The Greeks Had a Word for Them

I saw this on a Mill Creek DVD collection of 50 comedies. As with most cheap Mill Creek public domain film collections, the print was not in great shape. The black and white was muddy and the sound squeaky. I hope some one will release a good print on DVD some day.

I won't repeat what other reviewers have said about the plot. Although it is jumpy and confusing, one does have to give it credit for being fast-paced, original and surprising.

Joan Blondell and Ina Claire do a good job of providing the comedy. Madge Evans is really the straight woman here. She is quite beautiful and glamorous and manages to steal the picture.

Besides these three women actresses, the movie has a lot of witty lies and a nice air of frivolity to it. There are some nice, subtle innuendos here and you do have to pay attention to catch the cleverness of the script.

This is a solid woman's picture from 1932 and there really weren't that many made.

If you have to watch the Mill Creek print, turn up the volume a bit.

The clothes, coats, hats and jewelry are gorgeous in this 1932 pre-code film that was remade as How To Marry a Millionaire in 1953 with Marilyn Monroe, Lauren Bacall and Betty Grable. The colorized 1953 version had the women being much more overtly calculating in their goal to marry a millionaire. In this pre-code version it was more subtle...they were definitely gold diggers although one genuinely falls in love and wants to marry, it is not as clear that the other two want to marry at all. It seems that they all three like to drink, party and spend other people's money.

It is a lifestyle I guess, but with friends like these...who needs enemies. At least two of them have a fierce competition going and end up sabotaging each other at every opportunity!

Worth seeing for the gorgeous lush clothing...and the three ladies in question, especially Joan Blondel who is an eye catcher in every film she is in...although in this one she had some competition!

This isn't a Warner Brothers quickie but there's a warm sense of familiarity about it and although we don't have the usual Warner family, the three girls do have a sparkling on-screen chemistry. Fans of 'Gold diggers of 1933' will like this - it is of course not as exceptional but it's got a similar plot, similar characters and that same upbeat, fun feel - but without songs.

Joan Blondell enjoyed the opportunity of working at a more relaxed pace in a more luxurious studio with Coco Chanel dresses and that enthusiasm coupled with her natural comic timing make her shine in this. George Barnes on camera captures her vibrancy brilliantly and his love making through the camera leads to him actually marrying her. Surprisingly though, she isn't the star in this, that accolade goes to Ina Claire, whom I confess know little about but she's fabulous in this. Not too sure about Madge Evans but nevertheless considering they've only just been thrown together for this, there's a real chemistry between them making them seem like they really are best friends.

Kind of remade twenty years later as 'How to Marry a Millionaire' but this original version, although only o.k. Is still just marginally better.

Three "former chorus girls" team up to capture rich husbands. But they spend as much time fighting with each other as they do the men they try to snare. This film is based on a a play by Zoe Akins (THE GREEKS HAD A WORD FOR IT) which is also the basis for the softer and more genteel 50s version HOW TO MARRY A MILLIONAIRE.

In this pre-code version, Ina Claire plays the grasping and back-stabbing blonde who will go to any length to get what she wants. Joan Blondell plays the sensible girl (stocks and bonds), and Madge Evans is the sensitive one. All three dish the dirt while they chase after rich David Manners, that is until Claire decides that his daddy is a better catch! Lowell Sherman directs and co-stars as the Russian pianist (from the Bronx) who also dallies with the 3 ladies (and possibly with Manners?).

Ina Claire is totally outrageous here but fun to watch as she chews the scenery. Blondell, Sherman, and Evans are also very good. Manners is rather bland (as usual).

Joan Blondell, Madge Evans, and Ina Claire bring the Zoe Akins comedy, The Greeks Had A Word For It to the big screen. It's the story of three women who have determined that the good times of the 20s won't last and they're all determined to marry men who can support them in good style. By the time the play was making its 253 performance run on Broadway the Depression was upon us. No doubt those in the audience were saying how wise these girls were.

All three are different personality types, Claire's character isn't the noblest of God's creations, but they do have a bond with each other that seems to override all.

Adkins wrote some really great lines and the three of them, especially Blondell deliver those pre-Code zingers with pizazz. Those lines she didn't write Sidney Howard did for the screen and between the two of them we got one good script.

The American cinema has given us four versions of this story, the others being Three Blind Mice, Moon Over Miami, and How To Marry A Millionaire. All of them were updated to suit the times they were made in. An easy task to do because Akins is writing about eternal situations.

For fans of the leads, especially Blondell.