User Reviews

She Had to Say Yes is a masterful expose' of a Depression-era America that was dominated by men. Exploitation, manipulation, and harassment of women is the focus of every scene. The film clearly casts men as the enemy, as every male role is a sleazy businessman constantly trying to trick a woman into sex or into making money for him. The only help for the female lead comes from her female friend, who helps her to gain some self-assurance near the end of the film.

Loretta Young is superb as the lead, maintaining a heartbreaking look of hope and innocence while suffering through terrible yet socially acceptable abuse from every man in her life. Also, Lyle Talbot gives a jaw-dropping portrayal of sleazy machismo and ruthlessness that lend to a truly frightening ending.

The film is quite depressing and the final lines of dialogue will leave your head spinning. Unfortunately, the film is not readily available, but if you get a chance to see it, it will blow you away.

Yikes, when they said precode, they weren't kidding.

What a great social studies movie.

Loretta Young, Regis Toomey, and Lyle Talbot star in "She Had to Say Yes," from 1933. To keep major buyers purchasing from their clothing company, an organization has its models entertain the out-of-town customers. Dinner, a show, and there's a heavy implication of some after-show activity to bring in the big accounts. But the buyers are tired of the same old models.

One of the firm members, Tommy (Regis Toomey) suggests that instead of the models, they open these grand opportunities (which have bonuses attached) to the fresh, wholesome stenographic pool. One of the stenographers is his own fiancée Florence (Young), but she's off limits. However, one of the customers is desperate to go out with her, and with a big commission in the offing, Florence agrees. Florence is a complete innocent and thinks when it's dinner and theater, it's dinner and theater.

It goes from there, with Tommy fooling around on the side, and being caught by Florence. One of the buyers (Talbot) is truly interested in her, but some misunderstandings cause problems.

The problem here is that neither Toomey nor Talbot is what you'd call a good guy. But we're given to understand that all men are the same, so beautiful Florence's options are limited.

What a message. But you have to love Loretta Young, so gorgeous and so natural.

We're often given to believe, in films such as Waterloo Bridge, Baby Face, and countless others, that there were few opportunities for women to advance. They were often at the mercy of men who were their fathers, their bosses, their husbands. Since it's presented that way in film after film, I think, sadly, particularly during hard times, this was true.

This is really an interesting film. Depending on your age, think about your grandmother or great-grandmother watching this type of film and what it told them. The code was too limiting and ridiculous; I guess a happy medium just wasn't found.

She Had to Say Yes (1933)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Warner Pre-Code has a sleazy boss coming up with the idea of "offering" girls from his stenographic department to clients in exchange for deals. This is going well until one (Loretta Young) turns down a high-powered client (Lyle Talbot) but soon the two begin to fall in love but more shady deals might happen. This is certainly a strange film for someone like Berkeley to make a debut on but if you're a fan of Warner's Pre-Codes then there should be enough here to keep you entertained even if the film tampers off during the second half. The first half is a pretty interesting mix to the genre as it is hammered home that women are nothing more than sex objects and their only place in the world is to serve men. This certainly isn't a storyline we could see too often in the Golden Era and especially after the Hayes Office took full effect the following year. On that level this film remains entertaining just because of the sexual innuendo, riske storyline and some rather snappy dialogue including a funny little dig at the (then) Republic Party. Young turns in a nice performance because she can perfectly mix that innocent nature with a burning sexuality. Not for a second will anyone not believe she's this sweet girl but at the same time, when she needs to, she can turn on that sexual lure and it too is believable. Talbot is just as usual and he too turns in a nice performance in that Lyle Talbot fashion. What keeps the film from being a total success is the second half of the film when it loses its edge and goes into typical melodrama with one predictable turn after another.

If She Had To Say Yes had kept its cynical edge throughout this film might be undiscovered gem among before the Code pictures. But when it relented and allowed for a kind of happy ending the whole film was totally spoiled.

Loretta Young stars and plays a beautiful young woman working in the garment industry where at least the heterosexual men are really oversexed and expect a little something something on the side when they're buying from a firm. But the older and around the track a few too many times ex-chorus girls just aren't doing it for the buyers.

Number two guy Regis Toomey comes up with the bright idea of using the wholesome young ladies in the stenography pool as 'customer girls' for the buyers. Naturally though, Young is his private preserve. But the lure of a good commission even overcomes that.

Buyer Lyle Talbot is no better a specimen of the male side of humankind as he blows hot and cold and also lets his libido get the better of him. In the end all that seems to be proved is men are beasts.

Another beast in the film is another buyer played by Hugh Herbert. He gives a very restrained performance, mostly on the serious side without his usual manic antics.

She Had To Say Yes had the potential to be a real classic, but its cop out ending blows the whole film up. Loretta does wind up with one of these specimens, but I won't tell.

