Based on a contemporary novel, and adapted pretty well, this literate comedy-drama has rich Manhattanites generally marrying people they don't love and not marrying people they do. John Miljan and Ruth Chatterton, the richest woman in the world, have a teetering-on-collapse ten-year union complicated by a) Ruth flirting rather aggressively with a besotted George Brent, b) fellow heiress (one line of dialog suggests they're sisters, then that's dropped) Bette Davis lusting after George, c) Ruth not sure whether she loves George or not, and d) John canoodling with, and eventually divorcing Ruth to marry, Adrienne Dore. Post-divorce, Ruth still feels responsibility toward John, complicating her romance with George. You'll be pleased to know it all ends happily, though one of these four dies--and good riddance, the movie suggests. The dialog's fairly snappy, and Alfred E. Green keeps it moving nicely. Ruth and George, married in real life for a spell just around then, seem well matched despite her being 12 years older than he. He's at his handsomest here, and she, despite highfalutin speech patterns (she's always saying "cahn't"), does a lot of acting with her body language and facial expressions. A fairly entertaining trifle, and it's fun watching Warners try to glam up the young Bette.
Review of The Rich Are Always with Us
