Women reporters in classic films were usually relegated to being "sob sisters", society columnists or running an advice column. In the case of Joan Blondell here, she's right in the thickness of everything, and it doesn't hurt to be the girlfriend of the tough editor (Pat O'Brien) in getting a good story. As the film starts, she is griping of being assigned to cover a railroad crash (dramatically portrayed in the opening segment) and manages to get enough of the scoop (and a picture) especially when she tricks the reporter from another paper to sharing what he has gotten. She's funny and clever, tough, yet typical woman, as she strives to get O'Brien to take the night off for some dancing and drinking. When he stands her up, she's furious, but the brief glimpse of a glamorous socialite (Margaret Lindsay) gets her attention. O'Brien gets the scoop on the death of a wealthy man who may have been poisoned, and he manipulates Blondell into taking on the story. It turns out that Lindsay is the man's widow which brings out Blondell's tough side as she strives to get the story, even if the paper is threatened with a libel suit when Blondell insinuates that Lindsay is the top suspect in the man's murder. But as she finds out, there is more to the story, and it takes not only her integrity but her intelligence to outwit O'Brien as he insists she go for one angle in getting the story while she insists on a completely different angle.
By far, this is Blondell's film all the way, a man's picture with a woman in the lead. It is everything that great journalism films are all about, going back to "The Front Page" and continuing with "Five Star Final" and dozens of other films that dealt with reporters, usually covering stories that are more scandal than substance. Blondell develops her character here beautifully, and you get to see her ambition, her ruthlessness, her tenderness, and her being willing to change her mind when all the facts come together. This might have just seemed like another contract assignment to her at the time (the type of film that gets overlooked at award time), but Blondell's performance is among her best, and one that could have easily gotten her a Best Actress nomination had the studio promoted her a bit more. The mixture of comedy and pathos here (especially in a scene where Blondell tells Lindsay off for not cooperating in her own defense) is brilliantly executed. and a scene where O'Brien outwits Blondell that leaves her screaming on the street is hysterically funny as well as poignant.
O'Brien is his usual cracker jack fast talking heel here, likable even if he's rather crass, but he does not get to do as much as Blondell and is thus secondary to the plot. Lindsay gives hints into the coolness of her society character with enough references to the past to make her more than just a drawing by numbers cardboard cutout. John Litel gives a very good performance as the mysterious doctor connected with Lindsay, while Walter Byron is deliciously sleazy as a gigolo type whom Blondell utilizes to get information on her story. She gets in a good couple of slugs on him when he gets onto her, a rare chance in movies to see a woman hit a man and not end up with a black eye, or worse, dead. Seeing Blondell be as tough as any man is really satisfying, especially when it comes to getting it on O'Brien. The ending gives a hint that a follow-up might have been planned, but that was not to be. However, for a one entry newspaper comedy/drama, this one deserves to be researched a lot more, especially for the rare way it allows its female leading character to be just as commanding as any male character in the very macho surroundings of Warner Brothers.
By far, this is Blondell's film all the way, a man's picture with a woman in the lead. It is everything that great journalism films are all about, going back to "The Front Page" and continuing with "Five Star Final" and dozens of other films that dealt with reporters, usually covering stories that are more scandal than substance. Blondell develops her character here beautifully, and you get to see her ambition, her ruthlessness, her tenderness, and her being willing to change her mind when all the facts come together. This might have just seemed like another contract assignment to her at the time (the type of film that gets overlooked at award time), but Blondell's performance is among her best, and one that could have easily gotten her a Best Actress nomination had the studio promoted her a bit more. The mixture of comedy and pathos here (especially in a scene where Blondell tells Lindsay off for not cooperating in her own defense) is brilliantly executed. and a scene where O'Brien outwits Blondell that leaves her screaming on the street is hysterically funny as well as poignant.
O'Brien is his usual cracker jack fast talking heel here, likable even if he's rather crass, but he does not get to do as much as Blondell and is thus secondary to the plot. Lindsay gives hints into the coolness of her society character with enough references to the past to make her more than just a drawing by numbers cardboard cutout. John Litel gives a very good performance as the mysterious doctor connected with Lindsay, while Walter Byron is deliciously sleazy as a gigolo type whom Blondell utilizes to get information on her story. She gets in a good couple of slugs on him when he gets onto her, a rare chance in movies to see a woman hit a man and not end up with a black eye, or worse, dead. Seeing Blondell be as tough as any man is really satisfying, especially when it comes to getting it on O'Brien. The ending gives a hint that a follow-up might have been planned, but that was not to be. However, for a one entry newspaper comedy/drama, this one deserves to be researched a lot more, especially for the rare way it allows its female leading character to be just as commanding as any male character in the very macho surroundings of Warner Brothers.