The Animal Kingdom (1932)

Good concept, poorly executed.

Crappy film

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

A movie like this strikes me as a matter of taste. On one hand, it's slow, talky, and confined strictly to drawing rooms. On the other, it's a story of some substance, as Tom (Howard) must work through common human desires to figure out where happiness lies. In short, should he link up with the sexy Cecilia (Loy) or with the talented Daisy (Harding). Had the screenplay tightened up, varied the staging, and livened things up, the appeal would be stronger. Unfortunately, the lively butler's (Gargan) un-butler antics don't amount to much bouncy relief. Nonetheless, Loy is drop-dead beautiful and a convincing manipulator, while Harding settles for a secondary and less glamorous role. I still can't decide on Howard—is he miscast or not. On one hand, he's got a bland screen presence, one that works against the pacing. Then too, I'm afraid a livelier mood would have overwhelmed his restrained struggle. On the other hand, he manages considerable subtlety in his portrayal of the conflicted rich man's son. Overall, viewers not turned off by what amounts to a filmed stage play, may find subtle rewards in this searching 85-minutes. For me, it was mainly a disappointing struggle.

It's wife vs. ex-girlfriend. A look at the credits of "Animal Kingdom" will tell you who wins (Harding gets top billing; since it's pre-Code there's no obeisance to the sanctity of marriage). Like other Barry plays, this is under-written for the screen. The best assets of his other films are the actors, usually Katherine Hepburn (in this it's William Gargan as the butler). The only great film he produced is "High Society," and that needed music to elevate it. The under-development in "Animal" concerns the Myrna Loy character as the wife. We're supposed to sympathize with Tom's leaving her, but there's not enough objectionable in how she's written to motivate his abandonment. Nor is there enough bonding with Harding to make her a credible alternative. Real characters and adult conversation, then bogs down with tete-a-tetes in the last scenes and ends arbitrarily.

The unusual theme for this very intelligent and enjoyable film has the decent self sacrificing mistress (Ann Harding) pitted against the merciless, social climbing wife (Myrna Loy).In 1932 Ann Harding was at the peak of her career and this film has become her most popular. She was the epitome of style and class, with her silvery long blonde hair (done in a bun on the nape of her neck), natural beauty and low husky voice. She was a very unconventional beauty for the period. She was also RKO's most prestigious star - until Constance Bennett came along with a more down to earth appeal. So fans, going to see her in "The Animal Kingdom" knew exactly what to expect. Myrna Loy, also had not found her "Nora Charles" persona and was still being given roles that required her to be anything but nice. Karen Morley was producer Selznicks' first choice for Cecilia but Leslie Howard demanded Myrna Loy.After Tom's father (Henry Stephenson) finishes bemoaning the fact that Tom (Leslie Howard) has wasted his life, Cecilia (Myrna Loy, looking completely ravishing) confesses that she is going to marry Tom. Tom is in an "unconventional relationship" with Daisy Sage (Ann Harding), a free spirited artist, and the night of his engagement, he feels he must tell her. Daisy also has some news - she feels she has real talent as an artist, and she wants to marry Tom so she can have children!!! Once she realises Tom is about to marry Cecilia she finds she cannot continue their old relationship.Once they are married Cecilia tries desperately to mold Tom to fit in with her circle of boring friends. She convinces him to publish a potboiler, a book Tom is ashamed of - but it becomes a best seller among her friends. She then convinces him to fire Regan (William Gargan is just stunning in the role he originated on stage). Regan is an old friend of Tom's, an ex prize fighter who Tom keeps on as a butler. He is very funny - he gets drunk and mingles with the guests, much to Cecilia's disgust. The dialogue is pretty racy - "a foolish virgin me - well foolish anyway" says Daisy, when she learns of Tom's engagement. Rather than resume their old relationship Daisy flees to Canada. When she returns Cecilia rings her to invite her to a surprise party. Cecilia feels that by getting all his old friends together Tom will realise what a lot of riff raff they are. The party is not a success - Daisy spends her time reading a new novel that Tom is due to publish and realises how low he has fallen. Behind his back Cecilia convinces Owen (Neil Hamilton), an old flame and also a successful publisher to buy Tom out and take over the Bantam press. Daisy overhears and also sees Cecilia's behaviour towards Owen and realises that Cecilia is not good enough for Tom and is also the cause of his loss of high ideals and integrity.Cecilia believes that Tom has excepted a huge cheque from his father and shows herself as she really is. Tom is surprised at how much the room she has decorated resembles a London brothel he had visited. Even though it is only suggested, it is pretty racy dialogue even for pre- code times. He then realises that she is acting like a high class prostitute - promising him privileges that she had been withholding (the locked bedroom door, his desire for children etc) because of the money she thinks will be hers.I thought it was a super film, quite shocking in it's suggestions, even for the time. The ending was also in keeping with the pre-code code and I can heartily recommend this entertaining and intelligent movie.Highly Recommended.

That was a line from another Philip Barry play which had a bit more screen popularity than The Animal Kingdom. Philip Barry as a playwright was able to find an audience in two distinct eras of American history, the carefree Roaring Twenties and the poorer socially significant Thirties. He did with a clever mixture of social commentary while writing about the privileged classes enjoying their privileges.The Animal Kingdom had a 183 performance run on Broadway the previous year and its star Leslie Howard was a movie name already on two continents. So Howard, Bill Gargan, and Ilka Chase repeat their Broadway roles here. Good thing for Howard, he got to do this screen version of one of his Broadway triumphs. Probably in a few more years Cary Grant might have gotten the call.Howard is a rich young man rather bored with his life and living without benefit of clergy with bohemian artist Ann Harding. But family pressures force him to marry society girl Myrna Loy. Guess who in the end he winds up with or watch the film to find out.A lot of similarities here with Holiday, a Barry play that got a more well known screen adaption. An overbearing parent, snobbish friends/ relatives and two women to choose from, and some down to earth friends for the hero.The players do well here and a special note should be made of Bill Gargan who plays Howard's butler who is a washed up former prizefighter. The Animal Kingdom was Gargan's feature film debut and I wouldn't be surprised if Leslie Howard did the same service for him as he did for Humphrey Bogart in The Petrified Forest.The Animal Kingdom despite good notices failed to find an audience in Herbert Hoover America. Howard's problems do seem trivial in the face of what a lot of people were dealing with. Still it's a good and faithful adaption of a good play.