Man Wanted

"Man Wanted" was made in 1932 before the Code was put in place, and it's quite entertaining, starring the beautiful Kay Francis, David Manners, Una Merkel and Elizabeth Patterson. Francis plays Lois Ames, a sophisticated, glamorous publisher who works constantly. Her old secretary (Elizabeth Patterson) won't work overtime, so she's fired. A man, Tommy Sherman (Manners) who has come to sell her something impresses her, and she offers him the secretarial job. He accepts and becomes invaluable to her, moving up in rank. All the time, he's falling in love with her. He has fiancé (Una Merkel) and Lois has a husband, Freddie. Freddie lives off of his wife, and though she loves him, she realizes that he has affairs. In one scene, Freddie is on his way to an assignation when Lois comes home unexpectedly early. Freddie goes with the moment, and they're both in the mood. Just before she gets into bed, Lois finds the other woman's hotel key. She puts in on her husband's pillow and feigns sleep.

Dieterle does a good job with the pace of the film. The gender references are quite interesting. Tommy assumes the female publisher he'll be meeting will be an old hag and is surprised to see such a young, good-looking woman; nothing is made of her hiring a male secretary. One wonders, though, had she a very capable woman secretary, would she have risen to a higher position? It's something to think about.

Kay Francis is as effortless and bright as ever, and it's nice to see her in the role of an executive. That's one of the things about pre-Code films that I like; aside from pushing the boundaries on sex and violence, they were also (at least sometimes) empowering to women. She works long hours and calls the shots at work but isn't portrayed as having lost her femininity, and in fact the film mocks that stereotype. She supports her lazy husband (Kenneth Thomson) and keeps things professional with her secretary (David Manners) despite their simpatico relationship. She tries to save her marriage when she discovers her husband is seeing someone else (Claire Dodd), even taking the blame when she probably shouldn't. It's a strong, charming character, and she plays it well.

Her secretary's feelings grow towards her, and there is another triangle involved, since he's engaged to another woman (Una Merkel). There's also a buddy character (Andy Devine) who keeps things light with his teasing and goofy character. The film zips along in its short 63 minutes, and the conflicts are all wrapped up without a lot of surprises and probably a little too conveniently. Entertaining, and watch it for Francis.

Favorite lines: David Manners, pondering meaningfully: "I wonder if the realization would be as beautiful as the thought."

Una Merkel (I smiled over this being the reason for love): "Seeing you swank was what made me fall in love with you - the swell way you carried your liquor. Any boy who can get away with what you did, so politely, well, I want him for life."

Claire Dodd, with her smiling face inches away from Kenneth Thomson's: "I didn't trail you all the way to Bar Harbor just to dance with you." Ah, you have to love pre-Code.

Though the story told in Man Wanted isn't terribly original--or of particular interest--the film is worth seeing for several reasons. Kay Francis is excellent as a business woman who has everything but love (naturally), and David Manners is an affable and pleasant leading man. But the real stars of the film are William Dieterle's expressionistic direction and Gregg Toland's stunning cinematography. Toland's work is exemplary, with shot after shot displaying depth and intelligent composition. And who knows if Dieterle or Toland was ultimately responsible for a fabulous shot of Francis looking through a lace curtain? This is a wonderful looking film only partly let down by a somewhat pedestrian screenplay.

There's a MAN WANTED to become private secretary for a powerful female editor. Once found, will they be able to keep their minds strictly on business?

Here is another example of a wonderful pre-Code comedy from Warner Brothers which has slipped under the radar and is undeservedly obsolete. The casting, acting, script & production values are all first rate. The humor is grownup & intelligent, and does not treat its viewers like insensitive Neanderthals.

Scintillating & sly, Kay Francis is perfect in the role of a worldly woman with a wide-open marriage. Her frankness & grace in dealing with her husband's casual adulteries is most fetching - as well as making her character very human. As beautiful as she was talented, it is a shame that this lovely lady no longer receives the recognition she's due.

Matching her every step of the way, David Manners exudes gentle masculinity as her new office employee. Slowly falling in love, he must carefully control himself & not overstep the bounds of propriety. Mr. Manners gives another in a series of excellent performances. Quiet & unassuming, he could always be counted on for a solid contribution to any film. He left Hollywood for a more private life in 1936, never to return to movies, which probably accounts for his near anonymity today. (He died in 1998, at the age of 97.)

Giving very firm support are Una Merkel as Manners' fierce, funny little fiancée; and Andy Devine as his rough edged, good natured roommate.

Elizabeth Patterson makes the most of her small role as Miss Francis' original, somewhat eccentric, secretary; Edward Van Sloan (DRACULA's Van Helsing) has only a few moments as a store manager who knows what it takes to sell rowing machines to the ladies.

Although he's still listed in the credits, the scenes involving British character actor Robert Greig have been deleted. Pity...

'Man Wanted' was another film that could have been a lot more. Have a lot of appreciation of pre-code films and am always amazed at how much many manage to get away with. Kay Francis was always watchable and have seen some great performances from her where she does light up the screen. William Dieterle to me was an inconsistent director, but he did make some great films (including one of the best versions of 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame').

Despite all that promise, 'Man Wanted' disappointed. Or at least to me it did. And this is not being said with pleasure or malice, to me this did have potential to be good for all the above and also because the premise is not a bad one. Is 'Man Wanted' a bad film? Not to me, absolutely not. It is absolutely a watchable film and it takes a lot for me to say that something is unwatchable. Considering its potential though, to me 'Man Wanted' could have been a lot better.

There are definitely good things. The stunning photography being one. Very stylish and sumptuous, and at times almost expressionist. The art direction is also striking. Nice use of music, which is not constant or intrusive. There are some impressive moments in Dieterle's directing, especially visually. A lot of thought was put into the visual side of things and there is atmosphere.

Francis has a character that plays to her strengths and she has a lot of fun with it, without over-compensating. Andy Devine is suitably earthy and Una Merkel, despite having an annoying character, has some sparkling moments.

Sadly too much doesn't work. While there are some good moments to Dieterle's direction, there are some points where it is too routine and not as involving as it should be. The script does have some nice witty pre-code lines, but generally could have been sharper and more acid-tongued. Compared to a lot of pre-code films in the early-30s, the script didn't seem that daring or bold.

David Manners, who more often than not to me came over generally in his roles as competent but rarely wowed, seemed rather bland as a character near-impossible to feel anything for. The story needed a lot more spark than what was here, it took too long to get going, it was not always very eventful and it and the script just ran out of gas too early. There is not much new here at all and despite the running time being brief there just wasn't enough content to fill it, meaning that to me the film felt rather thin.

In conclusion, worth a one-time watch but underwhelming. 5/10