I know I've said this before, but I really, really wanted to like Nothing Sacred. It has Carole Lombard in it, so what's not to like? Well, unfortunately for me, there were one too many things that I really didn't care for. Overall, it isn't a bad film, but it seems almost confused, as if no one really knew what kind of story it really was or rather what kind of comedy it was. While Ben Hecht was going one way, William Wellman went another, and then there are the actors who made the most out of the script and the direction given. Had this been put in lesser hands, it would've turned out to be a disaster, but thankfully, for the most part, Lombard saves the film.
Casting the right leads is crucial for a successful screwball comedy and this film did right by casting Lombard in the role. She took Hazel and made her endearing in spite of her selfish motives and deception. There's no one quite adept at mastering the screwball heroine quite like Lombard. From her faces and reactions to the way she prances around like a five-year-old, Lombard makes any character she embodies likable. To top it off, she's absolutely beautiful and glamorous, so you love to watch her out in the town with fantastic gowns. And one of the best examples of Lombard's embodiment of Hazel is when she sits at a table in a night club wearing a fabulous designer gown, all the while she's sipping her drink and complaining and pouting like a schoolchild how New York isn't fun with everyone moping around. To see her is screwball at its best.
But then there are also some miscasts. There's something off about Fredric March in this film, and one might think it's a lack of chemistry between him and Lombard, but that isn't the case. The scene in which he proposes marriage to her after they come out of the river, shows some amazing sparks between them, even if momentarily. March was just given a rewritten script but not any proper direction, and unfortunately, that means he isn't very funny. But he isn't the only miscast. There's also Walter Connolly, who seems as if he's trying too hard to be funny and doesn't end up being very funny at all. The problem with these miscasts is that without the right actors, then you end up with a mediocre film. This casting just adds to the confusion. Connolly should've stolen the show from Lombard and March. His role remained the same more or less from the early Hecht draft, and Connolly should've or should've been allowed to take Stone to his exploitative best. The problem with these two roles I think is that they were written quite cynically and for the film the actors were told to take the same roles to a screwy level.
Having said all this, there were obvious problems with tone. I didn't really understand until I read the script that the film wasn't set out to be a screwball comedy to begin with, but instead it was a satirical look at the circus of journalism. Yes, it's supposed to be funny, but screwball and satire are not the same thing. So initially, the first scene opens up and you think this is going to be a funny film, but the tone wavers after that. Some of the best screwy scenes, though, do come in the town of Warsaw. I loved the treatment Wally got from the townspeople, and my personal favorite was the child who runs over to a passing Wally and grabs his leg and bites it. But March also sets the tone off. His acting wavers from forced comedy to downright drama at points. Wellman failed to tell him that the drama bits are supposed to be exaggerated, or perhaps he saw his comedic skills and let him go right ahead with the drama instead. Unfortunately, all this just confuses you.
More confusion comes in the form of the script. I'll forgive the early filmmakers for making this mistake, but the more names you see credited to for writing in a film, the worse the story gets. Nothing Sacred has two credited writers, but on imdb there are another nine. A TCM article talks about two brought in for dialogue (one of which isn't listed over at imdb) and another two for the ending. That's a total of 12 people working on the same story at one point or another. It's a wonder the film is even watchable at all. Overall, the dialogue was fine, but then a funny line was thrown in and it seemed to come out of nowhere. It was only when I read the early draft that I realized the lines were kept because they were funny, but then the context changed a bit. Another problem with the script? Setups were not paid off. Of course, you wouldn't know it if you didn't read the earlier draft, but one of the best things about setups and payoffs is that you like being rewarded with a good payoff. Makes you happy you were paying attention. The ending, though, suffered the most, but then again, the early draft's ending isn't a screwball ending.
One performance that stands out nicely is that of Charles Winninger, who's really funny as Dr. Enoch Downer. Too bad, though, that in the film, he didn't get the chance to show the Morning Star who the six greatest Americans are. Winninger next to Lombard, personifies a great screwball supporting role. He's the klutzy doctor from a small town, and you wonder how he even got his license. And what was he drinking in the early scene? I feel as if that was another setup that doesn't get paid off. Thankfully, he is given the last line of the film, which again, comes out of nowhere, but he delivers it well enough to make you laugh, until you see the end credit and are reminded of the creepy title cards from the beginning of the film.
Yes, I can honestly admit, I didn't like Nothing Sacred. But really, I didn't like because it's a mess. I can recognize some fine performances and some lovely shots. I still absolutely love the scene between Wally and Hazel when he proposes, just like I laugh when Wally goes around Warsaw trying to find Hazel. But these lovely bits cannot save the film, not even Carole Lombard with her bubbliness. I really wish that Wellman would've been allowed to film the script Hecht wrote. Sure, Lombard would've been stretching her acting legs and perhaps have been seen in a different light, but I'm pretty sure she could've pulled it off, just like she made Hazel completely likable. If there's a reason to watch Nothing Sacred, it's for Lombard. You can never grow tired of her screwiness.
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