. There truly were more stars at MGM than in the heavens. This is one of the best screwball comedies of the 30's maybe only out done by My Man Godfrey. The script funny as heck even by todays standards. The acting top of the line. Tracy was great at comedy it's great that MGM allowed him to do one every know and then. Loy is Loy classy, sassy, funny and witty. Powell at the zenith of his game and Harlow glows and steals the film. Harlow marching around in a wedding dress is a hoot. It's hard to believe that within a year Jean Harlow would be dead. If it's on TCM or you see it in a video store grab it and see what a screwball comedy really looks like

One might wonder about casting 4 heavyweights in the same film-- any one of the leads could carry a film by themselves-- but all together you're afraid that they might either weigh down the film or, ala the "Dream Team" 1990, fail to live up to expectations. But this is one time you time you will not be disappointed-- with hysterical antics by Jean Harlowe, the always dependable repartee between classy Myrna Lowe and suave William Powell, and Spencer Tracy proving for the first time that he can handle snappy dialogue like the best of 'em-- the chemistry between the cast makes every scene in this film a delight.

The banter flies so fast you'll miss it-- this is the height of screwball comedy. When people say they don't write them like this anymore, alas, they really don't.

Spencer Tracy, William Powell, Myrna Loy, and Jean Harlow star in "Libeled Lady," about the attempts to convince a society woman to drop a lawsuit against a newspaper.

Spencer Tracy is a scream in his role of a newspaper editor who has been engaged to Jean Harlow for some time, but his work keeps getting in the way of their marriage and relationship. His whole life revolves around his newspaper. When an heiress, played by Loy, sues the newspaper for libel, Tracy puts William Powell to work, hoping that by photographing them together, he can convince Loy to drop the suit. But it will only work if Powell is a married man caught cheating, so Tracy convinces Harlow to marry him.

Harlow is her usual feisty self. Powell is marvelous, especially in his fishing scenes, which are classics, especially the one in which he literally chases a trout through a stream. It's laugh out loud material if there ever was any. Loy has the least showy part, though she's quite beautiful and works well with Powell, portending great things to come.

This is a very enjoyable film with Tracy milking the comedy for all it's worth. Apparently his comedic work was a revelation back then, unlike today, when we know how adept he was at it.

A film with four stars of this magnitude was an event in 1936 and, indeed, it still is in 2004. Though the subject matter is slight and the acting is not too terribly taxing on the affable quartet, it was well-thought-of-enough to rate a Best Picture Oscar nomination. Tracy plays a newspaperman whose own wedding plans are interrupted by the fact that his paper has mistakingly run a libelous story about the daughter of one of his competitors. Loy, as the daughter, slaps a $5 million libel suit against Tracy's newspaper which, if won, will sink it. Since he knows he will lose, he rehires former employee Powell, who he feels will be able to charm Loy into an indelicate situation, thus rendering her reputation spoiled enough to cost her her libel suit. Part of the scheme, however, to make it seem legitimate is to marry off Powell to his own fiance (Harlow.) It is here that the film gets a lot of its laughs as desperate-to-wed Harlow finds herself getting married......but to the wrong man! Powell and Loy get most of the sparkling dialogue and sophisticated repartee, but contemporary audiences are likelier to get a kick out of mouthy, hilarious Harlow. Her comedic gifts (and her ample physical assets) are on prime display, notably when the judge says it's safe to kiss the bride and in a later scene where Powell is learning to fly-fish. All of the stars do very well and each gets a chance to rub up against the others. Powell and Loy are a legendary pairing with 14 films to show them off. Tracy does a slick job and shows his versatility. They are aided by a stable of amusing character actors, the type of people Hollywood was famous for and can no longer provide with regularity. (Today, almost any character actor that scores a hit is thrust into his/her own TV show, TV talk show or lead role in a film!) The film offers both wit and slapstick, wrapped up in some gorgeous sets and costumes. (The MGM gloss is fully in place.) Sadly, the light that was Harlow would be dimmed in just a year after this, but audiences are still able to enjoy her fine work in films like this.