Grand bazar

In the early 1930's the Great Depression coming after the introduction of sound effected all studios severely even mighty MGM. The cost of conversion to sound had been largely absorbed and the early technical difficulties overcome. Films once more started to be made with the competence that was shown in the late silent period. This increased sophistication would culminate in the Class of 1939. Still in this early sound period economic difficulties had to be overcome and one (1) way to do this was keep running time short. All studios participated in this move. Most features ran between sixty (60) and ninety (90) minutes.

SWEEPINGS (1933) is a typical example from RKO. Clocking in at brisk eighty (80) minutes it takes a sixty (60) year family story and cuts it to the essentials. This was well accomplished by Director John Cromwell with a team of acting professionals. The Family, Lionel Barrymore (on loan from MGM), William Gargan, Gloria Stuart, George Meeker, Eric Linden. Gregory Ratoff is Barrymores right hand man and in a brief but effective role Helen Mack. The story in a nutshell; Father builds business for unappreciative Children who just see him as a cash cow. Loses faith in them and at the end regains same through act of youngest son. Entertaining, you bet and the story is in no way obsolete and could be easily updated to 21st Century audiences.

RKO remade this picture as THREE SONS (1939) with one (1) cast hold over William Gargan though this time playing Uncle Thane Pardway. The film ran shorter seventy-two (72) minutes and one (1) major plot change. Rather then die of a heart attack delivering Christmas presents Uncle Thane stops a bullet for his nephew. Remake rating Six (6)******.

I guess if you're not going to offer Depression audiences pure escapism (i.e. Andy Hardy/James Cagney/Ruby Keeler) then the next best thing is to make a movie about rich people being miserable. Certainly this somber, bleak offering from director John Cromwell, with somber, bleak cinematography from Ernest Cronjager., more than fits the bill. Not only is it a film wherein all the main characters are, to a greater or lesser degree, wealthy, selfish and/or weak buttholes but they are unhappy, suffering, wealthy, selfish and/or weak buttholes into the bargain. In other words, this is rather one note, repetitive stuff and were it not for Cromwell's pacing skills, Cronjager's aforesaid moody camera, and a veritable cornucopia of fine performances from messers Barrymore, Gargan, Mack, Linden and especially, as a previous reviewer has noted, Ratoff it would be hard to sit through. As it is I found it quite interesting and think that you will too. Give it a B minus.

PS...The way Barrymore said "window trimmer" when his middle son Bert announces what he wants to do leads me to suspect that Bert might be in the closet. Maybe I'll get Lester Cohen's novel, upon which his screenplay is based, to find out. Maybe not.

Quite good film about a shop-owner who lives to see his little business flourish into a major department store; unfortunately, his angry, ungrateful children want no part of the business once dad passes over. Melodrama loses focus in the last half, but until then is excellently acted, surprisingly interesting. Best scene: the mental breakdown of the harried store clerk. **1/2 from ****

Lionel Barrymore plays a man who builds a successful department store business and hopes to pass it on to his children. But they have grown up to want nothing to do with running the family business. Actually, they've grown up to be spoiled jerks! Barrymore is excellent in the kind of sympathetic fatherly role he was born to play. He's not playing a total hero here, though. His character mistreats a longtime employee played by Gregory Ratoff. It's actually a fascinating part of the film, particularly the scene where Barrymore belittles and subtly threatens the man solely out of spite because he feels hurt by his children.

Alan Dinehart is good as Barrymore's brother. The sons are played by William Gargan, George Meeker, and Eric Linden. They're all fine. Gloria Stuart, on loan from Universal, is very pretty but does nothing to impress as the daughter. This is at least in part because she's the daughter and her importance is diminished because, given the era it was made, the idea of a girl running the business wasn't even considered. Her character seems too flighty to have interest in it, anyway, but because she's left out of this part of the plot she's really given little to do. Cutie Helen Mack has a smaller part that has more meat on it.

A good drama from RKO, similar to many other dramas like this from the early to mid '30s. Usually about kids wanting something different than their parents and basically being disrespectful and unappreciative. A theme that resonates across generations I'm sure.

Although I am sure that many did not like this movie because the main character, Lionel Barrymore, turned out to be so flawed as did his completely irresponsible children. Although there is a small glimmer of hope at the end, I appreciate how this film was much less sentimental and a bit brutal when it came to story telling.

The film begins just after the Great Chicago Fire--which, by the way, was NOT caused by Mrs. O'Leary's cow--despite the film's intro as well as popular opinion. Lionel Barrymore arrives in town with his new bride and he and his brother open a store. Soon, the store begins to prosper and as the years pass, it's now one of the larger department stores--and the family is stinking rich. However, like some hard working but foolish fathers, Barrymore keeps a loose rein on his kids and three of the four grown up to be selfish jerks. The fourth does work for the family business but lacks ambition to do anything more than design sales windows (was this, perhaps, a 1930s hint that he was gay?).

At the same time, Barrymore has a very hard working employee who gives his life for the company but inexplicably, Barrymore refuses to give the man stock--instead, wasting much of it on his punk kids. By the end, it's obvious the old man is dying and unfortunately he must go realizing that the company will soon die with him.

It's really a very sad and difficult movie to watch at times, but because the acting is good (especially by Barrymore), the film is quite engaging. It's sure NOT a "feel good" film, but is a nice morality tale about parenting and the power of money to corrupt.

By the way, Barrymore also made another film in 1933 with very similar themes that is worth seeking. "Looking Forward" is a dandy film as well. Also, tiny Chesterfield Studio made "Forgotten" which is very similar to "Sweepings" but with a much happier ending.