For his first director's credited film (shared with the film's editor) Berkeley got this strange, sleazy story. The direction is mostly pedestrian except for a few good shots: a nightclub introduced by a track through shaking maracas and our discovery that Tom is cheating on Flo when he is talking to her from a phone booth and a woman's gloved hand takes the cigarette from his mouth. These touches don't make up for a film that leaves a very sour taste in the mouth. Not only is the idea of the film offensive, if believable (using secretaries as call girls for clients) but all the men in the film are scum. This film ranks with "In The Company Of Men" for its portrait of the perfidy of men toward women. Throughout I found myself wondering how this film could ever wrap up satisfactorily and indeed it doesn't. A near-rape scene is shot in the look associated later with film noir. After that no quick Hollywood wrap-up would suffice.

She is quite charming and beautiful in this film, you could see why Gable was so smitten with her (she had his child, denied it for a long time but the kid looked too much like him to believe anything else). This film could not be made a year later after the Hayes code kicked in--young women who worked for a company that also acted as call girls for company buyers visiting town overnight. The sexual innuendo would never had passed muster after the code...the overall plot would have been rejected or asked to be reworked to a point that was unrecognizable. There are some vile people in this film and some misunderstandings that occur that make you frown. Good movie!!

Regis Toomey pimps out Loretta Young to Lyle Talbot, who attempts to rape her, then claims to have fallen in love with her--which he "proves" by constantly pushing her to go farther physically. After Young quits her supposed secretarial job in protest at being used as a PG-13 prostitute, Talbot (the purported good guy) pimps her out to Hugh Herbert, and she's just fine with that. I realize that even more sexism was tolerated and encouraged in the 1930s than now, but it's pretty disgusting that a "Good Girl" puts up with being used as a "date" to close business deals for her various pimps.

This 1933 film is surprisingly frank about the practice of using "customer girls" to promote commerce. A throw away line in this flic is an early indication of Hollywood leftist group think that now dominates the industry.

Flo (Loretta Young) explains to Maizee (Winnie Lightner) why she once loved a two-timing salesman:

Flo: He was different once. Maizee: Yeah, and so was the Republican Party.

SHE HAD TO SAY YES (First National Pictures, 1933), directed by Busby Berkeley and George Amy, reunites Loretta Young and Winnie Lightner, having teamed together in PLAYGIRL (1932). With Lightner's name above Young's in PLAYGIRL, as with SHE HAD TO SAY YES, both films belong to Loretta Young, with her name this time around over Lightner's. Being the directorial debuts of dance director, Busby Berkeley, and film editor, George Amy, it is also notable for being the final Warner Brothers production for its leading female players, as well as a chance for both directors in showing they are capable of doing more than their titled professions. Interestingly, Lightner, whose popularity in THE GOLD DIGGERS OF BROADWAY (1929) landed her a series of starring roles for the next few years (1930-1932), including a similar titled drama of SHE COULDN'T SAY NO (1930), for this production, she was obviously being phased out by being given little to do in both plot summary and comedy relief.

Set in New York City, Florence "Flo" Denny (Loretta Young), works for the garment industry of Sol Glass and Company Cloaks and Suits. She is engaged to Tommy Nelson (Regis Toomey), a salesman for the same company. At the staff meeting, its company president, Sol Glass (Ferdinand Gottschalk), who finds stiff competition is forcing his business to be losing sales. Daniel's suggests by having the stenographers acting as customer girls to entertain the out-of-town buyers to obtain new accounts and commissions. With Birdie Reynolds (Suzanne Kilbourn) the first to volunteer, Daniel makes certain that the clean-cut Florence not to become one of them. When Birdie is unavailable to entertain Daniel Drew (Lyle Talbot), an important client arriving from Chicago, Flo volunteers her services, unaware that by doing this, Tommy will be free to spend more time with Birdie. With the help of her close friend and roommate, Maizee (Winnie Lightner), Florence breaks off her engagement with Tommy and finding herself seeing more of Daniel instead. Wanting to earn back her respect by wanting out as a customer's girl, Florence is dismissed from the company, and later finds herself accused of resorting to cheap tactics tin getting Daniel Haines (Hugh Herbert), to sign an important contract for Daniel, leading to misunderstandings regarding her reputation. Co-starring Helen Ware (Mrs. Haines); Harold Waldridge (The Office Boy); Charles Lane (Mr. Bernstein); Harry Holman, Jed Prouty and Fred Kelsey.

For a movie with directorial credit by two men, it is hard to determine which parts of the story were directed by Busby Berkeley and George Amy. The only scenes pertaining to Berkeley's directorial style would probably be the ensemble fashion sequence featuring chorines from his earlier musicals playing models as Renee Whitney, Toby Wing and Barbara Rogers, along with a one girl night club dance segment. George Amy might been responsible for some of the dramatic sequences, but this only a guess on my part.

