Jean Arthur August: Whirlpool (1934)

There are some actors who seem to be great in everything they do without exception. This month we explore some of Jean Arthur’s lesser-known films to find out if she really was great in everything.

RODNEY BOWCOCK: Buck Rankin (Jack Holt) runs a small time carnival that goes from town to town fleecing the yokels who don’t quite understand how his rigged games work. When a fight breaks out, Rankin accidentally kills a man and is sentenced to prison, where he learns that his new bride Helen (Lila Lee) is pregnant. Rankin fakes his death so that Helen can remarry and be able to better care for his child. When Rankin is released from prison, he changes his name to Duke Sheldon and with his old pal Mac (Allen Jenkins) starts fleecing the rich in high stakes gambling. His daughter has become a newspaper reporter tasked to cover a story involving Duke and recognizes him from an old photo. The two are bonded closely and spend much time together, which fuels rumors of a romance between the much older man and beautiful young woman that is his daughter. Buck’s past appears to catch up to him, which could implicate his wife and daughter in scandal, leaving him with difficult decisions to make.

SAMANTHA GLASSER: The film has some nice visual moments, like the tracking shot that roams through the nightclub before it finds its subjects. The sets and clothes are representative of one of my favorite style decades.

RB: Director Roy William Neill helmed all kinds of movies, but is best remembered today for his work on the Universal Sherlock Holmes films shows a real flare for creating atmosphere and taking you into the story. This film is no exception.

SG: Arthur made this for Columbia, but her intention was to move back east to do theater. The studio offered her a tempting five-year contract for up to four films per year, and she took it.

RB: She’s kind of brash and fits the role of a 30’s newspaper reporter well. I love those kinds of characters and I loved her in this.

SG: Jack Holt, whose rugged good looks were the inspiration for the Dick Tracy comics, was Columbia's biggest star at this time, so pairing Arthur with him showed their investment in their new star. They worked together again in The Defense Rests, released the same year. Both Holt and Lila Lee came from successful silent film careers, but her experience didn't translate to age; she was only 29. Lee was a year younger than Arthur who plays her daughter.

RB: This is not the sort of film that I typically associate with Holt, and he seems uncomfortable with some of the more emotional moments of the film, such as when he learns that he’s about to become a father. Holt typically engaged in he-man two-fisted roles. His ego grew with his popularity through the 30’s and eventually Harry Cohn, head of Columbia got sick of dealing with him and bumped him down to starring in a serial, Holt of the Secret Service, where he portrays himself, essentially an exaggerated parody of his

tough guy screen persona.

SG: Holt dislocated his right hand in the fight sequence at the beginning of the movie, so he still gets an opportunity to play scenes audiences expected of him here. I do find it interesting that critics seemed surprised by his softer turn because we saw him in The Squealer from 1930 last weekend at Capitolfest where he plays another gangster with a good heart.

RB: Lila Lee’s career ground to a halt due to the controversial death of her partner, a car salesman named Reid Russell in 1936. It’s fascinating reading if you enjoy that sort of thing, which I do.

SG: For comic relief we are treated to Allen Jenkins' running gag about his sour stomach. He is the only light element, and he works well as a palate cleanser.

RB: I like Allen Jenkins and am more familiar with his work in the 40’s, though I’ve seen a few of his earlier films in the 30’s. It always interests me that he essentially plays the exact same character in whatever he does and managed to do so for decades. He’s always a welcome presence in my home theater.

SG: Movie Mirror said, "There’s more plot to this story than a dozen others put together. It takes considerable footage to put it over. In fact, too much. Still, it is all vital enough to make us hang on to the surprising end... Jean Arther he gives a restrained, yet sympathetic characterization. Although Jean is not nearly as attractive as a blonde, her return to the screen is marked by greater versatility and improvement."

RB: I have to partially disagree here. Yes, the film is longer than your typical pre-code film, but it moves at a brisk pace and is never boring. I didn’t ever get the impression that it was overstaying its welcome.

SG: Ethel Hill, the only female staff writer at Columbia, worked on the script.

RB: She co-wrote the film with Dorothy Howell, who also did a lot of work at Columbia and had worked on several other Holt films.

SG: Motion Picture magazine wrote, "Every now and then some producer 'discovers' an actor who has been around Hollywood for years and years. Now it's Jack Holt who is revealed as an emotional star, instead of a grim-jawed, gun-toting son of the great outdoors. In a simple little story of father-love, Holt runs the gamut of emotions with a beautiful sincerity and restraint."

RB: Again, I disagree, but what do I know? I GUESS that for Holt, there is a gamut of emotions here, but restraint is the operative word. He’s good and definitely plays against type, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves here.

SG: New Movie magazine said, "Director Roy Neill leads them out of the tangle and the ending is more or less satisfactory-- That's if you like to go home with a lump in your throat."

RB: The neighborhood theaters mostly seemed to enjoy the movie, especially the comparatively squeaky clean proceedings.

"Very good Holt picture. I believe they are cutting out some of the smut in pictures. Okay, boys. Keep up the good work," said C.V. Hunerberg from the Princess Theatre in Parkersburg, Iowa.

"A clean picture that is worth good playing time," said B.J. Vanderby of the Palace Theatre in Doland, South Dakota.

"The customers voted unanimously that this was an exceptionally good presentation," said C.W. Mills from the Arcade Theatre in Sodus, Nevada.

Wasn’t quite unanimous though. Some disagreed…:

"Average program picture that failed to draw on bargain nights," said H.M. Johnson of the Avon Theatre in Avon Park, Florida.

"A couple more like this and Columbia can kiss Jack Holt goodbye. Give him a real story and then watch them come out to see it," said J.E. Ross Jr. of the Strand Theatre in St. George, South Carolina.

SG: The story moves along quickly and doesn't waste a lot of time telling you why Holt's character became a criminal, or how the couple got together, or what Arthur's life was like before her early 20s. We fill in the blanks with our imaginations and enjoy the movie for what it is, an entertaining well-told story with effective editing. That seems to be the skill most lacking in modern filmmaking, the ability to pare a story down, rather than getting drowned in the details.

RB: Totally. They could’ve made this a two hour plus epic, but they didn’t need to. We can fill in the blanks and the film works better for it. I really enjoyed this. Four stars.

SG: The ending packs a punch. Four stars.