dir. Michael Curtiz, (William Dieterle & William Wellman - uncredited)
writ. Gene Markey and Kathryn Scola, Donald Henderson Clarke (story)
feat. Ruth Chatterton, George Brent, Lois Wilson, Johnny Mack Brown, Ruth Donnelly, Ferdinand Gottschalk
Alison Drake (Chatterton) turns the corporate boys club stereotype on its head in this playful comedic love story. Drake runs her auto factory like a well-oiled machine, bold and brassy in her demands for hard work and subservience. No time for romance, she invites unwitting newbies to her mansion where she lures them to the floor after plying them with vodka, a wonderful set piece repeated with varied results.
The twisted tale of role reversal sails along breezily, guided by Chatterton's easy charisma, smooth in her wooings and stern in her disregard for the ensuing emotional attachment expressed by the conquered men. That is until a real man, Jim Thorne (Brent), comes along. Thorne is impervious to her ploys, his own man, while still drawn to the woman inside. Naturally, Drake is shaken by newfound feelings of true love and bound to change her ways.
Most intriguing is the filmmakers' inability or disinterest in finding a happy medium for the independent woman who admits to a softer center. The sexism of the era takes the lead as Drake casually tosses aside her apparently foolish yearnings for power and leadership, eager to be an obedient wife.
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