The Man in Possession (1931)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Writers:

H.M. Harwood (play)
Sarah Y. Mason (screen adaptation)

Release Date:

4 July 1931 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot Keywords:

Bailiff | Ex Convict | Maid | Prison | Family Relationships

Cast

Robert Montgomery	...	Raymond Dabney
Charlotte Greenwood	...	Clara
Irene Purcell	...	Crystal Wetherby
C. Aubrey Smith	...	Mr. Dabney
Beryl Mercer	...	Mrs. Alice Dabney
Reginald Owen	...	Claude Dabney
Alan Mowbray	...	Sir Charles Cartwright
Maude Eburne	...	Esther
Forrester Harvey	...	A Bailiff
Yorke Sherwood	...	Mr. Higginson - a Butcher

Runtime:

84 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | USA:TV-PG (TV rating)

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

Austrian actress Nora Gregor supposedly learned English for a role in this film, but she was not seen in the TCM print.

Quotes:

Clara: Are you trying to be funny?
Raymond Dabney: Yes.
Clara: Try harder.

Movie Connections:

Version of "The United States Steel Hour: The Man in Possession (#1.4)" (1953)

Soundtrack:

The Donkey Serenade

Delightful

You can't do much better than P.G. Wodehouse. Unless it's Robert Montgomery, who is both funny and sexy in this playful romp. Raymond is a Britisher just sprung from the stir for a "mixup about a car." His adoring mother is delighted to have him home, but his father and social-climbing brother want to pay him to leave the country so as to avoid the inevitable taint upon their names from association. Instead of taking their insulting offer, he gets a job as a sheriff's assistant, and his first job is to guard the belongings of a lady who owes many debts and is in danger of landing in the jug herself. Wouldn't you know it, it's the night her fiancé and his parents are coming to dinner. Dash the luck! Crystal's charm entices Raymond to pose as her butler instead of her jailer for the night. Of course, the fiancé is Raymond's boorish brother, who thinks he's landed the big bucks, and hilarity ensues.

The casting is perfect, from Charlotte Greenwood as the harried maid, Reginald Owen as the brother, C.Aubrey Smith as the blustering father to Irene Purcell as the sexy and enticing Crystal. It's a mystery to me why Montgomery isn't more of a household name. He was an MGM leading man with some of the most famous leading ladies - Garbo, Crawford, Shearer, Lombard, Loy - yet he's almost forgotten today. It's sometimes hard to see the sex appeal of stars from yesteryear, unless they have the kind of transcendent sexuality of a Gable or Harlow, but Montgomery had the boy-next-door quality of Jimmy Stewart AND the handsome suavity of Cary Grant all put together, and was a fine comedic actor.

Since this is a precode film, the sex is at least implied, as it absolutely would not be a few years later, or at least not without punishing the participants. Raymond and Crystal get intimate within hours of meeting, and apparently it was quite passionate, as the torn lingerie in several other posts suggests. As Crystal lies in sublime satisfaction the morning after, Raymond makes her breakfast, complete with rose and bacon spelling out "LOVE" on top of her eggs. Adorable with a capital A. Crystal's been living on her wits and the generosity of male benefactors for quite some time, so true love is a refreshing change. Both Raymond and Crystal are the kind of characters who would not go unpunished with the advent of the pointlessly moralistic production code in a few years, but here we get to enjoy two people who've made mistakes find each other and start anew.

Naughty double-entendres abound. Raymond's boss comes to the house to see how he's got on with the job, and says to the lady that he hopes she's had "satisfaction" while Montgomery's eyes roll suggestively.

All in all, a thoroughly enjoyable movie. Funny and touching, a chance to see how Hollywood did it right! You won't be disappointed.