The Secret Bride

Barbara Stanwyck (the governor's daughter) and Warren (the District Attorney) get married when the film begins. But before they can spring it on her father, a bribery scandal unfolds and the two lovers decide to investigate--withholding key evidence and allowing an innocent woman to almost be convicted of murder along the way!

While this little film stars Barbara Stanwyck and Warren William (both stars at the time), this film seems like it was beneath their status at the studio. Considering their box office power, this film seemed amazingly ordinary and could have easily been made as a B-movie. Much of the problem with the plot isn't just the ordinariness but also how utterly hard to believe it all was. However, if you turn off your brain and simply see it on a very superficial level, it's worth seeing as a time-passer but not much more.

Barbara Stanwyck is "The Secret Bride" in this 1934 film that also stars Warren William, Glenda Farrell, and Douglas Dumbrille. William is a DA who marries Stanwyck and then learns that her governor father may have taken a bribe to pardon a man, Holstock. Holstock's secretary is caught at the bank depositing $10,000, and later the man commits suicide. The couple decide not to announce they're married or it will look as if the DA is prejudiced.

Okay Warner Brothers story with a top cast and excellent camera work by William Dieterle. Most of the budget went for Stanwyck's clothes, which are gorgeous.

Stanwyck and William are two favorites of mine and make a fine couple. As the DA's secretary, Glenda Farrell does a good job as a woman who finds herself in a real pickle.

By today's standards - actually by most standards, this is a short film, but entertaining.

Fairly standard murder melodrama (you wouldn't want to call it a whodunnit; it's too painfully obvious who did it). Stanwyck and her husband (the D.A.) must hide the fact that they are married until they find the evidence to clear her dad (the governor) from charges of accepting a bribe. The more they try to hide their involvement, the more they seem to implicate themselves and her father in an expanding list of crimes.

The cast is good, but the material is a bit too dry, lacks polish, and the pace is slow. Involving, but not intriguing, nor particularly memorable.

Secret Bride, The (1934)

*** (out of 4)

The governor's daughter (Barbara Stanwyck) secretly weds the D.A. (Warren William) but hours after the wedding he receives information that the governor has been taking bribes for paroles. This is your typical, fast paced drama from Warner that has a decent story but works mainly to the star power. William was born to play these types of roles and he steals the film delivering a very strong performance. William has such a calm, cool and collective way to deliver these types of performances and most of them are always worth watching. Stanwyck is also very good, although she delivers a few truly campy moments including one scene where she gets upset and punches a table. You'll know the scene when it happens. The two of them work well together and really carry the story which isn't the strongest in the world but it makes for a fun 64-minutes.

"The Secret Bride" is a quintessential early 1930's Warner Brothers film. It starts quickly, and never slows a step. Not a second is wasted, as the plot relentlessly pushes forward, never pausing to take a breath. Though Barbara Stanwyck is the nominal star, the lines are spread out quite nicely, giving many other actors quite a lot of screen time and dialogue.

Warren William is one of my favorite actors from this era. Tall and darkly handsome, he seems to be permanently smarmy and manipulative. In fact, in the movies I have seen him in, his characters are so deliciously sleazy and disingenuous that it took me a while to accept the idea that he is a genuine good guy here.

Douglas Dumbrille has a meaty role also as Warren's assistant in the Attorney General's office. He too is often corrupt and sleazy (one of my favorite movie scenes ever is the climax of "Mr. Deeds Goes to Town", when Gary Cooper punches him and good). And was Grant Mitchell born looking old? He never appears young in any film ever (and with good reason - he was born in 1874 - and was 58 when his film career took off!)

One really funny moment occurs when Barbara Stanwyck goes to Mitchell's offices to find him. After being told he is not there, Stanwyck asks the receptionist for his home address - which she joyfully gives him without a thought - street address and apartment number! Things sure have changed.

I also enjoy how these early films never actually mention what state the movie takes place in, even though the governor plays a large role in the story; nor are specific political parties ever mentioned - a nice approach.

Don't start watching this unless you are prepared to sit for the whole 64 minutes - with your seatbelt on. A quick, fun ride indeed.