The Golden Arrow

The Golden Arrow (1936)

** (out of 4)

Pleasant, if rather forgettable, romantic comedy from Warner has a heiress (Bette Davis) growing tired of people controlling her life so she hits the town with a reporter (George Brent) who had previously tried to get a story from her. While out the duo have a good time and the rich lady requests that they get married for convenience sake but the reporter requests that he not use any of her money. The plot of this thing is rather stupid and goes in all sorts of directions. While the film remains entertaining thanks to the stars, one can't help but feel that their talents are being wasted in such a minor film like this. Again, if you're a fan of Davis or Brent then you're going to at least be entertained from start to finish but this is clear case where the studio factory was just pumping out material without putting too much effort into it. The film starts off well enough as Davis does a very good job playing the fun loving girl who's just wanting to get out from under the control that people have on her. I thought the scenes with her and Brent at the fair were a lot of fun and it really did seem as if the two stars were having a blast. The film certainly takes a nose dive after the marriage as the screwball elements start to come into play and they just don't contain any spark or laughs. I thought the material just wasn't strong enough and Brent's constant hissy fits were more annoying than charming. Both leads are very good together and we get some nice support from Dick Foran and Eugene Palette but the story lets them all down.

I love seeing George Brent teamed with Bette Davis and according to a Davis biography, she also loved being paired with this amiable actor. So I began watching the film with high hopes--expecting to like the film. Well, although I didn't dislike the film, I certainly didn't like it all that much due to terrible writing and some ridiculous situations they placed these hapless actors in with this film. I won't even try to explain the stupid plot--it's THAT difficult to believe! So what we are left with are two excellent actors trying their best with drivel. As a result, it's good drivel, but drivel nevertheless. If you are a huge Bette Davis fan (like me), then see this film. Otherwise, it's very skip-able and only a time passer.

By the way, films like this one are the reason that Ms. Davis walked out on her contract with Warner Brothers. She reasoned, quite naturally, that after becoming an Oscar winner for Best Actress in DANGEROUS (1936) and being nominated for OF HUMAN BONDAGE (1934), she'd get better scripts--which she didn't. Despite the walkout, she was eventually forced to return to work, but somehow Warner got the point and began giving her better material over the next couple years. Looking at this dull film, I am glad she walked out for better films!

At first sight this movie doesn't look like a particular great one. After all a Bette Davis movies with only 166 votes on IMDb and a rating of 6,5 must be a rather bad one. But the movie turned out to be a delightful and original surprise.

You would at first expect that this is a normal average typical '30's movie with a formulaic love-story but the movie is surprisingly well constructed and has an unusual and original story, which also helps to make this movie a very pleasant one to watch.

The story is carried by its two main characters played by Bette Davis and George Brent. Their helped by a cast of mostly amusing characters but the movie mainly involves just around them two. Their character are involved in a most unusual and clever written love-story that work humorous as well. It makes this movie a delightful little comedy to watch, that is perfectly entertaining.

The movie is quite short (just over an hour long), which means that the story doesn't waste any time on needless plot lines, development and characters. It makes the movie also rather fast paced, which helps to make this movie a perfectly watchable one by todays standards as well. It does perhaps makes the movie a bit of a simple one at times but this never goes at the expense of its entertainment or fun.

A delightful pleasant simple romantic-comedy that deserves to be seen by more!

8/10

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I often like to guess the year a film was made - this was an easy one - with a very young Bette Davis playing an heiress -- it had to be post-1934's It Happened One Night and before her really major late '30s work began.

Yes, it's about an heiress and a reporter - I'd love to see a count of how many films were made post-1934 about heiresses and reporters, probably hundreds. In this case, Davis is a cafeteria cashier hired by a cosmetic firm's publicity agent to live the life of Daisy Appleby, heiress, with the idea that gossip about her will keep the Appelby name in the headlines.

It's not long before Daisy is tired of being chased around, so she asks a reporter named Johnny (George Brent) to enter into a marriage of convenience with her. He needs money to write a book, and she wants to rest. Johnny, however, finds that the good life isn't for him. In fact, it's a big fat bore. He acts out by going after the daughter of an oil tycoon. And you can guess the rest.

Davis is pert, bubbly, and expressive, to the extent that Brent seems a little stodgy for her. I would have loved to have seen her paired with someone like Joel McCrea or the boyish Henry Fonda. I think then it would have been a better film. As it is, it's okay, and she's always a pleasure to watch.

If you like Davis in this, check her out in one of my favorite early comedies of hers, "It's Love I'm After," with Leslie Howard.

Heiress fins in the 30's are most always interesting and entertaining. The message is the same: rich bsd, poor good. He, it works. Bette Davis was a versatile actress who could pull off anything. George Brent made a good partner. 1929-1939 produced the most enjoyable films over other decades. It's pathetic that TCM feels the need to apologize for non PC movies. Soon, movies that display human nature accurately may be banned.

Enjoy them while you can. This is a fun one.