Man of the World, directed by Richard Wallace, is probably better known among film fans today for who is in it and what it started rather than the movie itself. The two stars, William Powell and Carole Lombard, met on the set of this movie and were married within a year. They would make two more movies together, but this is the one that started their personal and working relationship. If only the studios had known what they had in the relationship of these two, then Man of the World could have been a much different movie, but sadly no one in 1931 yet knew what to do with Carole Lombard as an actress. Her role could have been filled by just about anyone. It wasn't until her skill with comedy became clear a few years later that her light finally shone.

At the start of the film, Michael (Powell) is in Paris helping out Harry (Guy Kibbee) with a blackmailing incident. Harry has been blackmailed for cheating on his wife back home in the states and as an important businessman, this could hurt him. Michael takes the money from Harry promising that it will lead to the arrest of those involved. Of course, it doesn't. We quickly learn that Michael himself is the perpetrator of the blackmail scheme and, by posing as a detective working with the police, is able to collect the money without detection. Carole Lombard turns out to be Harry's niece, Mary, and Michael falls in love. Aside from the expected complications, Michael is also in a relationship with his blackmail partner Irene, played by Wynne Gibson (who, along with Kibbee, steals most of the movie). Irene wants him out of the relationship, and he wants out of the business altogether.

Powell is as excellent as always, but unfortunately Lombard is a romantic prop for his character, nothing more. Had the producers known what talent she had, perhaps they would have given her the Wynne Gibson role instead, although Gibson is fantastic in the part. The film was written by the legendary Herman J. Mankiewicz, better known as "Mank" to everyone in Hollywood, who by 1931 had already amassed a slew of credits, going back to the silent era. Of course, his most famous screenplay would come exactly ten years later when he coauthored Citizen Kane with Orson Welles.

Man of the World made little to no ripples at the time, but today it stands as a fascinating artifact of the pre-Code era for a couple of reasons. One, because it introduced Powell and Lombard to each other and onscreen as a team, and two, for its absolute punch in the gut ending, not at all what anyone use to Hollywood "boy meets girl" stories would expect. Let's just say, no one ends up happy in the end. And that's one of the lasting achievements of the pre-Code era, coming as it did at the start of the Great Depression. It told things in a straightforward and often blunt manner. Man of the World does that in spades, and while it may not be the best work of Lombard, it's a great early entry in the canon of Mankiewicz, and one of Powell's better early efforts.

Director: Richard Wallace
Screenplay: Herman J. Mankiewicz
Music: Herman Hand
Cinematography: Victor Milner
Sound Department: Harry Lindgren
Costume and Wardrobe Department: Eugene Joseff
Cast: William Powell (Michael Trevor), Carole Lombard (Mary Kendall), Wynne Gibson (Irene Harper), Lawrence Gray (Frank Reynolds), Guy Kibbee (Harry Taylor), George Chandler (Fred)

By Greg Ferrara