Tonight's Movie: The House on 56th Street (1933) - A Warner Archive DVD Review

THE HOUSE ON 56TH STREET (1933) is a very good pre-Code melodrama available on DVD from the Warner Archive.

Kay Francis stars and is in a majority of the scenes in this 68-minute film. I've watched a significant number of Francis films thanks to the Warner Archive, and I found this one among the most memorable.

Francis plays Peggy Martin, a showgirl who falls in love with and marries wealthy Monty Van Tyle (Gene Raymond). Monty's mother (Nella Walker) accepts Peggy, who lives a blissful life with Monty in their lovely home on 56th Street. The arrival of baby Eleanor seems to cement their happiness.

Alas, Peggy's former "patron," Lyndon Fiske (John Halliday), begs her to see him when he's in ill health. He is obsessed with Peggy and tries to win her back; he won't take no for an answer and threatens to shoot himself. Peggy is attempting to save Lyndon's life when the gun goes off and he's killed. The sad irony is that Peggy is charged in Lyndon's death and sent to jail for many years.

During Peggy's imprisonment Monty is killed in WWI and Eleanor (played as an adult by Margaret Lindsay) is told that her mother died in prison. Upon Peggy's release, a lawyer tells her that her former mother-in-law left her a nice sum of money, as long as she doesn't contact Eleanor.

Peggy meets Bill Blaine (Ricardo Cortez) on a ship and they establish a partnership; Peggy has always had an aptitude for cards and for many years she and Bill make their living playing with wealthy passengers traveling to and from Europe. Then one day Bill takes her to see a speakeasy where they've been invited to work as dealers...and it's the same house on 56th Street where Peggy lived as a young bride.

And Eleanor, who has a gambling problem, will soon have need of Peggy's help, never knowing that she's her mother...

Francis is excellent in this fast-paced film, aging from a glowing young woman in love to a beaten-down inmate to a glamorous, sophisticated, and rather sad card dealer. Thanks to the film's fast pacing and a compelling story, it never becomes drenched in syrup; instead the viewer is interested to see "what happens next."

And boy, the last ten minutes or so are a doozy worth waiting for, a marvelous example of what was different about pre-Codes. I must say I watched with a growing smile as Peggy's speakeasy employer (William Boyd) presented a "solution" to a very delicate situation.

Francis is excellent, and while her wardrobe (gowns by Orry-Kelly) is good, I felt they weren't as "obvious" as in many of the films where Francis dazzles as a clotheshorse. Instead the focus here is very much on the progression of her character over the years, and Francis handles it very well. Her fans will find this film quite enjoyable.

The rest of the performances are solid. I especially enjoyed seeing Lindsay and Philip Reed sharing scenes, over a dozen years before they also costarred in the excellent melodrama HER SISTER'S SECRET (1946).

It's important to note that the William Boyd in this film (seen above with silver-haired Francis) is not the William Boyd of Hopalong Cassidy fame, though stories about this Boyd's dissolute lifestyle inadvertently caused career problems for the other Boyd. This film's William Boyd died in 1935, the same year the "other" Boyd is said to have given up hard liquor in order to accept the role that saved his career -- and then some! The other Boyd would play Hoppy for nearly two decades, becoming a wealthy man thanks to merchandising rights.

THE HOUSE ON 56TH STREET was directed by Robert Florey and filmed by Ernest Haller.

The print seen on this Warner Archive DVD, one of their earlier releases, is scratched here and there but overall is fine, with no major skips or problems to interfere with enjoying the movie. Sound quality is also fine. There are no extras.

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.