The Office Wife (1930)

Highly Overrated But Still Good

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

Finishing the passable 57 minute "Adult" flick Lei'd in Hawaii,I decided to make it a double bill,and go for another movie with a run time of under an hour. Being in a Pre-Code mood recently, I decided it was time to go to the office.The plot:After getting author Kate Halsey to write a book about a secretary who acts like a wife to her boss, businessman Larry Fellowes finds fiction to become reality,when his secretary Andrews faints after learning Fellows is getting married to Linda. Returning from his honeymoon, Fellows meets new secretary Anne Murdock, who causes Fellows to act like a husband to his secretary. View on the film:Made in the very early days of the "talkies", director Lloyd Bacon (with uncredited Michael Curtiz) and cinematographer William Rees are unable to hide the marks of the era,with loud creaks from the floor as the cameraman moves,and long dialogue scenes being shot in stage- bound wide-shots. Steaming up the screen for 58 minutes, Bacon and Curtiz step into the risqué world of Pre-Code with eye- catching dissolves over Anne Murdock's sexy legs,and some of the ladies being given a suggestive "butch" short haircut and one size too small suit.Torn from the pages of Faith Baldwin's the prize Cosmopolitan magazine serial, the screenplay by Charles Kenyon makes the office sizzle with playful, double- entendre dialogue tightening the romance between Fellowes and Anne.As the romance fizzes away, Kenyon dives into areas that would be lost in the Hays Code, as (most of) the office staff and their families are charmed by the feel-good Rom-Com infidelity of Fellowes,and the ladies are given the impressively modern sexual freedom that the men have. While they have a very noticeable age gap, Lewis Stone and Dorothy Mackaill give sparkling performances as Fellows and Anne,thanks to Stone's very funny manner of being tempted by an eyeful of Anne,smoothly blending with Mackaill making Anne a nervous flirt for an office romance.

The Office Wife (1930) *** (out of 4) Highly entertaining pre-code about Larry Fellowes (Lewis Stone), a publishing company owner who gets a new secretary (Dorothy Mackaill) and it doesn't take long for the two to fall for one another. THE OFFICE WIFE is certainly a naughty little film and especially when you compare it to some of the other pre-codes of this era. The film kicks off with Stone talking to a writer saying that the bond between a businessman and his secretary is stronger than the bond he has with his wife. From this point on we're given a film with several characters doing morally questionable things, which would certainly hit the editing room floor in a few years once the Hayes Office put a stop to this sort of thing. I really thought the film was incredibly entertaining because of its rather frank dialogue, which often time hinted at some sexual stuff. Mackaill, whose career was hot during this era but quickly faded, is wonderful in her role and I think she did an extremely good job at making the viewer feel sorry for her and begin to care for her. I also thought her comic timing during certain scenes were flawless and especially during one where she's "preparing" herself to flirt with the boss. Stone is always watchable and that's true here as he gives another strong performance. Walter Merrill is good in his supporting role as the wannabe boyfriend. The major scene-stealer is Joan Blondell who plays Mackaill's saucy sister. Whenever she's on the screen she's usually slipping in or out of clothes and the camera certainly loves to follow her legs around. If you're a leg man then you're going to be in heaven here as both ladies constantly have the camera highlighting their legs. Again, morality was a big issue back during this era and it's pretty shocking to see how THE OFFICE WIFE ends. I'm not going to ruin anything but it's pretty refreshing to see.

This is a lovely romance, surprisingly coming from Warner Brothers who were more renowned for hard hitting social dramas. On the strength of "The Office Wife" beautiful Dorothy Mackaill was given a Warners contract but the studio did little to keep her at the top. She had been a top player all through the twenties and moved with ease into the talkies. Apparently, the story goes, the only time she ever got angry with Warners was after "The Office Wife" - she knew it was a good movie but Warners then gave her a second rate assignment. She went on suspension but had scarcely arrived in England when the cables started arriving. The movie was a big hit and Warners wanted to give her a new contract - she was then kept busy over the next few years co-starring with up and coming actors like Joel McCrea, Humphrey Bogart and Clark Gable. Editor Laurence Fellows (Lewis Stone) and his top selling contributor Kate Halsey discuss the pros and cons of a perfect secretary - the office wife - he wants her to write a serial about it. This idea peters out but Blanche Frederici creates a sensational first impression in her "mannish" attire. When love sick secretary (Dale Fuller) finds out her boss Laurence Fellows is getting married, she resigns, paving the way for efficient Ann Murdock's (Dorothy Mackaill) promotion. Ann has her own ideas about life - she wants to work hard and get ahead and not finish up like Miss Andrews. She wants to make a favourable impression but gets off to a rocky start - personal calls on the boss's line, broken pencils and a lighter that doesn't light. As time goes on she becomes indispensable to him and, unknown to her, his marriage to Linda begins to crack. Because Linda is played by Natalie Moorehead, you just know there is another man or three waiting in the background, but they are both civil about it. Fellows knows he has been neglectful and wants to make another go of it but Linda wants to begin again on her own. Ann's boyfriend is no prize either and when his conversation about fresh air and woollen underwear ends you wonder how she could go out with him, let alone consent to marry him. All's well that ends well and it is up to fast talking Catherine to bring Fellows and Ann together.I thought the movie was excellent, although I didn't find the chemistry between Lewis Stone and Mackaill particularly over powering. The scene stealer in the movie was definitely Joan Blondell, as Ann's sister Catherine, and her wisecracks were a real highlight. "I hope I stay dumb - one sap in the Murdock family is enough". "Ted wants a parking space for a couple of babies and free laundry". "It's one o'clock - what's this fellow Fellows think he's doing - I don't know, but I bet he's good at it" - are just a couple. Lloyd Bacon got his big break with "The Office Wife" as well. Before this his claim to fame had been directing Al Jolson's "The Singing Fool" but his future held "42nd Street" (1932), "Footlight Parade" (1933), "Brother Orchid" (1940) and many others.Highly Recommended.

It's interesting how Lewis Stone looks the same in every film I've seen him in from 1925 to 1945. In this very short little drama, a secretary decides to go after her new boss, the owner of a publishing company, for the purpose of moving up in life. He has just gotten married, but this is no impediment to the girl. Her little scheme works, but unfortunately for her, she falls in love with him. There are two kinds of pre-codes 1. Those in which the players start bad and stay bad or get worse. 2. Those in which the players start bad and reform by the end of the film. This picture is in the latter category.The main attraction in this film is Joan Blondell. Her opening scene of getting up and going through her morning routine pretty much steals the picture from anything the actual female lead winds up doing from that point on. Then there is the mannish female author that is writing a book for the publishing company that pretty much mirrors what is going on in the film. I'm not sure what the reason is for her presence in the film, but it is certainly an example of what you couldn't find at the movies after 1934. Not a bad way to spend an hour.