Tonight's Movie: Klondike Annie (1936) - A Kino Lorber Blu-ray Review

The summer of Mae West continues, as I chronologically watch my way through her films thanks to Kino Lorber. I continue to find West's films a delightful first-time discovery.

KLONDIKE ANNIE (1936) was West's sixth film, and like the others seen to date, I found it quite enjoyable. An added plus is that it's directed with typical verve by Raoul Walsh. I really enjoyed the movie's rough-and-tumble vibe, with a bracing dose of the Golden Rule mixed in.

West wrote the screenplay for KLONDIKE ANNIE, in which she plays Rose, aka the Frisco Doll. As the movie begins Rose is living in San Francisco, the "kept woman" of Chan Lo (Harold Huber). Chan Lo, who owns a saloon in which tuxedoed swells mix with workaday types, is obsessed with Rose.

Rose is essentially imprisoned by the jealous Chan Lo and determines to escape by ship. At this point the plot becomes a bit murky due to censorship edits; she does indeed escape, but what's not made clear, due to cut scenes, is that before she leaves she kills Chan Lo in self-defense.

Rose heads to Alaska on a cargo ship captained by Bull Brackett (Victor McLaglen). When he receives a poster indicating Rose is wanted for murder -- the viewer's first indication of this plot point -- he essentially blackmails her into having an affair. The film manages to be fairly bawdy despite being made in the Production Code era, as it's more than clear what's going on with Rose and Bull, including a crack she makes about "The pleasure was all yours."

An earnest missionary named Annie (Helen Jerome Eddy) boards the ship in Seattle, headed for an Alaskan settlement house, but she dies en route; before she passes on, her sweetness and dedication make an impression on Rose.

When Mountie Jack Forrest (Phillip Reed) boards the ship looking for Rose, she switches clothes and identities with the dead Annie; upon arriving in Alaska, Rose determines to pay that debt back to Annie by taking her place and helping Annie's fellow missionaries make a success of their endeavors. Rose is followed by Bull, who finds unorthodox ways to help her as he tries to convince her to make their relationship permanent.

Like West's BELLE OF THE NINETIES (1934), the film's strange edits aren't helpful, and it's hard not to wish for what might have been if the film were intact. I'd also have liked to better understand how a woman as strong as Rose had ended up in such an unpleasant situation as the movie began. That said, I found it quite an enjoyable 80 minutes.

West is her usual lusty, wisecracking self, tempered with gratitude toward Annie and a sneaking suspicion that some of what Annie has said about the value in being "good" is correct. I especially liked the way Rose used her understanding of human foibles to connect with the miners and townspeople, "meeting them where they're at," so to speak. 

As usual, West writes herself some wonderful lines. One of my favorites: "When caught between two evils, I generally like to take the one I've never tried."

I do admit that once again I was left baffled by West's choice of leading man -- Victor McLaglen?! I was almost expecting, especially given the way he initially pressures Rose for intimacy, that McLaglen would end up being the villain, especially with the handsome young Mountie in the picture (shades of Cary Grant's undercover man in SHE DONE HIM WRONG). I give the movie points for going in unexpected directions, though one hopes Rose won't end up just as much a prisoner of the feisty Bull as she was of Chan Lo; in Bull's favor, he's as direct with her as Rose is with him, and he tries hard to accommodate her wishes.

It almost seems obligatory these days to mention that some aspects of the film may make modern-day viewers uncomfortable, whether it's Chan Lo being played by by Harold Huber, Rose as the Frisco Doll singing lyrics like "I'm an Occidental woman in an Oriental mood for love," or the like.

However, I think anyone likely to seek out this film as entertainment is smart enough to mentally acknowledge that things have certainly changed in nearly 90 years -- indeed, I found that aspect somewhat interesting from an historical perspective -- and move on to appreciate what the film has to offer. Indeed, if I had to agree with everything I see on screen in a film I'd find myself left with a very short list of movies to watch.

The movie was filmed by George T. Clemens. The supporting cast includes Lucile Gleason, Esther Howard, Harry Beresford, Conway Tearle, and Philip Ahn.

The Kino Lorber Blu-ray looks and sounds quite good, with a crisp soundtrack which is easy to understand.

Blu-ray disc extras consist of half a dozen trailers for Mae West films and a commentary track by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Josh Nelson.

Previous reviews of Mae West films released on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber: NIGHT AFTER NIGHT (1932), SHE DONE HIM WRONG (1933), I'M NO ANGEL (1933), BELLE OF THE NINETIES (1934), and GOIN' TO TOWN (1935).

Thanks to Kino Lorber for providing a review copy of this Blu-ray.

Tweet