Tonight's Movie: Calm Yourself (1935) - A Warner Archive DVD Review

Robert Young and Madge Evans star in the MGM "B" film CALM YOURSELF (1935), just released on DVD by the Warner Archive.

The odd title comes from the phrase Young regularly says to the worried clients of his problem-solving Confidential Services agency.

Young plays Pat Patton, who is fired by Colonel Allenby (Claude Gillingwater) for romancing Allenby's daughter Mary Elizabeth (Betty Furness) on company time.

Pat starts Confidential Services and soon is mixed up in a variety of client problems, including hiding beautiful Rosalind Rockwell (Evans) from her new stepmother (Shirley Ross) because Rosalind's father (Ralph Morgan) doesn't want his young wife to know he's old enough to have a 20-year-old daughter.

Rosalind ends up becoming Pat's secretary, and before long Pat's romance with Mary Elizabeth is kicked to the curb in favor of marrying Rosalind.

There's quite a bit of craziness in the 70-minute plot, involving a big dog and a baby that's mistakenly thought to have been kidnapped. The haphazardly plotted film leaves several characters hanging at the end; what becomes of Mary Elizabeth, Bobby (Hardie Albright), and Joan (Shirley Chambers)?

It's not really very good but Young and the lovely Evans, who were also teamed in the previous year's much better DEATH ON THE DIAMOND (1934), have a nice chemistry, and at least the movie whizzes by quickly, with fun faces like Nat Pendleton and Ward Bond popping in every so often. Fans of the cast may find it worth taking a look, as I did, but should expect a very lightweight film.

CALM YOURSELF was directed by George B. Seitz and filmed by Lester White.

The print is pretty good, settling down after the speckled opening credits sequence; it's a bit soft but without major defects. The soundtrack is strong. The DVD includes the trailer.

Thanks to the Warner Archive for providing a review copy of this DVD. Warner Archive releases are MOD (manufactured on demand) and may be ordered from the Warner Archive Collection at the WBShop or from any online retailers where DVDs and Blu-rays are sold.