Film Review: Nothing Sacred (1937)
"Fake news" is a phrase that is used a lot in the past few years, often in order to describe a seemingly new and sinister phenomenon that should justify unprecedented levels of global censorship. In reality, media manipulation has been as old as the media itself, and many decades ago, the American journalist Ben Hecht made quite a career writing comedies about it. One of such works was his script for Nothing Sacred, a 1937 film by William A. Wellman, nowadays known as one of the most important screwball comedies of Classic Hollywood.
The film is based on "Letter to the Editor", a short story by James H. Street, originally published in Cosmopolitan magazine. The plot is set in New York City and begins when an African sultan (played by Troy Brown) on a widely publicised visit to the city is revealed to be Ernest Walker, a bootblack from Harlem. The Morning Star, the newspaper that championed the fake sultan's cause, is disgraced by the fraud, and its chief editor, Oliver Stone (played by Walter Connolly), has Wally Cook (played by Fredric March), his star reporter who covered the story, demoted to writing obituaries. Wally begs his boss for another chance to revive his career, and it comes after learning that Hazel Flagg (played by Carole Lombard), a beautiful young woman from the small town of Warsaw, Vermont, is about to slowly die from radium poisoning. Wally travels there unaware that Hazel is actually completely healthy, being initially misdiagnosed by the town's often drunk physician, Dr. Enoch Downer (played by Charles Winninger). Both Hazel and Downer conspire to hide the truth after learning that Wally intends to bring her to an all-expenses-paid trip to New York City, where The Morning Star would cover her tragic story. The plan works like a charm, with her sad fate capturing popular imagination, and Hazel becomes the toast of the city, receiving a hero's welcome and all kinds of perks. She is, however, increasingly troubled by her conscience, and her deception becomes even more complicated by the romantic feelings she and Wally have developed for each other.
The driving force behind Nothing Sacred was David O. Selznick, one of the few independent producers and one of the most important personalities of Classic Hollywood. A few months earlier, he had produced A Star Is Born, the first major hit in Technicolor. The same technique was used for Nothing Sacred, which included the first colour footage made for the purpose of rear projection. While the film was made almost entirely in the studio, the footage included establishing shots of New York, and the colour cinematography provides one of the rare opportunities to see how the city really looked like more than eight decades ago.
The real reason why most people would like to see this film is Hecht's script, later re-written by a series of writers after Hecht left the project, unhappy over Selznick's refusal to cast his friend John Barrymore, then struggling with alcoholism, in the role of Wally. Hecht and his co-writers have filled the film with sharp dialogue, occasionally mixed with elements of physical comedy, including the fight scene between the two protagonists. William A. Wellman provides superb direction, maintaining the quick pace and keeping the film within the easily digestible 73 minutes. Carole Lombard, one of the greatest comediennes of Classic Hollywood, shines in the role that shows both her beauty, charm and wit. For Lombard, whose life would tragically end five years later, Nothing Sacred is the only film made in Technicolor, and for it, she had to paint her hair red, because her natural blonde hair didn't look as glamorous on screen. Her grand performance isn't that well-matched by Fredric March, a great actor who does a solid job but still lacks proper chemistry. He is easily overshadowed not only by Lombard, but also by a number of character actors in supporting roles – like Walter Connolly as the hysterical newspaper editor and Charles Winninger as the loveable drunk. Hardcore cinephiles might also spot a couple of notable names in cameo roles – like the first African American Oscar winner Hattie McDaniel or future Hollywood gossip queen Hedda Hopper.
While the film takes a satirical aim at modern media, its manipulation and the public's desire to be manipulated, Wellman on a few occasions even points a finger at Hollywood's own censorship embodied in the Hays Code, most notably in the night club scenes featuring scantily clad "Women of History". On the other hand, some of the jokes, at least those of the ethnic variety, would mean very little to today's audience. Nothing Sacred, unlike A Star Is Born, actually flopped at the box office, despite being greeted very well by critics, which continued to this day. In 1953, the script served as the basis for the 1953 Broadway musical Hazel Flagg, which was in 1954 adapted into Living It Up, a film starring Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis and Janet Leigh.
RATING: 8/10 (+++)
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