That was an excellent one.

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Jean Harlow and Clark Gable provide high-wattage star power in this film filled with classic images of both. Ah, the 1930's, when you could elude the law by waltzing into a young woman's unlocked apartment, find her taking a bath, and then have her come out and not only cover for you, but iron your clothes. The pair have great chemistry and repartee, and sparks fly. Dorothy Burgess is a firecracker as Gable's old girlfriend who drinks a little too much, and Stuart Erwin is solid as his sidekick in grifting. Overall, the film has that playful, pre-Code joy to it, naughty as it is. The screenplay by Anita Loos and Howard Emmett Rogers is delightful, and the direction from Sam Wood includes some wonderful shots. The final 45 minutes drag a bit, as Harlow is sentenced to a reformatory school, though it was nice to see the shenanigans of her fellow inmates, which included the lovely Theresa Harris, and Harlow singing at the piano to them. It's interesting to see the reaction to Harlow being pregnant, which leads to some over-the-top melodrama in the form of Gable pleading for a preacher to perform marriage services. You can see the ending coming a mile away, but an entertaining film throughout.

Love conquers all. That includes reality as defined in this pre-Code tearjerker. I would sympathize with the moral if the end weren't exaggerated into such a pile of mush. As others point out, the first half is sprightly as Gable and Harlow work the shady side of life. But then Gable accidentally kills a guy, while Harlow gets nabbed for a con job. So it's off to the hoosegow for both. Actually Gable drops out, while we follow Harlow's jaunt in a military- type slammer for women. Babes behind bars it ain't. The girls get to wear shapeless smocks, presided over by a bunch of long black crows (Patterson, et al.). One thing this segment proves—women can march from here to there in lockstep as well as men. Some pre-Code highlights—Harlow in a gown unruffled by underwear; an actual socialist loudly denouncing the "system"; an unmarried Harlow with-child after an undisguised night with Gable; a peek-a-boo with Harlow in the bathtub. And though it's not pre-Code, the black minister and his inmate daughter rise above stereotype of the day. In fact, Theresa Harris is so winning as daughter Lillie Mae, she nearly steals the show. I can see why she had such a long career, even if mainly as menials.The movie's a good look at MGM's golden twosome in their prime. And if the material falters, the stars manage to shine. So fans should be happy, despite the soggy ending.

Jean Harlow plays a streetwise dame who falls for charming con man Clark Gable. After Gable accidentally kills a guy, he takes off and leaves Harlow to take the rap. She winds up in a women's reformatory where she discovers she's pregnant. Mix of romantic comedy and drama helped a lot by the immense likability and sublime chemistry of its two leads. Harlow is terrific. One great scene has a floozy slapping Jean, only to get a punch in the kisser in return. The floozy tries it again later and gets the same results! Gable is as roguish as ever. It's hard to dislike him, even when he plays a cad. Love the girls at the reformatory. They're fun characters with some great lines. The sweet ending will please everybody but cynical types. Harlow fans should love this one.

"Hold Your Man" is significant as Harlow's transitional film from the pre-code days. Although technically the Hays Code did not go into effect until July 1934, studios were to some extent trying to police themselves earlier than that to take some of the heat off. Harlow is significantly de-tuned physically here, from the hot presence a year earlier in "Red-Headed Woman" and "Red Dust". It also appears that to illustrate their ability to police themselves without a formal approval process, the studio tacked on a moralistic second half that turned a very entertaining romantic comedy into a sappy melodrama. The film begins when depression-era hustler Eddie (Clark Gable) and his pal Slim con a pedestrian out of $30. Running from the police he blunders into an apartment and finds Ruby (Harlow) taking a bath. Ruby turns out to be a bit of a con artist herself and gets rid of the police. Eddie takes off but he has made an impression on Ruby and she arranges an "accidental" meeting. They soon fall in love but their marriage plans are interrupted by Eddie's accidental murder of one of Ruby's marks. He gets away but Ruby gets two years in a reformatory, which is portrayed as an intense Home Economics class. Until it crashes and burns at the end this is a slick little romantic comedy written by Anita Loos (Gentlemen Prefer Blondes). Gable provides his standard bravado and Harlow gives it right back to him. The script is quite clever and entertaining. Gable does not have quite the chemistry with Harlow that he had with Claudette Colbert or Rosalind Russell, but this is the kind of film that is best when its two stars are competing instead of cuddling. Unfortunately the audience's identification impulse and emotional connection are casualties of Harlow's abrupt personality change from gritty seductress to dewy-eyed self-pitying victim. This confuses and distances those who were most involved in the story until that point. Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.