I was looking for a movie titled "Somebody to Love" (1930) and the only search results that came up were "A Lady to Love." When I saw that Edward G. Robinson was in the movie I decided to watch it.
Well, he was no Little Caesar. In fact he was downright annoying.
Edward G. Robinson played Tony, an older Italian immigrant living in Napa Valley. His most ardent desire was to marry a young pretty lady. For that he traveled to San Francisco where he saw Lena Shultz (Vilma Banky) bussing tables at an Italian restaurant. He was too shy to approach her there at the restaurant so he decided to go home and write her a letter proposing to her, but instead of enclosing his own picture he enclosed a picture of Buck (Robert Ames), a younger more handsome friend of his.
Lena agreed to go up to Napa and marry who she thought was Tony. Naturally, she was shocked and displeased to see that Tony was not the man in the photo she had in her possession. She had two choices: A.) marry Tony anyway or B.) leave immediately.
She chose A because she had already quit her job and she doubted she could get it back. Plus Napa appealed to her.
Just because she agreed to marry Tony didn't mean she liked him. She was still very much attracted to Buck. The sexual tension between Buck and Lena was so thick you could cut it with a knife. They would either have to run off together or one of them would have to leave to quell the tension.
The first, and most obvious question would be, "Why did Lena marry Tony?" Just gauging her character and her predicament, I think she married out of convenience and for security. You see that very same thing a lot in movies in those days. Many women simply settled because they didn't have much choice anyway. It's either settle for the man who can take care of you or wait around for the man of your dreams. Most took door number one. Lena was an immigrant herself without many skills. If she remained single she'd be bussing tables for the rest of her life. Marrying Tony gave her a semblance of a more comfortable life.
While Lena settled Tony felt like he won the lotto. Here it is a beautiful younger woman actually wanted to marry him. She forgave the photo switcheroo and Tony hardly gave it a thought. He was truly a pathetic character and pretty hard to like. He spent most of the movie moaning, "Oh my Lena." It was nerve wracking and unsettling to hear a grown man whining like a baby for a woman whom he tricked into marrying him. And then there was his final act when Lena decided to leave; it was enough to have him committed. Some may say he was crazy in love, I say he was just crazy. And I don't think he was really in love. He was obsessed. From the moment he laid eyes on Lena he was obsessed with her and his obsession only grew when she entered his life. That's not love at all, it's a psychosis.
Buck was strange too. It was clear there was a strong bond between him and Tony. When Buck became aware that Lena thought he was Tony there was a spark between them. Buck seemed like a great friend who didn't want to hurt Tony. He even decided to leave so that there'd be no drama due to his presence. It was a commendable move.
Then he came back. And he came back a jerk.
When Buck came back he was insistent that he and Lena pick up where they left off, except Lena had emotionally moved-on over the three months he was gone. Instead of him picking up on her change of heart and fidelity towards Tony he tried to blackmail her into being cozy with him.
That led to the final scene in which Tony went crazy with rage, anger, and jealousy. Like I said, it wasn't due to love in my opinion, it was due to obsession. Lena stayed, Buck left again, and all was good between Tony and Lena. Personally, I don't think it was, but the credits rolled anyway.
I didn't like the movie and it was the characters that ruined it. Lena was perfectly fine. She was caught in a bad situation and she was trying to make the best of it. Tony was reprehensible from beginning to end. He was a grown child. Buck's character was inexplicable simply because of his behavior change over three months. It was clear he was there to advance the plot and create drama, but it was done so awkwardly it only served to make the movie worse.
Free on Tubi.
Well, he was no Little Caesar. In fact he was downright annoying.
Edward G. Robinson played Tony, an older Italian immigrant living in Napa Valley. His most ardent desire was to marry a young pretty lady. For that he traveled to San Francisco where he saw Lena Shultz (Vilma Banky) bussing tables at an Italian restaurant. He was too shy to approach her there at the restaurant so he decided to go home and write her a letter proposing to her, but instead of enclosing his own picture he enclosed a picture of Buck (Robert Ames), a younger more handsome friend of his.
Lena agreed to go up to Napa and marry who she thought was Tony. Naturally, she was shocked and displeased to see that Tony was not the man in the photo she had in her possession. She had two choices: A.) marry Tony anyway or B.) leave immediately.
She chose A because she had already quit her job and she doubted she could get it back. Plus Napa appealed to her.
Just because she agreed to marry Tony didn't mean she liked him. She was still very much attracted to Buck. The sexual tension between Buck and Lena was so thick you could cut it with a knife. They would either have to run off together or one of them would have to leave to quell the tension.
The first, and most obvious question would be, "Why did Lena marry Tony?" Just gauging her character and her predicament, I think she married out of convenience and for security. You see that very same thing a lot in movies in those days. Many women simply settled because they didn't have much choice anyway. It's either settle for the man who can take care of you or wait around for the man of your dreams. Most took door number one. Lena was an immigrant herself without many skills. If she remained single she'd be bussing tables for the rest of her life. Marrying Tony gave her a semblance of a more comfortable life.
While Lena settled Tony felt like he won the lotto. Here it is a beautiful younger woman actually wanted to marry him. She forgave the photo switcheroo and Tony hardly gave it a thought. He was truly a pathetic character and pretty hard to like. He spent most of the movie moaning, "Oh my Lena." It was nerve wracking and unsettling to hear a grown man whining like a baby for a woman whom he tricked into marrying him. And then there was his final act when Lena decided to leave; it was enough to have him committed. Some may say he was crazy in love, I say he was just crazy. And I don't think he was really in love. He was obsessed. From the moment he laid eyes on Lena he was obsessed with her and his obsession only grew when she entered his life. That's not love at all, it's a psychosis.
Buck was strange too. It was clear there was a strong bond between him and Tony. When Buck became aware that Lena thought he was Tony there was a spark between them. Buck seemed like a great friend who didn't want to hurt Tony. He even decided to leave so that there'd be no drama due to his presence. It was a commendable move.
Then he came back. And he came back a jerk.
When Buck came back he was insistent that he and Lena pick up where they left off, except Lena had emotionally moved-on over the three months he was gone. Instead of him picking up on her change of heart and fidelity towards Tony he tried to blackmail her into being cozy with him.
That led to the final scene in which Tony went crazy with rage, anger, and jealousy. Like I said, it wasn't due to love in my opinion, it was due to obsession. Lena stayed, Buck left again, and all was good between Tony and Lena. Personally, I don't think it was, but the credits rolled anyway.
I didn't like the movie and it was the characters that ruined it. Lena was perfectly fine. She was caught in a bad situation and she was trying to make the best of it. Tony was reprehensible from beginning to end. He was a grown child. Buck's character was inexplicable simply because of his behavior change over three months. It was clear he was there to advance the plot and create drama, but it was done so awkwardly it only served to make the movie worse.
Free on Tubi.