Top-notch melodrama starring Wallace Beery as Polakai, a German wrestler/waiter/strong man who does a little of all three at the beer garden where he works - he can carry a big, heavy beer barrel on his shoulder and is really a kind of big, goofy lug - but is a gentleman, and quite a nice fellow. When an American woman named Laura (Karen Morley), a somewhat humorless, sarcastic kind of gal just released from prison, has no money to pay her bill at the beer garden - Polakai (good guy that he is) pays it for her, then offers her a place to sleep in his rooms above the restaurant, no "strings" attached. Polakai soon falls in love with Laura, but Laura is desperately in love with bad guy Nicky (Ricardo Cortez) - so she tricks Polakai into thinking Nicky is her "brother", then gets Polakai to give her money to help get Nicky out of prison. Poor, misled Polakai! But when Nicky turns up, he's not exactly most girl's idea of a knight-in-shining-armor as he hits Laura, uses her, pushes her into marrying Polakai so they can get ahold of his money - the works.
Well, this is a really excellent film with absorbing story and really well-done acting. Wallace Beery is very good in his part here, putting on a German accent and playing the nice guy to the hilt - he really made me want to root for his character. Ricardo Cortez is super playing the dark, handsome, slick and slimy Nicky. The scenes in the beer garden are atmospheric and fun - it looks like quite the place to be with it's checkered tablecloths, giant mugs of beer flying across the long bar, and crowd of tables that circle 'round, of all things, a wrestling ring! One puzzlement - I can't really say why this was called "Flesh" (unless it's based on getting more glimpses than anyone would want to see of Wallace Beery's bare flesh in the wrestling ring) - but doesn't matter, a really terrific movie.
Well, this is a really excellent film with absorbing story and really well-done acting. Wallace Beery is very good in his part here, putting on a German accent and playing the nice guy to the hilt - he really made me want to root for his character. Ricardo Cortez is super playing the dark, handsome, slick and slimy Nicky. The scenes in the beer garden are atmospheric and fun - it looks like quite the place to be with it's checkered tablecloths, giant mugs of beer flying across the long bar, and crowd of tables that circle 'round, of all things, a wrestling ring! One puzzlement - I can't really say why this was called "Flesh" (unless it's based on getting more glimpses than anyone would want to see of Wallace Beery's bare flesh in the wrestling ring) - but doesn't matter, a really terrific movie.