Way for a Sailor

...but let me warn you that the first half hour of this 85 minute film is a long hard slog. Gilbert plays "Jack", a sailor on a commercial line, who seems to have some kind of beef with fellow sailor "Tripod" (Wallace Beery), although the origin of this rift is never revealed. The boat lands, the sailors are on leave, and there is drunken brawl after drunken brawl for no reason. Someone will just insult someone else or break a bottle over someone's head for apparently no reason. Then everybody starts fighting. This got repetitive, plus the dawn of sound soundtrack is so bad that trying to hear these players speak, during storms, out of doors, in crowded bars, is nearly impossible. I had to rewind several times to get what was even going on. The bright spot in this part of the film - Polly Moran showing up all disheveled in a bar carrying a mallet of all things. Considering how rowdy things got and how quickly they got rowdy, maybe she was smart to be carrying a mallet after all.

During the next hour things improve considerably as the ship lands in London and we meet the object of Jack's affection, Joan (Leila Hyams), a clerk in the shipping company office. She wants nothing to do with him because he is a sailor. Hyams could have come off as snooty in this role, but she doesn't, even without an exact explanation of her rejection. I felt that she might have been hurt or lied to by a sailor before, or she might have seen that happen, enough that she is simply not going to consider a sailor as a suitor. The point is, she plays the part vulnerable and it works. Likewise, Gilbert's character, though rough around the edges, is actually likable. He wants to marry the girl, so his intentions are honorable. He just thinks that lying is OK in the pursuit of this honorable intention. It's at this point the first half hour of the film - which has seemed pointless up to now - begins to make sense. It shows the rough and tumble kind of temporary port to port life Jack is accustomed to and helps explain his actions. He borrows money from the other sailors, buys a suit, and gives Joan a total lie of a story about him quitting the sea and getting a job in the shipping office. Now on the surface this seems despicable, but then you think back to the first half hour and remember in Jack's world the end justifies the means. How does this work out? Watch and find out.

I'd say it is worth it to see that John Gilbert did understand how to act and project a character in the talkies, and also this film gives a supporting role to Wallace Beery that he was just made to play before MGM pretty much promoted him to leading man status after Min and Bill came out later in 1930.

Oddly likable film even though it's badly directed, edited, and under-lit. There are several "inserts" of closeups that don't come close to matching the rest of the scene, and the rear projections are badly done as well.

Still, this fourth talkie of John Gilbert's is fascinating because of the solid performances by Gilbert (no voice problems at all), Wallace Beery, and Leila Hyams.

A story of carousing sailors (merchant marine) and their beer brawls is very pre-Code with saloons, whores, and raw language. But Jack (Gilbert) is smitten with Hyams and does everything to win her. Unfortunately he steals money from Beery to buy a suit and pretends he has left the sea for an office job so Hyams will marry him. He ends up going back to sea on the boat she is sailing on for Canada (after she learns of his lies). But then another ship is sinking in a storm.....

Several interesting scenes, including one by the sea where Gilbert and Hyams are talking and arguing. The rescue is interesting but under-lit.

Gilbert tries so hard here after a series of lousy MGM flops (thanks to Mayer) and is so likable that you forget the story is standard issue. Hyams is beautiful and has a few good dramatic scenes. Beery is his usual self. Supporting cast includes Polly Moran, Doris Lloyd, Ray Milland, Jim Tully, Tiny Jones, etc.

This was Gilbert's best talkie to date after the disastrous HIS GLORIOUS NIGHT and REDEMPTION. Whatever the problems were with this film, they were not Gilbert's fault. He looks fit and trim and his voice is just fine. Despite the "B" film qualities of this and most of Gilbert's MGM films (thanks to Mayer), Gilbert always comes off as a solid actor and likable man.

John Gilbert should have had a major career in talkies and proved that his acting style and voice were just fine in film after film, but he had lost his audience with the first few rotten sound films MGM gave him.

This film is worth seeing just to see how valiant Gilbert was even with Mayer working against him.

WAY FOR A SAILOR (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1930), directed by Sam Wood, is not so much a movie about Navy recruits during peacetime, but a comedy-drama dealing with Merchant Marines. Considered to be the worst movie to star John Gilbert, having never seen his entire filmography, silent, talkie or otherwise, it would be hard to determine which films to be his worst. Taken from the book by Albert Richard Wetjen, it's far from masterful as Gilbert's silent war-drama, THE BIG PARADE (1925), yet with Wallace Beery sharing billing over the title with Gilbert, the film did much to establish Beery on the rise to stardom as it did with Gilbert on his way to decline. I give Gilbert credit for trying to reinvent himself with roles that might have given him a career boost. Without the chemistry he had with Greta Garbo, or possibly a super production sound remake of THE BIG PARADE for 1930 to compete with Universal's classic war-drama, ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT, it appears WAY FOR A SAILOR would be the best the studio had to offer an actor with a reasonably fine speaking voice to be falling out of favor by this time with both his public and critics.

