White Woman

White Woman (1933)

Runtime: 68 minutes

Directed by: Stuart Walker

Starring: Carole Lombard, Charles Laughton, Charles Bickford, Kent Taylor, Percy Kilbride

From: Paramount

The matter of fact title and its implications are not its only issues.

Until a few days ago this was a movie I had zero knowledge of. Someone liked a review I did on Letterboxd so as I typically do, I returned the favor by looking for something on his page to give a thumbs up to. That was where I saw his review of a random Carole Lombard/Charles Laughton movie done at Paramount. The plot description will probably remind you of 1932's Red Dust but this is no Red Dust. Something else concerning this movie captured my attention but I'll explain that at the very end.

Like with Red Dust this concerns people at a rubber plantation in Southeast Asia; for the former it was Indochina, the latter it was what was known back then as Malaya. Laughton runs said plantation and he hooks up with Lombard, who is stranded on that random South Seas island as a singer at a “native cafe.” She basically cuckolds him by openly hooking up with other men. Meanwhile, to steal a cliché, “The natives are restless.” If only this was more exciting instead of feeling more flat than a can of stale soda opened a few days ago.

The one highlight is Laughton's performance; he devours the scenery. Laughton-sporting a huge fake mustache and Cockney accent-was allowed to be amazingly over the top and Lombard did not even try to match him-at times it seemed like she did not want to be there. Charles Bickford at least played a bold character and was fine in his role... but he only shows up in the second half of the picture. As this is Pre-Code there are some explicit moments and themes yet even that does not lift things out of the doldrums. The Paramount sets are reasonably convincing and it's only 68 minutes long... it doesn't make up for the expected negative stereotypes and several in the cast obviously having brown shoe polish all over their white skin to portray the Malay people.

Then again, this is a movie which has a shocking plot description on Letterboxd-which was taken from what's said about it on Google. It reads, “Gong beaters turn on a ruthless jungle trader and the well-dressed blonde who travels with him.” GONG BEATERS. That is a term new to me, but it sounds like a terrible insult against any native of Southeast Asia. Was it copy written in the early 1930's advertising the film's release? If you ever want to do a double bill with this and Red Dust, make sure to see this first as Red Dust is the superior motion picture.