Gentleman's Fate

The movie that proves John Gilbert could speak, as well as act. Gilbert does a good job with the over-talky script, and he is assisted by Leila Hyams and Anita Page. Gilbert was never given good material to work with, per Louis B. Mayer's instructions. Gilbert would be one of the first big stars Mayer would go out of his way to ruin. Gilbert died after making a half dozen movies in 1936, when he was only 36. He saw no future in the movies for him -- after being the biggest star in the world just ten years earlier.

For an MGM Movie this one looks Rather Unkempt and Ugly. The Sets are no Great Shakes and even the Outdoor Scenes seem Claustrophobic. John Gilbert in His First Talkie does OK with a Mundane Character and the rest of the Cast seems Hardly Inspired as if They Knew this was a Clunker. There are a Couple of Neat Scenes. A Fist Fight and a Peace Dinner that are Shot with some Panache but most of the Movie is Dull and some of the Scenes are Stilted and have some Heavy Handed Pauses and Awkward Dialog. Not much to Recommend here, even as a Pre-Coder because Truth be Told not much Happens and what does is so Mishandled that it Almost seems Deliberate and some Sources Say that was the Case. A Curiosity at Best.

JOHN GILBERT reveals himself to be a credible actor, with a range not demonstrated in some of his other earlier films. He's the son of a dying gangster who ends up getting involved with bootleggers after falling in love with a society girl. The plot is all over the place with little twists here and there but it seems more like a jumbled mess than a coherent story. But Gilbert rises above the inadequacies of the plotting and gives a persuasive performance as the unhappy bootlegger. Anita Page and Marie Prevost play gangster molls with some silly dialog for comedy relief. Prevost says something like, "What would this world be without bootleggers?" to demonstrate her lack of sophistication. It's watchable, mainly to watch John Gilbert with his piercing eyes and handsome demeanor tormented by the fact that his fiancé decides to run off and marry another man. Ironically, in real life, Greta Garbo left him waiting at the altar.