While Loretta Young carries much of its 64 minute material, Winnie Lightner is limited and virtually forgotten she's was even in the movie by the time the THE END closing title reaches the screen. Regis Toomey and Lyle Talbot do what's expected of them, but nothing more than showing men to be no different from any other male when accusing Flo for the very sin they are most guilty themselves. Hugh Herbert plays it straight, with little of his trademark buffoonery for which he is famous. Scenes move swiftly, but become a little distorted later on.

Never distribute on video cassette, SHE HAD TO SAY YES, a forgotten pre-code battle of the sexes theme quite common for its time, is available for purchase on DVD and viewing on Turner Classic Movies cable channel. (**)

Wow, even for a Pre-Code picture, this film has a very, very adult plot. While they don't use the exact words, audiences of the day understood exactly what the subtext was in this film! Such sexually-charged films would only be made for another year before the new and strengthened Production Code eliminated many family unfriendly topics from film (such as abortion, adultery and the like).

The film begins at a company meeting. The boss is complaining that the "ladies" that the company has been hooking up with customers have become, at times, an embarrassment--with shenanigans such as locking the customers naked outside their hotel rooms! It's obvious that these women they employ are actually prostitutes. One guy has a suggestion that instead of availing themselves of these "entrepreneurs" that they use women from the steno pool!

In the next scene, it's funny how one of the managers, Tommy, is suggesting to the girls that they volunteer for such work because they'll be wined and dined and entertained. It clearly is implied they'd sleep with the customers if necessary! What a sleazy plot! One of the steno girls is Loretta Young and she's the girlfriend of Tommy. Because he doesn't want her to be molested, he won't let her volunteer for this duty!! However, when one of the more "generous" (i.e, trampy) girls from the pool begins playing hide the salami with Loretta's boyfriend, he relents and tricks Loretta into volunteering. When the client (Lyle Talbot) meets Loretta later that night, he naturally assumes she's a call-girl and tries to push her into having sex. She responds that she's not that kind of girl (YET SHE VOLUNTEERED FOR THIS JOB)! He's left stunned and the entire audience is left with lots of inappropriate and confusing ideas about sex, date rape and the like. After all, he did assume (correctly, actually) that she was "that sort of girl"--though she got cold feet.

While the idea "she said NO but meant YES" is a stupid notion, this film seems to say this is true! And, it makes women out to be hunks of meat--just there to service men. Nice film, huh? And, considering that there were no ratings for films, this movie could easily have had kids in the audience! Who says that they were prudes back in the "good ol' days"?! Also, in a further way to confuse women about dating and sex, later Talbot asks Young out again after apologizing for his behavior their prior meeting. So, the guy practically rips your clothes off and you agree to go out with him again. What sort of message is this giving people?!

It's obvious that Talbot and Young will eventually fall in love, which seems odd in light of everything! In the meantime, Young has no idea her Tommy is pond scum. So, he keeps her dangling--during which time she and Talbot talk over the phone and write a lot. So, the boyfriend is evil and sleeps around but Young isn't exactly Miss Goody Two-Shoes either! What a bunch of depraved people! Even by today's standards they are a rather despicable group of people.

Oddly, despite Tommy's tramping around and his pushing Young to "be nice to customers, he suddenly becomes jealous. He storms her her home late at night and seems ready to force himself on her as he shouts "My money's just as good as theirs. Just close your eyes and pretend I'm one of them!!" WOW. What hard-core dialog! As far as the rest of the film goes, see it for yourself to see what happens next. It's pretty predictable but well acted and constructed--even if it must rank among the seediest films of the era. Even without nudity (like some films did have in the early 30s), the plot is every bit as risqué as some of the more famous Pre-Code films such as RED-HEADED WOMAN and BABY FACE.

The ending of the film is rather depraved and violent. And, in the process, Young is nearly raped! And, only moments later, he attacker asks her to marry him....and she agrees!!!!!!!!Yikes--what a horrid film! What a horrid message! I agree with another one of the reviewers--at times this is all very hard to watch!

It's no wonder with films like that that many in the audience stopped attending films until they cleaned up their act. There was no way to know what films were and weren't family friendly and people were getting fed up with it. Now I am not suggesting that the incredibly restrictive Production Code was the best solution (it sometimes went overboard and forced moralistic endings on many films that didn't need them) but there's no way I would have wanted to take a kid to see this and then sit there trying to explain what's happening in the film!

Wow. I just saw this film for the first time. Totally stunning.

Only back in the Pre-Code era - not even today when we're supposedly so enlightened - could a movie *accurately* depict what actually happens far too often between men and women, between predators and their prey.

Bravo as well for the finale, not a conventional Hollywood "happy ending" at all, but one more solid and shocking confirmation of the dead end deal for so many women in our society. This movie may not always be pleasant to watch, but it's a worthy slap in the face, just like the one Loretta Young gave to Regis Toomey.