June 26, 2022

Joan Crawford is "MJ", the boss of a trucking company who rules the place with a rod of iron. Enter the wily writer "Holmes" (Melvyn Douglas) whom she knows has written a rather unflattering book about how her late father made his fortune. She contrives to have him arrested, wrongfully, then spends the next half hour trying - with the aide of her lawyer Roland Young ("Marsh") to get him to sign a release - a document he steadfastly refuses to sig… read the rest.

Joan Crawford is "MJ", the boss of a trucking company who rules the place with a rod of iron. Enter the wily writer "Holmes" (Melvyn Douglas) whom she knows has written a rather unflattering book about how her late father made his fortune. She contrives to have him arrested, wrongfully, then spends the next half hour trying - with the aide of her lawyer Roland Young ("Marsh") to get him to sign a release - a document he steadfastly refuses to sign. What now ensues is a gently comedic cat and mouse game as he sets about wooing this headstrong woman, despite her obvious hostility. If I'm honest, I found Douglas' character really quite annoying, smug almost - the strong-willed Crawford seems to fall for his scheming all too easily, and predictably - and although it is quite en enjoyable flimsy to watch, it just didn't quite work for me. Young tries quite hard as her long-suffering adviser, and there are a couple of stereotypical, mildly amusing, contributions from Billie Burke and Nydia Westman - who much preferred knitting to working. It's good to see the star trying to play a different style of role from her usual 1940s power-dressing type and she does it well enough, though without too much sparkle. This is amiable enough to watch, it just isn't anything special.

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