When Ladies Meet (1933)

What a delightful Pre-Code film! Myrna Loy is a writer who, much to the consternation of her wannabe suitor Robert Montgomery, is in love with her married publisher Frank Morgan. Ann Harding is the wife of the publisher and the mother of his children. The suitor tries to meddle into the others’ relationships hopefully to his own advantage, resulting in the two women meeting though at first not knowing each other’s identities. This interaction makes the film, where each woman is honest about their feelings on love and the roles they fill. I didn’t enjoy the direction the end took, but fear that the 1941 adaptation would be less honest and forthright, especially missing the tender approaches by Loy and Harding.

Oscar Nomination: Best Art Direction-Interior Decoration, Black-and-White