Laughing Sinners [Import]

This is my FAVORITE Joan Crawford / Clark Gable picture because both characters are so raw and come alive with emotion.

Clark Gable plays Carl Loomis, a Salvation Army worker trying to save the "lost souls." And boy, does Joan's soul need saving in this 1930's Metro classic. Miss Crawford plays Ivy Stevens, a party-girl that likes to drink, dance, and run around with cheap men that don't know how to treat a lady with respect.

When Ivy meets Carl on the streets in a depressed stooper I think it's love at first sight. Carl tries to reform this "laughing sinner." And soon, you'll hear the beat of the Salvation tambourine as Ivy has joined the cause with Carl.

Ivy's lecherous ex-boyfriend is reunited with her and it's a question to see if Ivy will go back to her past life or stay with her new love, Carl and the Army?

Everyone always talks about Joan Crawford. But what about Clark Gable? I think I read somewhere that this was his first picture. And he looks so young and innocent (no mustache) and a lot like Joan's third husband, B-movie actor Phillip Terry.

In my humble opinion, this is one of Joan's best pictures from the 30's because her natural abilities come to life. Perhaps this character was so real to watch because Ivy was a lot like the real Joan Crawford?

By 1931, Joan Crawford had established herself as a serious actress who could play it straight as the heroine in need of being saved or as the hard-edged bitter woman who had others needing being saved from her. In LAUGHING SINNERS, Crawford is the former who has to hit bottom before she can pull her life together. Director Harry Beaumont gives us Crawford as Ivy Stevens, a chorus girl who is so in love with a caddish Howard Palmer (Neil Hamilton) that she cannot see that being the mistress of a travelling salesman can promise nothing but heartbreak. The first third of the film sets up their basic characters. Crawford simply oozes blind emotion for a man of whom she knows surprisingly little. She ignores the warning signs that such a transient relation keeps pointing to. Crawford even treats Howard to an extended dance routine that looks as if it could have been choreographed today. Here she shows the dancing talent that allowed her to win several real life contests that attracted directors like Beaumont to her in the first place. Neil Hamilton as Howard keeps feeding her lines of dismissal that must have caused audiences of all generations to shout at the screen for her to wake up. His oily manner steals more than a few scenes as he stands as a dramatic counterpoint to Crawford's love-struck myopia. He dumps her using a "Dear Ivy" note. She is shattered and attempts suicide but is saved by a Salvation Army officer Carl (Clark Gable). As soon as he saves her body, he tries to save her soul. Despite his unwillingness to take advantage of her vulnerability, the smoky chemistry between them becomes clear enough, rivalling the real life affair that they were sharing. The most emotionally satisfying parts of the film center around his attempts to help Ivy regain her moral balance. Audiences with a long memory will appreciate the brief appearance of the then Little Rascals star Mary Ann Jackson, who, as Betty, helps Ivy to learn that the attempt to help others often results in helping yourself. Howard makes a predictable return, forcing Ivy to put her new-found inner strength to the test. What Ivy learns is that initial failure is no sin, and her joining the ranks of the Salvation Army proves that the only sin is permitting yourself to be used by others. LAUGHING SINNERS is an entertaining film that underscores this often unappreciated truism.

This pre-code Crawford/Gable pairing concerns Ivy "Bunny" Stevens (Joan Crawford), a dancer in a cheap nightclub whose relationship with "Howdy" (Neil Hamilton) turns sour when he steps out on her. She is absolutely devastated and contemplates suicide until a Salvation Army man (Clark Gable) saves not only her life but her soul. She joins him, but finds herself stumbling when she runs into her ex.

There are plenty of things in this film that were restricted from films only a few years later including nude silhouettes, changing scenes, unmarried couples living together, marital infidelity, and excessive use of alcohol during Prohibition.

Crawford is the shining star of this film. We get to see why she was so popular in nightclubs with her frantic dancing and charming singing. We do hear her utilizing the round vowel speech patterns of early talkies, but she is wonderful in her emotional scenes.

Gable is not at his most attractive; his teeth do not seem to have been fixed yet and his character is softer than his later masculine roles, but his gaze is paralyzing.

Guy Kibbee makes an impression in his small role as the voice of reason despite his drunkenness. His scenes are beautifully sincere.

Little Rascals fans will enjoy a small cameo of Mary Ann Jackson.