Opening title: "The Merchant Marine - AFLOAT ... a sweating loyal crew transporting food, machinery, mail, medicines, the very needs of life ... to half of the world. ASHORE: A rollicking pay-spending, 'love 'em and leave em' gang." The story opens with the daily routine of Merchant Marine buddies, Jack Burley (John Gilbert), Tripod (Wallace Beery) and Ginger (Jim Tully) who, after months of hard work afloat, take leave on land. They come to Singapore where the trio and others find themselves in barroom brawls, gambling and women. The same routine follows on ship before taking shore leave in London where more of the same occurs. Jack tries to make an impression with Joan (Leila Hyams), a clerk at a shipping office. She ignores him only to eventually take to Jack now in his civilian clothes and becoming his wife. Believing Jack has given up his Tripod, Ginger and his rollicking sea life to work on land does Joan begin to be aware of Jack having second thoughts. Others in the cast include Polly Moran (Polly); Doris Lloyd (Flossie); and Sojin (Proprietor of Shanghai House). Look quickly for future film star, Ray Milland, playing a Canadian officer. He is more identifiable through his voice than his physical appearance.

WAY FOR A SAILOR may be a bit overlong at 85 minutes, but whether it would have been acceptable at shorter length is uncertain. Playing in the Victor McLaglen and Edmund Lowe mode from their WHAT PRICE GLORY? (Fox, 1926) success and its three sequels, it's a wonder whether WAY FOR A SAILOR might have improved having Chester Morris in the role played by John Gilbert instead. Even in support, Beery gets the best attention down to his amusing conclusion. Leila Hyams is fine as Gilbert's girl, but the Ginger part, played by the unknown Jim Tully, might have added some character has Cliff Edwards was used instead. Though Gilbert (sans mustache here) did improve his stature in latter talkies as DOWNSTAIRS (1932), and a final reunion with his popular co-star, Greta Garbo starring in QUEEN CHRISTINA (1933), it was too late for the magic power Gilbert once established on the silent screen a decade ago to be rectified. Had he lived to assume the John Halliday part in the Marlene Dietrich and Gary Cooper starrer of DESIRE (Paramount, 1936), maybe Gilbert might have proven favorable through his second phase of his career in secondary character parts that would be of more interest to the audience than the leading players. Sadly, it wasn't meant to be.

Being one of the very few John Gilbert movies to play on late night commercial television prior to 1970, WAY FOR A SAILOR's availability for viewing comes either on DVD format or occasional broadcasts on Turner Classic Movies. (**)

Seafaring John Gilbert (as Jack) enjoys the rollicking "love 'em and leave 'em" lifestyle shared with merchant marine buddies like accordion-playing Wallace Beery (as Tripod) and brawling Jim Tully (as Ginger). The trio of rum-swilling womanizers look for saloons and girls in every port. But, when Mr. Gilbert meets blonde Leila Hyams (as Joan), the sailor must choose between manning restless ocean waves, or settling down with Ms. Hyams' shore-bound curves...

The delayed, poorly-edited "Way for a Sailor" was the first of several attempts to restore Gilbert's damaged movie stardom...

Beery essays a typically hammy performance; though second-billed, he was, by now, the bigger box office star. Undoubtedly Beery was present to attract more cinema patrons, who would hopefully give Gilbert a second look. Unfortunately, most viewers had their misgivings about Gilbert reinforced. The picture simply does not serve him well. In their scenes together, re-takes seem to have been inserted to enhance Ms. Hyams' performance, while Gilbert is left looking soppish.

**** Way for a Sailor (11/1/30) Sam Wood ~ John Gilbert, Wallace Beery, Leila Hyams, Jim Tully

Way For A Sailor is about two of those folks, John Gilbert and Wallace Beery who love 'em and leave 'em in every port. Gilbert is in a part that someone like Robert Taylor at MGM or Tyrone Power at 20th Century Fox would have done a bit later.

Folks were used to seeing Gilbert as the great lover so this was either an effort to broaden his image or ruin it depending on your interpretation. L.B. Mayer was looking to get rid of him no doubt.

Anyway Gilbert and Beery are in London and the challenge awaits Gilbert from Beery to score with Leila Hyams who works in a shipping office who is dubbed as a cold fish.

She falls for him, even marries him, but Hyams realizes that he's a reprobate and won't change. At least at a certain point in the plot.

People went to see this I have no doubt for Wallace Beery who was rising in popularity as sound came in. Gilbert comes off a distinct second best.

Beery's fans will like this. Though I wonder in 1930 what the movie going public thought of a character with the nickname of Tripod. No wonder he got girls.