Movie Reviewed: Faithless (1932), a classic film of Tallulah Bankhead forgotten over the years.
Faithless (1932): Tallulah Bankhead was loaned to MGM by Paramount for this 1932 classic. This is a highly underrated film that casts Tallulah Bankhead opposite Robert Montgomery in this “riches to rags” story at the height of great depression. Her flamboyant personality and uninhibited performances on and off the stage kept many on a vicarious spree until Paramount brought her back from England to United States in 1931. The cameras dimmed luster and crowd magnetism of Bankhead in this drama who otherwise loved to please fans by her witty dialogue. This story is a real family drama where a wife has to do unthinkable of practicing the oldest profession to take care of her dying husband. In the pre-code era, stories such as this were handled with relative ease and Tallulah Bankhead offers the finest performance of her career in a real dramatic story. This just proves that she can do both comedies and drama equally well.
This is the story of a successful female banker (Bankhead) who falls in love with a young debonair (Robert Montgomery) and then marries him. When the shady economic practices of Wall Street firms cause the economy to collapse (1929), they face financial hardship especially when Montgomery becomes ill and unable to care for his wife. This is a well scripted movie for the screen written by Carey Wilson based on Mildred Cram’s novel. The movie is directed by Harry Belmont with lot of sensitivity and care. This is a gem and I highly recommend watching this movie.
Robert Montgomery started with movies at the right time when studios started making talkies since 1929. This was an advantage for him since he never did silent movies. Many silent stars were left out of the movie industry when talkies became popular and they suffered because of this transition. Tallulah Bankhead with her rich stage experience and Robert Montgomery’s debonair look; both succeeded at the box office.
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