Flesh

Watched *Flesh (1932)* tonight. I’m a sucker for Wallace Beery and also for big guys with soft hearts. This movie has both. I’ll paraphrase and embellish one review I read about the movie below, because it sums things up pretty well... Yes, it's a predictable, old fashioned soap that you know is not going to end well, but the performances keep you interested to the end. Beery plays Polakai, a slow witted wrestler with a German accent and a sweet nature. He seems to be doing his own wrestling, his accent doesn't slip, and he carries it all off pretty well with his patented "Ain't I the lovable slob with a heart of gold" shtick. (In reality, Beery was anything but that. Reportedly, he was extremely difficult to get along with and lacked any sort of manners or refinement. But I can’t help it, I love his onscreen performances.) Karen Morley plays Laura Nash, an ex-con who is befriended by Polakai. She nails it as a cynical, world weary woman eager to make the wrong choice in men. Ricardo Cortez is at his best playing slick sociopaths, and he does it here playing Nick. Along the way we get some of my other favorites, including Edward Brophy and Jean Hersholt, and even an uncredited performance by Ward Bond as Muscles Manning! Also uncredited is wrestler Wladek Zbyszko.

This is a classic in every way. Beery played a wonderful character who today would be called a dum fool. But his innocence makes him a winner in the end. I become teary eyed when Laura (his wife) begans to show him compassion after using him gets to her through his uncompromising love for her. I love this classic and its message.

This movie is probably meant primarily for the hard core videophiles out there who are fans of early pre-code talkies or Wallace Beery. Essentially it tells the story of Polokai(a wrestler/waiter) played by Wallace Beery and Laura(a grifter) played by Karen Morley and a marriage of convenience (on Laura's part). Thrown into the mix is Laura's lover/fellow con (played by the slick Ricardo Cortez). The film is definitely a cut above most melodramas of the era due to a really good script, good direction (by the legendary John Ford), and decent casting. As a pre-code film, the dialogue is loaded with a lot of snappy, double entendre exchanges which are pretty funny despite this film being strictly a drama. Ultimately though, this is Beery's movie as he lumbers through the film as the affable Polokai. As for this dvd, it is far less than superlative in terms of physical quality. The copy has not been restored and shows it with flaws in the film stock that make it look like it is raining. There are no special features and is common with all the entries I've viewed from the Warner Archive series, there are no chapters. The only option is the ability to scan forward and backward in 10 minute increments. Given the dvd's hefty price, quality, and lack of features, I'd probably advise most people interested in this movie to wait and dvr it when it pops up on TCM (which it does periodically). It's a good film, but I'd expect more for the premium price point.

"Flesh" is a 1932 drama starring Wallace Beery and Laura Morley with Ricardo Cortez and Jean Hersholt. It's an example of a very early film noir. In the late 20s Wallace Beery (1885-1949) had been in desperate need of a chance, his career in jeopardy after being released from his contract with Paramount and spending more than a year without a film offer prior to working on the "Big House" (1930). His role as Butch in that film, coupled with "Min and Bill" the same year and "Billy the Kid" (he played Pat Garrett), followed with the best actor award in 1931 for "The Champ" elevated Beery to the A list where he remained and made such memorable films as "Treasure Island" (1934), "Viva Villa" (1934), and "China Seas" (1935). He continued to work through 1949, but his heyday was the 30s. Beery plays a good hearted German wrestler who gets involved with an ex-con, played by Karen Morley. Karen Morley (1909-2003) was originally a stand-in for Greta Garbo. She's best known for being the wife of King Vidor and being one of the actors blacklisted during the McCarthy witch hunts. In the 30s she was busy with films like "Mata Hari" (1931), "Scarface" (1932), "The Mask of Fu Manchu" (1932), and "Dinner at Eight" (1933). Morley plays an ex-con who marries Beery but is in love with someone else. Ricardo Cortez (1900-77) appeared in 100+ films, starting in the silent era. Although he was Jewish of Austrian descent, he often played a Latino and changed his name from Jacob Krantz to capitalize on the Valentino craze. He played in a host of B movies. Cortez plays Morley's abusive lover, also an ex-con. Jean Hersholt (1996-1956) appeared in more than 100 films between 1906 and 1955, including such memorable films as "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" (1921), Erich von Stroheim's "Greed" (1924), Karloff's "The Mask of Fu Manchu" (1932), and "The Country Doctor" (1936). He's best remembered as Shirley Temple's grandfather in "Heidi" (1937). Look closely and you'll get a brief glimpse of Ward Bond and Nat Pendleton as wrestlers. John Ford (1894-1973) directs. In the early talkie period he was cranking out 2 to 4 undistinguished films every year. Then he won the Academy Award in 1935 for "The Informer," the first of 4 awards for best director. He made many memorable films including westerns like "Stagecoach" (1939), "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" (1949), "Rio Grande" (1950), and "The Searchers" (1956), as well as non-westerns like "Wee Willie Winkie" (1937), "How Green Was My Valley" (1940), and "The Quiet Man" (1952). "Flesh" was the only film in which Ford and Beery worked together. 1932 was a good year for films - Grand Hotel" was the Oscar and box office king, Jean Harlow had 2 films in the top 10 ("Red Headed Woman" and "Red Dust") as did Miriam Hopkins ("Trouble in Paradise" and "Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde") and Wallace Beery ("Champ" and "Grand Hotel"). Other notable films from that year were "I am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang", "Freaks" ,"A Farewell to Arms", "Scarface", "Horse Feathers" and "Tarzan The Ape Man". "Flesh" was the first film to deal with wrestling, which to this date has not enjoyed as much popularity as boxing, baseball, and football. The best professional wrestling films are the Oscar nominated "The Wrestler" (2008) with Mickey Rourke and the 1962 film "Requiem for a Heavyweight" with Anthony Quinn, that was developed from the even better TV play with Jack Palance as the wrestler. There are several films about college wrestling ("Vision Quest", "Personal Effects", "Going to the Mat"), but these are not nearly as compelling. Although film noir was not yet identified as a genre when this film was made, it has all the basic noir elements. A good hearted innocent is lured into the seamy side of life, populated with sleazy characters, by a femme fatale who ultimately betrays him with an ending that is far from happy. Wallace Beery is always a hoot to watch, especially when he plays the good bad guy or the bad good guy, which he often played. OTOH, a little Beery goes a long way, and he appears in almost every scene. With Beery, less could be more. Look for an on camera goof where Beery is supposed to show that an egg can't be broken by squeezing it, and then, poof, he breaks the egg and looks right into the camera and says "it broke." Karen Morley manages to keep from laughing, and the screen fades to black. This is one of the few good John Ford films from the early period. That being said, the film shows none of his later mastery of the screen. It lags in parts and the camerawork could be better, even for a 1932 film. Fans of Beery or John Ford, or film noir will want to see this film.

A classic in any era, enough said!

it is such a pity that an actor like wallace beery is almost a forgotten name these days. he was a fine actor who appeared in some very good films back in the 1920s and 1930s. "flesh" is one of his best. the story, concerning a german wrestler who tries to make good in his career and in his home life, has been very well directed by john ford and features great performances from beery and his leading lady, karen morley (another forgotten name). richard cortez is effective as the sleazy and bullying ex-lover who attempts to manipulate beery for his own selfish ends. this is quite a moving film that contains a tear-jerking final scene but a good ending nevertheless. it's great to finally have the opportunity to watch some of these somewhat obscure films.