The Mouthpiece

A disillusioned Assistant DA becomes THE MOUTHPIECE for a scurvy assortment of crooks & criminals. His new public persona is mirrored by his shady, lustful private life. Can the influence of two very different women save him before it's too late?

Warren William drives this very entertaining, albeit forgotten courtroom melodrama. With its rapid-fire plot & smart aleck dialogue, the film is a perfect representation of its era.

William was ideal at this kind of role; indeed, he played several others in the early 1930's which were almost mirror images of Vincent Day, the shyster lawyer he gives life to here. With his patrician bearing & interesting bass voice, William's characters were always worth watching. In this film, his courtroom scenes are especially engrossing as he engages in histrionics & sly subterfuge to sway the juries. It is to Hollywood's discredit that this very fine actor is virtually unknown today.

Aline MacMahon gives another of her splendid performances, here as William's world-weary, tough-as-nails secretary who secretly loves him. Sidney Fox is very good as the innocent Southern girl who's smart enough to recognize William's wicked ways.

Guy Kibbee has the small role of a sympathetic bartender. Movie mavens will spot an uncredited Charles Lane as a hotel clerk.

There may not be a lot of depth in this movie, but it's completely enjoyable, for all the reasons other commentators here have listed - the dialogue and several of the main actors. To that list I'd add the pleasure of seeing life in the 1930s, the cars, the clothing, the buildings, the room decor, all stylish and of the period. I especially got a kick out of the scene near the end where a car revs its engines to make it backfire, the driver moving a tiny lever in the centre of the steering wheel. The elevator, the marble staircase - lots to keep you interested apart from the plot.

Warren William is centre stage throughout and is excellent, tough, smart, sophisticated and slimy. In the scenes in which he crowds the innocent young thing, stooping over her like a vulture, his evil intentions are brilliantly clear in his body language; he looks like a vulture, like Count Dracula.

"...why she wants to marry her simpering boyfriend rather than enjoy a life of luxury with Williams is a mystery." Well, maybe a mystery to some people, but most of us realize that women are not generally tramps willing to trade their affections for luxuries.

An ambitious Ass't DA switches his talents to defending the mob. But is it permanent.

Watching the imperious Warren William (Day) as a legal shark is really impressive. He's got all the tricks of a Houdini, along with the ethics of a cobra. Drinking the poison in court is a real grabber. This part of the movie is riveting and dynamic playing to William's commanding strength. And that's so, even if the diminutive ingenue Fox (Cecilia) is a foot shorter and a lot younger, so there seems something illegal going on when they passion kiss. I can understand the peculiar casting here since Fox projects just the kind of sweet innocence that might turn the head of even the most jaded scalawag. Still, the big turnaround doesn't really jibe with Day's power-grabbing character, and in my book, undercuts the initial setup of its powerful promise.

Speaking of characters, Aline MacMahon (Hickey) darn near steals the film as Day's wisecracking secretary. What a shrewd piece of casting since few actresses can actively compete with the forceful William. Yet, she does, and makes you believe it. Good to see her cast as someone besides a maiden aunt or the family wallflower. Despite the story's central difficulty, this is a smooth production, fluidly paced, that demonstrates the expert professionalism of the old studios, in this case Warner Bros. Anyway, here's to Warren William, a great screen personality deserving of rediscovery.

The Mouthpiece (1932)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Highly entertaining moral tale from Warner about D.A. Vincent Day (Warren William) who has a change in heart after sending an innocent man to the electric chair. He decides to switch sides and take the money in return for getting criminals off of crimes they've committed but he starts to have second thoughts after falling for a woman (Sidney Fox) who works for him. THE MOUTHPIECE is such a good film that after viewing it I was rather shocked to realize that not too many people know of it. Warner was the king at delivering these moral tales during this period so it's kind of shocking that this here has been swept under the rug and forgotten. It's certainly a prime candidate for being rediscovered because there's just so many great things going on here. We can start with the terrific cast being led by William in one of the greatest performances I've seen from him. Yes, he can play that ruthless character better than anyone else but this here shows the actor at his very best. The supporting cast is equally great with Fox really coming across good as the woman the lawyer falls for. Aline MacMahon is also very memorable as the secretary and we also get great work from John Wray, Ralph Ince, Morgan Wallace, J. Carrol Naish and J. Carrol Naish who plays one of the thugs. The film has several sequences taking place inside the courtroom and these are some of the most imaginative court scenes you're going to witness. It was wickedly fun watching William work his magic and especially during one scene involving some poison. If I had a problem with the film it was the love story aspect. I just never fully bought why this lawyer would fall so hard for this girl but this really doesn't take away much. THE MOUTHPIECE is a terrific little drama that has the studio and cast doing their best and it needs to be viewed by more people.

As a retired lawyer i would have loved to have the great art deco office in which Williams luxuriates.Also if only i could have had a secretary like Aline MacMahon!Obviously Williams doesn't realise what a gem he has in MacMahon and decides he would try the lounge lizard approach with innocent Fox.Now why she wants to marry her simpering boyfriend rather than enjoy a life of luxury with Williams is a mystery.After all going up to his flat to work in the middle of the evening seems a bit strange,and to find your boss in a smoking jacket even stranger.In my view this is a hugely entertaining film,which i had seen only once before at the NFT.I cannot understand why BBC and Channel 4 in particular are quite happy to show Randolph Scott and Audie Murphy westerns for the umpteenth time but cannot give air time to this film and other classic films of the era.