Phonearl Good start, but then it gets ruined

BroadcastChic Excellent, a Must See

Infamousta brilliant actors, brilliant editing

TrueHello Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

JohnHowardReid Copyright 17 October 1934 by RKO Radio Pictures, Inc. No recorded New York opening. Australian release: 20 February 1935. 7 reels. 67 minutes.SYNOPSIS: A publisher's wastrel brother commits suicide. Why? Are the publisher's wife and his associates involved?NOTES: The highly acclaimed Priestley play opened in the West End at the Lyric on 17 May 1932, running a most satisfactory 151 performances. Not unexpectedly, the play did even better on Broadway - at this time, British shows were all the rage on the New York stage, often to the exclusion of native talent - opening at the Empire on 27 October 1932 for a set engagement of 210 performances. When the lease on the Empire expired, the play was still drawing such huge crowds, it was moved to the Waldorf, where it ran a further 93 performances. Naturally, such a huge success was eagerly snapped up by Hollywood, but by the time the film appeared, interest in the play had lapsed to such an extent that RKO was unable to secure a New York showcase, despite the film's top-drawer cast of popular players. COMMENT: I've always thought J.B. Priestley an over-rated writer. Mind you, he was admired - adulated even - by press and public in his day. Early in his career, he hit upon the device of playing around with Time. Everyone praised this little stratagem as a masterstroke of genius. What do you think?In Dangerous Corner, the action hinges on a valve. One of those gadgets like an elongated electric light globe that formerly powered radios. When one of these valves "blew", it was necessary to replace it, or the wireless wouldn't work. So what Priestley presents is two stories. In the first, he tells what happened to our merry group of partying characters when the radio was silenced and they were forced to sit around and tell a few home truths to each other concerning their relationship and dealings with a former partner of their publishing firm who committed suicide. In the second version of the same story, a replacement valve is available, the radio sparks back into life and the actors are silenced. The party continues...I'm afraid that, despite this novelty, it's all rather dull stuff of the talky, talky, talky kind. Your turn, Melvyn. Now it's your turn, Virginia. And now it's your cue, Betty, for your big dramatic revelation of the evening. Ho-hum.Beyond two prologue scenes, the adapters have done nothing to open out the play. Worse, Poverty Row director Phil Rosen, here making his first of three pictures for RKO, has handled the wearisome proceedings in a thoroughly pedestrian manner.True, the players do try their hardest to overcome both the heaviness of their dialogue and the disinterest of their director. Doris Lloyd succeeds best. But then she has by far the most colorful role. Melvyn Douglas is charmingly gallant, while Virginia Bruce - despite odd make-up, presumably designed to make her look older - and Betty Furness furnish "soul".

calvinnme This film is a breath of fresh air compared to other films released immediately after the production code went into effect. It manages to retain a realistic depiction of human behavior without actually breaking the code.The film has to do with five young people working at a publishing concern. They are apparently good friends on top of everything else. Ann (Virginia Bruce) is "burning the publishing business at both ends" and has a frustrated and long term suitor in the person of Charles (Melvyn Douglas). Two of the other members of the firm are married, the final member of the firm, Martin, is unseen except in flash-back and is single. One of the members of the firm (Conrad Nagel as Chatfield) has forgotten his anniversary, and the other guys help him out by arranging a party at the office for the couple. While everyone is celebrating a call comes in to cash a government bond that is being held in the office safe. Chatfield asks Charles to get the bond from the safe. Charles opens the safe and declares that the bond is missing. Everyone at the party denies knowing what happened to the money and all four men who worked in the office had keys to the safe. Only Martin is not at the office that day, and Charles drives out to talk with him about the matter the next morning. When Charles arrives at Martin's house he finds him dead from a gunshot wound, ruled a suicide by an inquest. Everyone thus assumes Martin stole the money.A year passes and the young people running the publishing concern along with their wives are having another party. A tube in the radio burns out and there is no spare. The conversation then turns to Martin and the events of the year before. Confession follows confession as a true picture of what really happened comes together and friendships and marriages are smashed. We're then told via title card that what we just saw is what could have happened. What really happened is that there actually was a spare tube for the radio and the festivities continued unabated by probing conversation.What is interesting is that all that is being admitted here is that the conversation never took place - that doesn't mean that the dirty dark secrets in the alternate chain of events weren't necessarily real, it just means whatever secrets there are pertaining to the events of the year before remain unspoken. The movie raises the interesting question - if knowing the absolute truth does no good and only serves to break everyone's spirit and faith in what they hold fast to in life, does it serve a purpose in having it known? It's an interesting question that is left as open as the resolution of this film. Highly recommended.

GManfred That's the start of a song from HMS Pinafore, and this picture goes on to prove just that. "Dangerous Corner" is a filmed stage play and is a fascinating character study of a group of people with skeletons cascading out of their respective closets. On the surface, it seems one of their number has committed suicide over some embezzled funds. Please note that 'on the surface' is the operative term in this engrossing film.All concerned turn in good performances and the dialogue ranges from clichéd to the profound to the philosophic, and you can't leave the room or else you'll lose the thread of the story - remember, it's only 65 minutes long and with a lot of plot squeezed in.This is a timeless parable about human frailty and appetites and layered relationships. Nevertheless, it becomes all the more interesting to consider that it was made in 1934. They think like us, exhibit our own doubts and weaknesses but all are in evening clothes and smoke and drink at all hours, all of which gives the proceedings a surreal feel, that we are eavesdropping on a living museum scene. You think of how alien such a lifestyle seems today."Dangerous Corner" turned up on TCM the other morning and is not available in any format. If it comes on again, you should do yourself a favor and watch it.

kidboots Virginia Bruce was a vision of blonde loveliness, who started off at Paramount in bit parts (lady in waiting to Jeanette MacDonald in "The Love Parade", one of the chorus girls in "Safety in Numbers") When she married John Gilbert, strangely her career took off (he was at the end of his career and sadly almost at the end of his life). "Dangerous Corner" was made around this time and paired her with Melvyn Douglas.This is an interesting "what if" film from an intriguing play by J.B. Priestley. The action takes place one night at a dinner party, a year after the suicide of one of the partners in a publishing firm and the theft of some bonds. Gordon (Henry Wadsworth) is tuning the radio when a fuse goes and a game of tell the truth goes horribly wrong.I found it a fascinating film definitely helped by a superior cast. Not only Virginia Bruce and Melvyn Douglas but Conrad Nagel, with his beautiful speaking voice (he was a founding member of the Academy of Motion Pictures). Erin O'Brien Moore was an underrated actress from the stage who was very memorable as Humphrey Bogart's wife in "Black Legion" (1937). Betty Furness was also good as the sweet young wife, whose life wasn't as happy as everyone thought.Recommended.