Skyscraper Souls (1932)

***SPOILERS*** Having had built the biggest building in the world the 100 story Dwight Building it's creator David Dwight, Warren William,is now on the brink of losing it to his creditors, the banks, whom he owes 30 million dollars that he doesn't have. In fact Dwight is in far more trouble then that in having used the depositors in his bank, The Seacoast Bank, cash as collateral a big no no in the financial world; Using others people's money for personal gain.This can land Dwight being bars for a long long stretch!While all this is going on the happy go lucky Dwight is playing the field with his cute 20 year-old secretary the tea toting and innocent Lynn Harding, Maureen O'Sullivan, who's good friend and mentor, who in fact got Lynn her job, Sarah Dennis, Verree Teasdale, happens to be Dwight's personal secretary. It's Sarah who knows where all the bodies that her boss had destroyed over the years are buried!Even though Lynn is anything but interested in having an affair with her butt grabbing boss Mr. Dwight he manages to get her drunk on champaign one evening when she was working overtime in the office and corrupted her to the point when her equally obnoxious boyfriend bank teller, at Dwight's Seacoast Tank, Tom Shepard, Norman Foster,dumped her as well. In Tom feeling that Lynn felt that she was too good for him because he was just a commoner or working stiff.Back to business Dwight now with his back to the wall and facing total financial ruin, as well as jail time, he concocts this plan to wipe out all his debts as well as his enemies in the financial world. This is done with the cahoots of Dwight's partner in crime Hamilton, William Morris, who's plan is to push up the price of Seacoast Inc.to $350.00,from $250.00 a share, and then sell it leaving everyone who bought the stock, which includes his banker enemies, high and dry as well as wiped out financially.***SPOILERS*** This diabolical scheme on Dwight's part works to perfection leaving him in total control of his beloved, which he put his heart and soul as well as money into, Dwight Bulding but causes a good number of people who bought Seacoast inc to end up killing themselves. One of them being Harrington Brewster, Punnell Pratt, one of Dwight's banker friends whom he accused of pulling the stock sham that Dwight in fact pulled off! The final insult that Dwight tried to pull off was his attempt to take off with Lynn on a cruise to Europe and the warm and sunny Mediterranean while laving his loyal personal secretary Sarah Dennis out in the cold. This has Sarah blow her stack and finally blow Dwight away with the revolver he gave her as a present for Christmas. Knowing that she now has nothing to live for Sarah jumps off the top of the Dwight Building killing herself.P.S The movie does in fact have a happy ending with both Lynn and Tom trying the knot and Dwight's widow Ella, Hedda Hopper, selling the Dwight Building that cause all the pain and suffering in it.

This Depression-era melodrama from MGM in the '30s contains several strong performances and interesting plot elements that place it among the better "big business" stories that Hollywood loves to make about ethics and morality. It's a forerunner of other such films, such as "Executive Suite" but has even more bite despite some of the dated elements of the story.WARREN WILLIAM is convincing as the owner of the world's tallest building who will stoop to anything to keep control of his luxurious hi-rise, which includes a swanky bachelor pad for his affair with his personal assistant (VERREE TEASDALE).A subplot involves the affair between MAUREEN O'SULLIVAN and a man in hot pursuit (NORMAN FOSTER), a bank teller who has trouble keeping her to himself once she is noticed by the wealthy William. It's one of O'Sullivan's best early roles (before she became Tarzan's Jane), and she does extremely well in it except for the way she jabs away at the keyboard as an office typist, which is almost laughable.Several strands of plot are smoothly entwined and lead toward a very melodramatic ending involving Warren William and his mistress. HEDDA HOPPER pops in once in awhile as William's wife who is always looking for a handout so she can keep a villa in Italy.After a shocking conclusion, there's a bittersweet ending for O'Sullivan and Foster. His extroverted character is a bit annoying at times but he certainly is a lively presence during the proceedings.This is an undiscovered gem worth seeking out if you're a fan of stories about big business. It's a sort of "Grand Hotel" in its own way.

Back in the early 30's, Maureen O'Sullivan was the quintessential "good girl who wants to be bad", which is to say, she seemed prim and proper on the surface, but a powerfully sexy woman lay right underneath that surface, who would only come out for the right guy--or sometimes the wrong guy. Though she is not exactly the star of this movie, she did get second billing after Warren William, in spite of being so new to the motion picture biz. This was probably in response to her having appeared as Jane in the first Weissmuller Tarzan film, not long before. That remains her best role--she is essentially the protagonist in the first two Tarzan movies--she's the one who is changing, casting aside the sexual mores of her society, and joining Tarzan in his idyllic state of noble savagery.In the urban jungle of "Skyscraper Souls", she plays a less idyllic character, wanting to enjoy both sexual passion and social respectability, along with a decent income. Nobody can offer her everything she wants, so she's left with two imperfect choices--the poor young clerk she likes, who will offer marriage. And the sexy ruthless tycoon she REALLY likes, who will take her as his "ward" (that is to say, his mistress) and possibly cast her aside in a decade or so, assuming he isn't too old to care by that point. Of course, she'd be set for life, even if that happened. But by the point in the film where she gives into him, she almost seems past caring about that. She's tried to follow the rules, and society has only penalized her for it. The man who supposedly loves her doesn't trust her, and she's feeling powerfully drawn to David Dwight, who understands her perfectly, and doesn't stand in judgment of anybody--least of all himself. He's a bastard, who destroys people to get what he wants--but he doesn't pretend to be anything else. He doesn't care about respectability or morality. Very few rich men truly do, but most like to at least pretend.This pre-code film has it both ways, regarding the denouement of this particular sub-plot--you can, if you wish, believe that Lynn is saved from the proverbial Fate Worse Than Death, by the not entirely selfless intervention of her friend, Dwight's former mistress. But in truth, a number of days have passed since Lynn gave in to Dwight's advances, she seems awfully comfortable in his embrace, she's wearing clothes he bought for her, and is obviously living in his penthouse. Dwight is not the kind of man who is going to wait until he gets her on the yacht to have his pleasure. He's already gotten what he--and she--wanted. Even in the pre-code era, this is a bit too subversive, which is why the movie deftly clouds the issue of whether they've had sex or not. But there can be no doubt of her eagerness--by this point, she wouldn't leave Dwight for the bank clerk, even if the clerk could offer her everything she asked for. With Dwight gone, she'll marry her bank clerk, and raise a family, and perhaps count herself lucky to have gotten to experience a bit of the high life before settling down. But one wonders if the bank clerk will end up wondering why their first kid doesn't look like him. I'm reading a great deal into this, of course. I really hated the bank clerk, btw. ;-)

Next to William Powell, Warren William is my most favorite actor and it is a treat to see each of their films again and again. These two men (to me) represent the true meaning of "actor.""Skyscraper Souls" was one more opportunity for Mr. William to show his acting ability to make you either totally adore or totally deplore his character.