Far from Perfect, Far from Terrible

Absolutely Fantastic

A waste of 90 minutes of my life

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

There's a certain point of time in the very early 1930s that marks the difference (for me) between modern film-making, and the creaky, clumsy early talkies. It varies from project to project and studio to studio. I just couldn't quite make myself watch Columbia's/Stanqyck's 1931 pic "Ten Cents A Dance", which seemed way too dated, but I enjoyed this Columbia/Stanwyck pic made just a year later. It seemed more modern.Here, a waitress falls in love with a wealthy son of a domineering mother Stanwyck and Regis Toomey, while the mother is played by Clara Blandick (Auntie Em in "The Wizard Of Oz"). Mother uses an overblown heart condition to break up the young couple. When that fails, a powerful friend of the mother has Stanwyck jailed on a bogus morals charge. But Stanwyck is strengthened by adversity and becomes a successful showgirl. Will Stanwyck and Toomey reunite? There are some interesting twists here.Stanwyck is very, very good here. My respect for her as an actress has grown substantially as TCM has been highlighting some of her early films. We have forgotten what a formidable actress she was. Regis Toomey was...interesting here. Very pleasant, but just a tad stiff...you can see why he never became a top draw, but I rather enjoyed him here.There are a few spots where the direction of the film came up short, the omost obvious being the scene where the then successful actress tells Toomey off. It just doesn't fit the situation, although handled differently it might have. And the ending is all to quick, with the mother suddenly relenting and blessing the marriage...right after she was about to murder Stanwyck and/or commit suicide. But that's the way some of these old films are, and at least this one mostly handles the story pretty well.It's worth mentioning character actress Zazu Pitts here. Unfortunately, in her later years (and I do remember her in the 1950s), Zazu Pitts became a bit of a caricature of herself. But here, not that long after being an actress in silent films, she was still entertaining, and not over the top.You can enjoy this film if you like older flicks, although it probably won't end up on your DVD shelf.

When waitress Barbara Stanwyck falls for wealthy Regis Toomey, she's ready to take a leap into high society with him, but his mother (Clara Blandick) won't let that happen. She is controlling of her son, and uses an apparent heart ailment to keep him at her side. She considers Stanwyck to be gosh and beneath her and has her lawyer arrange for her to be arrested on a morals charge. Stanwyck ends up becoming a burlesque star, runs into Toomey again, and this time, mother Blandick is determined that there is no way they will marry.In a plot line often used over the years, "Shopworn" is nothing different. Stanwyck is beautifully photographed and excellent as always, but Toomey is a dreadfully dull leading man. Blandick, who will be instantly recognized as "The Wizard of Oz's" kindly Auntie Em, is unfortunately given a one-dimensional society matron role. There is nothing remotely likable about her, even though she is basically doing what she was directed to do. Zasu Pitts adds some predictable "oh dear" type comedy as Stanwyck's aunt who stands by her throughout the ordeal of her imprisonment and eventual release by becoming her maid and companion. A better film with the same theme is the same year's "Wayward" with Nancy Carroll.The film really is too short to explain just why Blandick is so controlling, why Stanwyck became a Burlesque queen so fast after getting out of the reformatory, and why Toomey won't stand up to his mama. The ending scene between Blandick and Stanwyck seems too forced to be believable. I've seen this film numerous times (mostly its not too clear public domain print) and don't seem to remember the beginning where Stanwyck's father is killed while a mountain is dynamited, so the TCM print I saw seems a few minutes longer. At least it is in good shape. Anything with Stanwyck is worth watching, but for her pre-code films, I highly recommend her Capra films at Columbia and the ones she did at Warners. Her non-Capra Columbia films are sadly mediocre.

Working class heroine Barbara Stanwyck is tough as nails as she spits in "decent society's" face rather than buckle to bribe or threat as a waitress in an other side of the tracks romance with a med student in Shopworn.The son of an overly possessive mother, David Livingston falls hard for tip chaser Kitty Lane at a local greasy spoon. Clinging mom is not about to let this happen and she wastes no time in exercising her considerable pull in getting a big time judge relative to send her to the slammer for 90 days on morals charges. Upon release Kitty goes on stage and makes it big. Six years later she runs into David, now a doctor again along with his mother still intent on keeping a firm grip on him.There is some very ugly abuse of power that takes place in Shopworn as the son obsessed mother badgers the judge to do her corrupt bidding in getting Kitty out of the way. There are also swipes at law enforcement, the penal system and polite society, with Kitty being an ideal lynch pin for such actions. As Kitty, Stanwyck does an excellent job of vociferously exposing hypocrisy, especially in the scene where she is bribed and threatened as she throws the money in the judge's face and berates the police. The ending is contrived however and the sickeningly sweet finale is hard to swallow. Babs is too good for the lot of 'em. Mom and son (a wincingly woosie performance by Regis Toomey) don't deserve to be in the same room as her.

In her tenth film, Barbara Stanwyck is the poor, working girl (Kitty Lane) who only wants to marry the man she loves, but his snobby rich family keeps interfering. Filmed J-u-s-t before the production code came into being, they put her away on "morals charges". Regis Toomey (competent, but Mr. monotone) stars as David Livingston, who wants to marry Kitty, but doesn't have the guts to stand up to his family. They go their separate ways, but meet up again later, when Kitty has become the successful entertainer, although they don't make it clear just what she does for a living now; Wearing rings and fancy jewelry when they meet up again, she tells him "Careful Dave, I'm a notorious, woman, and you'll probably get yourself talked about!" Oscar Apfel (always played the judge or the police chief) and Clara Blandick (Mom Livingston) team up to stop the marriage, but it all works out in the end... One of Nick Grinde's first talkies as Director. He and Zasu Pitts (Dot) had been in silent movies for YEARS before this film. Fun film, no big surprises.