What makes it different from others?

Am I Missing Something?

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

"Manhattan Melodrama" is the only movie that Clark Gable and William Powell made together. They're wonderful in this film, but MGM and other Hollywood studios couldn't afford to use two of their top male stars in the same shows very often. Besides, few films called for two leads as co-stars, and the studio wasn't about to cast a star lower while he was still on top. I wonder if either actor would have agreed to such, given the opportunity. So, we have this one film of the two great actors sharing the spotlight, and it comes off very well. That's probably because the film is able to break the story into three parts. One for each actor and one with both of them together. That was largely possible because of the plot. Boyhood friends grow up and take opposite paths. One is a criminal and other an honest attorney and politician. Others describe the plot in more detail. This is a very good story in a very good film. It begins when the boys are young and friends. They both become orphaned by a passenger ferry sinking. Mickey Rooney plays Blackie as a Boy. Gable is the grownup Blackie, and Powell plays Jim Wade. Besides the interesting story and the friendship that continues – albeit at a distance in later years, this is a movie with an example, if not a moral, about integrity and honesty all the way. Nowhere is such honor better displayed than in the ending, which is a nice surprise, Although Gable and Powell had only this one film between them, female co-star Myrna Loy had many more films with both actors. She co- starred in seven films will Gable, comedy-romance, adventure and dramas. And, she made 13 movies with Powell – the most well known of which were a series of Thin Man movies. But, a few of their comedies are among the funniest movies ever made. Comedy buffs especially may want to check these out: "Libeled Lady" of 1936," "Double Wedding" of 1937, "I Love You Again" of 1940, and "Love Crazy" of 1941. The latter is one of the very funniest films of all time.

A very aptly named film, this is a fairly entertaining, if overblown, tale. The script, written by Oliver H.P. Garrett and Joseph L. Mankiewicz based on a story by Arthur Caesar, tells the familiar story of two childhood friends, one of whom grows up to be a respectable citizen who attains high political office (two things which are often mutually exclusive in real life) and one of whom grows up to be a career criminal. Admittedly, it was far less familiar in 1934 than it is today. The film is rather well directed by W.S. Van Dyke but it's not on the same level as in the "Thin Man" films. The film earned a special place in history as, after John Dillinger attended a screening of it in Chicago on July 22, 1934, he was gunned down by the FBI.The film stars Clark Gable and William Powell as the gangster and illegal casino owner Edward J. "Blackie" Gallagher and William Powell as the Manhattan District Attorney turned Governor of New York James W. "Jim" Wade respectively. Oddly enough, Powell was Carole Lombard's first husband while Gable later became her second. Both performances are good but neither is on the same level as their best work. Having been orphaned in the General Slocum disaster on June 15, 1904, Jim took the younger Blackie under his wing and attempted to keep him on the straight and narrow. Needless to say, his efforts did not meet with much success. In spite of the fact that he commits murder to ensure Jim's election to the governorship, Blackie is a rather likable character. His eternal loyalty to Jim is quite touching. It does not really ring true but then again I don't think that the developments in any film which actually includes the word "melodrama" in the title are intended to be realistic! A bigger problem is that said developments are not executed as entertainingly as they could have been.Myrna Loy is strong as Eleanor Parker, who starts off as Blackie's girlfriend but later starts a relationship with Jim and eventually marries him. If I were her, I'd have probably made the same choice. At the risk of repeating myself, Loy was likewise better in other films. While she and Gable do not have much in the way of chemistry, her more light-hearted early scenes with Powell are electrifying. This was their first of 14 films together over the course of the next 13 years, most notably in the "Thin Man" film series. They worked so well together that many people though that they were married in real life. Nat Pendleton, another "Thin Man" alumnus, provides much of the comic relief as Blackie's dimwitted henchman Spud while the 14-year-old Mickey Rooney makes an early appearance as the young Blackie.Overall, this is quite a fun film. I hope Dillinger enjoyed it, though it certainly isn't worth dying for. He probably did not have the time to appreciate the irony of the last film that he watched involving the death of a famous gangster, what with the bullets flying around him and all. It's the sort of thing that I would find far-fetched if it happened in fiction, frankly.

Solid MGM crime drama that is best remembered today as the film John Dillinger saw just before being gunned down by federal agents. The story is a simple one about two men (William Powell, Clark Gable) who grew up together but are on opposite sides of the law. Myrna Loy also stars as the woman initially with Blackie (Gable) who falls for and marries Jim (Powell). Great director and trio of stars with fantastic chemistry elevate this above otherwise banal plot. Young Blackie is played by, of all people, Mickey Rooney! Must've been one hell of a puberty. Also of note is the song "The Bad in Every Man," sung by Shirley Ross here. The song would later be given new lyrics by Lorenz Hart and become the classic standard "Blue Moon."

'Manhattan Melodrama' is the kind of film that has been referenced so often to the point where it's kind of become a cliché. The 30's Gangster picture is really one of the great joys I have in film. All of them generally follow the same plot line, an anti-hero gangster lives large on the heels of prohibition but eventually the world comes crashing down on them and they are forced to reconcile for their sins via the Hays Code. 'Manhattan Melodrama' is exactly what it's title suggests, all these gangster pictures were melodramas and sometimes I love that sweet sap.The only thing really different about Melodrama that distinguishes it from other gangster pictures of the time is that it deals with a friendship with two characters on different sides of the law. It takes this storyline very seriously and it works in large part thanks to the performances of both Powell and his counter part who is of course the suave and cool Clark Gable as the gangster Blackie Gallagher. I wished the film had dealt more with the deterioration of this friendship. But you can't cast Gable as someone who is a complete villain and so while Blackie does villainous things he never quite crosses the threshold and always loves his surrogate brother Jim Wade. Powell is good as Wade and I like how the character is written as a man with an insanely strict moral compass who has a friend in Blackie.The biggest thing I wanted to see though was these friends being forced to reconcile their natures with their friendship. These two men can't be friends and love each other in the two worlds they live in. The film really comes to an unsatisfying conclusion largely because of the lack of emotion involved. Blackie agrees with the charges against him and his crimes and is willing to pay for them with his life because of his love for Wade and Wade tries to fend off emotion and execute Blackie as Governor because of his moral code. Never is there a moment where these two ask "Why are we friends and why did it have to come to this?" And if Blackie truly does die because of his love for Wade then having Wade resign as Governor truly ruins his death. If this was a story about dear friendship to the bitter end wouldn't it be more poignant if Blackie made a sacrifice? These characters let everything play out without trying to skew destiny or question it.Why is this a fun picture? Gable. I could see this very easily being forgettable hadn't he been here. Gable might just have been the actor with the most charisma and presence in the long history of motion pictures. The picture works a lot because of Gable who is just so darn interesting and cool as Blackie who isn't really that great a character. The epitome of Gable's presence has to be Blackie's last scenes before his execution. He is really delivering dime story philosophies of life which as written are pretty stupid but as delivered by Clark Gable are amazing. It is just really really fun to see Gable dressed up as the gangster and go through the wiseguy talk in an MGM sound picture no less! What do I think of the film overall? For those who love gangster films it's a must see. It delivers on everything you come to expect and it comes from really one of the most fun performers to watch in film. It's a fun movie.