After spending three years in prison for a crime she didn't commit, shop-girl Norma Talmadge (as Mary Turner) finds employment prospects grim. She attempts suicide, but Ms. Talmadge is saved by shady Lew Cody (as Joe Garson). Then, she joins forces with gum-chewing Eileen Percy (as Aggie Lynch). The two women become successful pseudo-socialites through frivolous lawsuits. They are underhanded, but Talmadge likes to operate "Within the Law". Seeking revenge against the former boss who falsely accused her, Talmadge begins to woo his son, Jack Mulhall (as Richard Gilder), but love gets in the way...
This silent melodrama, imaginatively re-titled "Paid" (1930) for Joan Crawford, finds Talmadge and everyone taking it over the top for director Frank Lloyd. Acting most like it's a screen test, Talmadge nevertheless shines during the scene where her past is revealed to Gilder and Gilder. Then being promoted as an ingénue, future agent Helen Ferguson has a good role as Talmadge's emotional co-worker. A socially relevant point is made, early on, when another woman is caught shoplifting at Gilder's Emporium; because she's a banker's wife, instructions are made to apologize to the wealthy kleptomaniac for the imposition.
***** Within the Law (4/29/23) Frank Lloyd ~ Norma Talmadge, Jack Mulhall, Eileen Percy, Lew Cody
This silent melodrama, imaginatively re-titled "Paid" (1930) for Joan Crawford, finds Talmadge and everyone taking it over the top for director Frank Lloyd. Acting most like it's a screen test, Talmadge nevertheless shines during the scene where her past is revealed to Gilder and Gilder. Then being promoted as an ingénue, future agent Helen Ferguson has a good role as Talmadge's emotional co-worker. A socially relevant point is made, early on, when another woman is caught shoplifting at Gilder's Emporium; because she's a banker's wife, instructions are made to apologize to the wealthy kleptomaniac for the imposition.
***** Within the Law (4/29/23) Frank Lloyd ~ Norma Talmadge, Jack Mulhall, Eileen Percy, Lew Cody