Me and My Gal (1932)

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Raoul Walsh's direction is a bit jerky as far as film editing and continuity goes, but there is one marvelous bit of continuity business when the Joan Bennett character phones her sister. In fact, with its striking compositions, long takes and occasional fluid camera movements, the movie has some really good moments overall, despite some held-far-too-long slapstick scenes, such as that with the inebriated fisherman. Spencer Tracy and Miss Bennett have a grand time, the support cast is A-1, and production values are great. The Depression humor and philosophy comes across with force, and, despite its many topical allusions, the movie does not seem particularly dated. Even the running gag about flat feet is amusing in this context. Marion Burns (whatever happened to her? Maybe she got married and gave movies the flick?) makes an unforgettable impression as Bennett's sister. Incidentally, the plot device with the Morse code is wildly implausible, but who cares?

In one of the screen's most realistic romances, Spencer Tracy and Joan Bennett play a cop and a waitress during the depression and prohibition who meet, crack wise, fall in love, argue some and fall more in love, all the time still cracking wise and arguing even more. There's a story, but it really doesn't concern these lovers, only surrounding his job and her sister, a newly married woman whose gangster ex-boyfriend escapes from prison and hides in her attic. The criminal story goes with the setting, the era and the hottest trend in pre-code films, but it is the dialog you will remember, one of the juiciest screenplays of the time. Bennett will delight you, cast against type as the tough-talking but ultimately tender good girl who can't believe that she's in love with a cop, joking with him about his flat feet yet never ceasing her love for him once she realizes he's serious about them being together. The two have an adorable love scene where they coo baby talk like affections at each other while their mind tells the audiences what they are really thinking.There's also several scenes with an obnoxious drunk who won't go away, showing that even during prohibition, an obviously intoxicated man could roam the city streets and cops would pay him little mind except to insult him (and sometimes physically assault them). Veteran director Raoul Walsh whose credits go back to the early silent era, takes this delightful script, runs the camera man into a furious frenzy with the speediness of it all, and demands quick, non-static editing that moves along like a rat in the sewer.There are so many fresh ideas in this film that you never feel bored, wanting to capture every delightful line that Tracy and Bennett throw at each other. It is ironic that 18 years later, these two stars would play a happily married couple in "Father of the Bride" with a beautiful daughter (someone named Elizabeth Taylor) where Tracy would also speak in character while his character remained silent.

ME AND MY GAL is a bit run of the mill cinema except for the intrusions of several neat bits of business. Spencer Tracy plays Danny Dolen a fresh guy and wise guy cop just assigned to the docks. While the big deal on the docks is the arrival of some gangsters from Havana, Tracy and a detective assigned to tail the gangsters are sidetracked by a tiresome, vaudeville broad, drunk. Drunks, known as "pxxs acts' were an old theatrical tradition. Sydney Chaplin, Charlie's brother did a fine pxxs act (see THE BETTER 'OLE [1926]). This is just terrible.The drunk falls in the water, Tracy saves him and is instantly promoted to detective. The local cafe on his beat has a snappy cashier played by Joan Bennett. The gangsters just admitted to the US have plans to robe the safe deposit boxes at the bank where Bennett's sister, Marion Burns works. It seems as though she once had a thing with one of the gangsters (George Walsh, director Raoul's brother) but is now just about to marry George Chandler(!). She marries him when Walsh is arrested and sent away ruining the gangster's plans. Burns moves in with Chandler and his paralyzed and mute father (Henry B. Walthall). Chandler goes to sea and Walsh breaks out of jail. Burns still has a thing for Walsh (she knows what's in which safety deposit box) and hides in her attic. Tracy is able to track down Walsh and protects Burns from her involvement in the bank robbery.It really not much of a picture. George Chandler was given a chance at a meaty role but as he can just pull his idiot face and speak perfunctory dialog its clear why he would be used in so many pictures as a bit player, often uncredited. He didn't have enough character to be a character actor but did really great bits in literally hundreds of films. Here, if he had any presence at all, he would have been brought back for a key piece of business in locating the gunman in the attic. Instead the plot is resolved another, less likely way.The interesting bits are the snappy dialog between Tracy and Bennett, sort of a symphony in slang as they try to out hard boil each other. Latter a similar dynamic but amongst middle class types speaking the King's English would be featured in the Thin Man series. This is an early example of verbal foreplay. This boils over at one point to where they have a go at it on the cafe's counter top scattering various solid objects. This was years before Lang and Nicholson had it off in the kitchen in THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE (1981).There is also a scene in which Tracy says he went to see a funny kind of a movie the other day, Strange Inner tube. There in a tight two shot without any cuts where Bennett and Tracy play a parody of STRANGE INTERLUDE (1932) complete with their inner thought heard on the soundtrack. Previously the play had been parodied by the Marx Brothers in ANIMAL CRACKERS (1930).J. Farrell MacDonald has a few big scenes. His major traits here seem to be getting drunk and tell pejorative Irish jokes. Bert Hanlon, as a dumb flatfoot detective whose act here recalls that of Ditto (Edward Brophy) who followed Tracy around repeating what he just said in THE LAST HURRAH (1958).In all, merely acceptable as entertainment on a rainy night's double bill in 1932, remarkable only for the sharply played repartee between the leads. A repartee which crackles because of the ease and naturalness that people could express their feelings in this pre-code picture.

'Me and My Gal' is an entertaining romance/mystery/screwball comedy, featuring charming performances by Spencer Tracy and Joan Bennett, 18 years before they would pair again in the classic 'Father of the Bride.' Both stars are at their early best here, zinging wisecracks at each other at a frantic pace. Joan Bennett is the real surprise, shining in a role that would have been well suited for Myrna Loy or Claudette Colbert. Worthwhile for the two stars.