Skyscraper Souls (1932)

Wow! Such a good movie.

Sorry, this movie sucks

Expected more

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

Most of the reviews have overlooked an important supporting player -- the building. I haven't yet determined the shooting site used but suspect Radio City was used in part. This deco dazzler did as much as the plot to convey the era and style of the story. The details of the doors and furniture were just as inviting as the story itself.Perhaps missed by viewers were the elevator clicks used to announce car arrivals -- no ding-dong, bing, or bells for the Seacoast Building The acting far outshone the cheesy fare of the period - With the exception of sight gag in the drugstore it was conveyed by and for adults.The print I viewed on AMC (I think) was immaculate with great sound. Only wish a DVD version were available.

This movie is almost like combining a soap opera like the TV show HOTEL and combining it with the 1930s film THE MATCH KING. This is because throughout this modern skyscraper, many stories involving infidelity and financial ruin abound. And, of all the tales, the most pervasive and impressive is the character Warren William plays--a guy who has leveraged his empire to the hilt and stands on the verge of great success or bankruptcy--much like William's true-life character from THE MATCH KING. The story also has a decent amount of sleaze compared to later films since it was made in the early days of the Hay Office that controlled violence and morals in films. In the early days, they weren't as strict and studios didn't take them all that seriously--this is VERY evident in this film as it pulls very few punches in telling this entertaining tale.By the way, almost equally entertaining is another film that apparently is a re-working of this Warren William film. "Manhattan Tower" is a low-budget film with a heck of a lot of entertainment value despite its very low budget. Currently, you can watch or download this film through IMDb and compare it to "Skyscraper Souls". Wow...these two films would sure make a nice double-feature.

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.