She Done Him Wrong (1933)

Director:

Lowell Sherman

Writers:

Mae West (play)
Harvey F. Thew (writer) ...

Release Date:

9 February 1933 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Plot:

New York singer and nightclub owner Lady Lou has more men friends than you can imagine. Unfortunately...

Plot Keywords:

Captain | Singer | Jealousy | Jewelry | Cabaret Singer

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 win

Cast

Mae West	...	Lady Lou
Cary Grant	...	Capt. Cummings
Owen Moore	...	Chick Clark
Gilbert Roland	...	Serge Stanieff
Noah Beery	...	Gus Jordan
David Landau	...	Dan Flynn
Rafaela Ottiano	...	Russian Rita
Dewey Robinson	...	Spider Kane
Rochelle Hudson	...	Sally
Tammany Young	...	Chuck Connors
Fuzzy Knight	...	Ragtime Kelly
Grace La Rue	...	Frances Kelly
Robert Homans	...	Doheney
Louise Beavers	...	Pearl (Lou's maid)

Also Known As:

Diamond Lady (USA) (working title)
Diamond Lil (USA) (working title)
Diamonds (USA) (working title)
Ruby Red (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

66 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording)

Certification:

UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (re-rating) (2005) | Finland:(Banned) | USA:Approved

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

At 66 minutes, this is the shortest movie to ever receive an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture.

Goofs:

Continuity: Lou's hands are at her side when she starts the "Frankie and Johnny" song, but on her hips in the next cut when seen from behind.

Quotes:

Lady Lou: It was a toss up between whether I go in for diamonds or sing in the choir. The choir lost.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "The Girls Next Door: Calendar Girls (#3.5)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

Pop Goes the Weasel

Classic Early-Talkie Comedy Deserves Its Classic Status

One of the seeming paradoxes of film-making is that historical period pieces age much better than movies set in the present or the future. That certainly is true of this classic comedy. Co-written by its star as a play called "Diamond Lil" about a turn-of-the-century chanteuse with no shame and her own standards of personal morals, She Done Him Wrong seamlessly blends the backdrop of turn-of-the-century New York politics with fast wisecracking patter and plot-lines that blend seamlessly. To me, it packs twice the action and four times the wit of one of today's comedies into about half the screen time.

This was Mae West's second movie, and it established her as an immediate star. Although not pretty even by the standards of the day and much less so by today's standards, she commands every man's attention by her very presence. Cary Grant flashes star quality in each of his scenes as the ideal foil to West. Filled with clever double entendres and disarmingly bawdy situations, She Done Him Wrong is every thing a period comedy should aspire to be, and more. The title is a role reversal on the refrain from "Frankie and Johnnie", the turn-of-the-century ditty West sings to begin the movie's climactic wrap-up.

Any movie lover willing to value this classic by the standards of the day is in for a treat.