GREAT GOD GOLD
US, 1935, 71 minutes, Black-and-white.
Sidney Blackmer, Martha Sleeper, Regis Toomey, Edwin Maxwell, Ralf Harolde, Maria Alba, John T. Murray, Gloria Shea, George Irving.
Directed by Arthur Lubin.
Quite a striking title. This is a film focusing on the world of finance, tapping into the years of prosperity before 1929, focusing on the Great Depression, so many losing fortunes, the suicides, the exploitation by companies which specialised in receivership of doomed enterprises. (Some commentators have made the comparison with the crash of 50 years later an the character of Gordon Gecko.)
Sidney Blackmer plays John Hart, a financier, genial and agreeable, observing prosperity and gaining the attention of Phil Stuart, Regis Toomey, a journalist who features an interview with him making a forecast of disaster. When the disaster occurs, some crooked businessmen approach John Hart to join them in a receivership company. In all his dealings, he tosses a coin, gets someone to call and follows what happens. His first test is a hotel, the audience seeing the businessman who invested in the hotel and is about to take a great loss. His daughter returns from holiday in Paris, fashionable. He kills himself.
John Hart continues to prosper, taking on other companies. Phil Stuart continues as his friend. The two businessmen continue to visit him but wanting to sign a contract in terms of the sharing of the profits. In the meantime, the businesses and daughter, Marcia, has been trying to confront Hart but has failed, eventually intruding, verbally insulting him. In the meantime,Hart is carrying on with the wife of the hatchet man for the business.
The latter part of the film shows another company in danger, Hart wanting to take over, his partners pressurising him. He discovers that Marcia is employed by this company and is trying to find documentation to bring him to court. He is attracted to her, discovers what she is doing, invites her to dinner. In the meantime, the jealous wife has seen him with Marcia and explains everything to her husband who comes to the apartment and shoots Hart.
He is wounded, but stays for the dinner, Marcia looking through documents, his giving her the contract, a kind of repentance for what he has done, and dies.
Rather different from the small-budget crime thrillers of the period, still interesting in its presentation of the financial world, double-dealing, loss of integrity.
1. A film of the 1930s, pre-Depression issues, the Depression, post-depression finances?
2. Small budget, brief running time, strong characters, situations, interactions? The musical score?
3. The introduction of the theme, the prosperity of 1927, 1928, the buildup to the Depression? The depression hitting, the collage of businessmen hit, failures in business, suicides?
4. The character of John Hart, sitting in the exchange, observing? Genial? Shrewd? Yet his having the coin, always tossing the coin and having someone call and his following this? His interview with Stuart, his predicting the collapse? His reputation?
5. The businessman, approaching heart, the plan, Nitto as the hatchet man? And the presence of his wife? The discussions, the agreements?
6. The Excelsior hotel, the manager, his losses, the return of Marcia, fashions from Paris, his delight in seeing her, his killing himself? The effect on her? Her trying to get an appointment with Hart? The sympathy from the secretary? Hart avoiding her, her getting in, seeing the wife with Hart, her anger and insulting him?
7. The partners, sleazy characters, like Laurel and Hardy in their interactions with each other? Their greed, Hart wanting to change the contract, their wanting a written contract? His not signing? The later bringing it, his agreement?
8. The new company for the takeover? Hart visiting the owner? Finding Marcia working for him? Marcia and her attitudes, with Hart, filing the documents? Turning on the intercom and hearing the agreement, the signing of the contract?
9. Marcia and Stewart, working together, the attraction?
10. Hart arranging the dinner, at the apartment, Nitti and his jealousy, Hart and his previous skills in explaining everything away? The jealous wife seeing Hart with Marcia? Nitto shooting him? The dinner, the collage, Marcia arriving, searching the documents, the wounded Hart sitting down, giving her the document, his change? Dying?
11. A brief drama but convincing about exploitation and the business world?
