Fast Workers (1933)

User Rating:

7.9/10   

Writers:

John McDermott (play)
Karl Brown (continuity) ...

Release Date:

10 March 1933 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

They were not the marrying kind, so they agreed that neither one could wed until his pal had tried to win his girl away! The funniest love-test ever made, with thrills and laughs galore when they both fall for the same girl!

Plot:

Gunner and Bucker are pals who work as riveters. Whenever Bucker gets the urge to marry, which is often...

Plot Keywords:

Ambulance | Fight | Betrayal | Poker Game | Flirtation

Cast

John Gilbert	...	Gunner Smith
Robert Armstrong	...	Bucker Reilly
Mae Clarke	...	Mary
Muriel Kirkland	...	Millie
Vince Barnett	...	Spike
Virginia Cherrill	...	Virginia - Girl Who Slaps Bucker
Muriel Evans	...	Nurse
Sterling Holloway	...	Pinky Magoo
Guy Usher	...	Scudder
Warner Richmond	...	Feets Wilson - Construction Worker
Bob Burns	...	Alabam' (as Robert Burns)

Also Known As:

Rivets (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

66 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Passed (National Board of Review)

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

When Bucker (Robert Armstrong) and Mary (Mae Clarke) go to the movies, the unidentified film they see is an MGM production of 1931, Laughing Sinners (1931). Joan Crawford and Neil Hamilton are on screen.

Movie Connections:

Features Laughing Sinners (1931)

Nadir of careers of Gilbert and Browning

One cannot help but wonder how this film could have been made, even at the height of the era of mass production at the Hollywood dream factory. It is frankly utterly boring and I had lost interest totally two thirds of the way through. It will be of interest only to scholars and film buffs tracking the demise of the career of John Gilbert. That was my reason for viewing it. The basic plot is implausible and there is too much talk and obscure dialogue. The direction is heavy handed and it appears as if the director considered it a chore. Browning was at his best with macabre/horror type films and he is all at sea here. If Mayer was intent on destroying Gilbert's career, then there is no better proof of evil intent than casting him in such a vehicle in his final role under contract to MGM. It could have been intended only as a second feature/programme filler. As a jazz follower I am convinced the leading black musician(uncredited) in the cabaret scene is Lionel Hampton, then totally unknown, who within a very short time became a leading figure of the swing era in the Benny Goodman Trio/Quartet and later a highly successful band leader in his own right.