Snobbish attorney Charles 'Beauty' Steele loses his wife due to his drinking and his heirs at the same time that his brother-in-law absconds with funds belonging to one of Steele's clients. ... Read allSnobbish attorney Charles 'Beauty' Steele loses his wife due to his drinking and his heirs at the same time that his brother-in-law absconds with funds belonging to one of Steele's clients. In search of the thief, Steele is attacked and left for dead. He is rescued by a kind coup... Read allSnobbish attorney Charles 'Beauty' Steele loses his wife due to his drinking and his heirs at the same time that his brother-in-law absconds with funds belonging to one of Steele's clients. In search of the thief, Steele is attacked and left for dead. He is rescued by a kind couple, but suffers from amnesia. He starts life afresh and is happy, until the return of his ... Read all
- Director
- Writers
- Stars
- The Cure
- (as George Pearce)
- The Siegneur
- (as Holliwell Hobbes)
- Rouge's Henchman
- (uncredited)
- Villager
- (uncredited)
- The Judge
- (uncredited)
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Featured reviews
I had a very hard time watching "The Right of Way" because the film was just terrible...mostly due to very antiquated dialog and horrible overacting. It also features the worst French-Canadian accent I have ever heard--making accents in "Dudley Dooright" seem brilliant by comparison! How anyone gave this film anything better than a 3 or 4 is shocking! Heck, how you could give it anything more than a 2 is ALSO shocking! Among the worst dialog and acting I can recall...much worse than Ed Wood's "Plan 9 From Outer Space"!
Conrad Nagel got his start in silent pictures and was a romantic lead in many B and A pictures over the years. Because of his politics Louis B. Mayer disliked him and often put him in silly vehicles which didn't show off his acting talents to their best advantage. Conrad is obviously hamming it up through this picture, maybe to get even with Louis B., maybe because he just wanted to have some fun with a deadly dull and stupid early talkie script.
Conrad makes this picture. He's the funniest thing I've ever seen in my life. Forget Chaplin and Laurel and Hardy and WC Fields. Conrad in The Right of Way is the right way to go for complete belly laughs until you drop.
See this movie! But don't take it seriously or you'll miss the point!
You've got to see this with your own eyes to believe it. Once you've experienced it you'll want to see it again because it's so bad it's hilarious. Some films are bad, some are terrible but this creates a whole new dimension of hell that Dante would be proud of. It's not one of those terrible stagey dull early talkies which are so lifeless that you can't be bothered to watch - this is anything but boring. If someone wanted to make a comedy about the early talkies they could just use this. It feels exactly like one of those parodies but although it's hard to believe, it's actually meant to be serious - well I think it is?
Being made in 1930 is no excuse. There were plenty of films - or rather a few films made in 1930 and even in 1929 which were pretty good. OK, it was made on the horribly cumbersome Vitaphone system which certainly didn't help but again, others managed with it. This is just jaw-droppingly badly made.
Everything about this is as worse as it could possibly be. The story is beyond stupid, the script is completely surreal as though written by aliens and it feels like it was directed by someone from one of those isolated tribes deep in the Amazon who'd never left the jungle or discovered fire yet.
And as for the acting - you'll not believe what your eyes are telling you. You're not high - this really is happening! Conrad Nagel proves himself to be the worst actor in the history of cinema. I half suspect his remarkably utterly absurd performance was him trying to be funny but that would be too charitable. He's doing a sort of bizarre John Barrymore impersonation - indeed, were this a proper film, Barrymore might have been OK in this.
Then just when you think you've never seen such bad acting in your life you're treated to Olive Tell as his wife - O. M. G! I challenge you to watch her and keep a straight face!
Oh and there's sweet seventeen year old Loretta Young. Since she's betrothed to a sixty year old, I'm thinking that it's probably ok to find her attractive? Even she is rubbish in this which since she was ok in LOOSE ANKLES and a few other 1929/1930 movies, points the finger of blame at director Frank Lloyd - but he made MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY so what was going on here? Maybe Warners just wanted to close down their First National operation or maybe everyone was very, very drunk?
If you've run out of drugs - just watch this instead!
This film is short, but it is hardly sweet. Nagel is the biggest ham in this movie, constantly overacting in scenes that need subtlety. Young is beautiful but somehow and obvious novice in her scenes, which is strange because she made so many wonderful pre-codes. Perhaps the direction was not up to par.
One might enjoy this film simply to make fun of the acting, but the dramatic story might make one uncomfortable in doing so. The movie isn't meant to be a comedy, but it was certainly made to be that way by the acting.
Did you know
- TriviaCompleted in 1930, and reviewed in Photoplay Magazine August 1930 (on the newstands in July), release was delayed until February 1931.
- GoofsIn the opening intro card, the contraction "it's" is used twice where it should have been spelled "its" both times.
- Quotes
Charley 'Beauty' Steele: I'm very grateful for your invitation, Kathleen, even though shadows should never be invited. And, I am a shadow! Am I not? That has fallen across the serene sunshine of your life.
Kathleen: A very beautiful speech. You're undoubtedly drunk again.
Charley 'Beauty' Steele: No, on the contrary, I'm quite sober. But, I don't blame you for not recognizing it. You so seldom see me in that condition.
Kathleen: I so seldom see you in any condition. And I'd prefer not to talk about that.
Charley 'Beauty' Steele: That's very generous and Christian of you, my dear.
- ConnectionsRemake of The Right of Way (1915)
- SoundtracksNocturne No. 2 in E-Flat Minor, Op. 9 No.2
(1830-1) (uncredited)
Written by Frédéric Chopin
Played on piano by Olive Tell
Details
- Runtime1 hour 8 minutes
- Color