Libeled Lady

Libeled Lady (1936)

Runtime: 98 minutes

Directed by: Jack Conway

Starring: Jean Harlow, William Powell, Spencer Tracy, Myrna Loy

From: MGM

My apologies for this being posted a little later than expected; I had to do something unexpected in the afternoon that ate up some time. In short, this is a movie I saw because in a messageboard thread, after I mentioned I had seen The Thin Man, it was recommended to me I should check this out, so that is what I finally did last night. After I give a brief IMDb synopsis of the plot, 

“A newspaper man, his jilted fiancée, and his lawyer hatch an elaborate scheme to turn a false news-story into the truth, before a high-society woman can sue for libel.”

Basically, I taped this movie awhile back and I finally watched it last night; it was recommended to me in a messageboard thread (long story) and as I enjoyed the teaming of Powell and Loy in The Thin Man and this movie also includes Spencer Tracy and Jean Harlow, I figured those 4 together made this a must-see, and I was correct.

It is a screwball comedy concerning how the newspaper Tracy works for accidentally publishes a libelous statement about the rich daughter (Loy) of the guy that runs the rival newspaper, and to avoid a massive lawsuit, Tracy plans a scam with Powell and Harlow (then a real-life couple) to make the libelous statement-that she tried to hook up with a married man-actually a statement of fact.

As I expected this was a really funny movie, with plenty of rapid-fire quips & bon mots and as the story grows more absurd with more complications-and I say that in the best way possible-I grew even more amused with how the story was progressing. All four stars do a great job and it was interesting seeing how various combinations of all four would interact with each other. You also get some physical comedy along the way. It's just a pleasant and very entertaining film.

I'll return tomorrow night.