Counsellor at Law

John Barrymore, while by no means a bad actor, was a shameless ham, overplaying every role whether it be straight or comic. It is therefore refreshing to see him in Counsellor at Law for once delivering a performance that is restrained and realistic, and probably the best of his career. It's no surprise then that the director of Counsellor at Law was William Wyler, perhaps the most skilled and respected director of actors in Hollywood history. No less a personage than Laurence Olivier credited Wyler with teaching him how to act for the screen. I can imagine Wyler reining in the over-expressive Barrymore, exhausting him with repeated takes and cutting his performance down to size. But Barrymore is not the only one to be affected by the Wyler touch. Bebe Daniels, who normally played women who were if not villainous than at least a bit dodgy, is the best I have ever seen her as Barrymore's warm-hearted secretary. Even supporting players Doris Kenyon and Clara Langsner, who play Barrymore's wife and mother respectively, turn in incredibly deep performances. Then there's Vincent Sherman, who later became a director himself. His character is a stereotype, and his impassioned speech is the stuff of melodrama, but he almost manages to make the part convincing. As well as coaxing such great performances, Wyler always put a lot of thought into how he should film the actors to benefit the story. Sometimes this meant violating cinematic conventions, and Wyler was lucky to have made his earliest features with Universal and Sam Goldwyn, two of the more leftfield studios at the time. Counsellor at Law has a lot of bit parts which we have to acknowledge, but not focus on, such as the clients who come and go in the first ten minutes. As often as possible Wyler shoots them with their backs to the camera so we don't dwell upon them. Conversely, he encourages us to take note of significant characters, for example placing Malka Kornstein conspicuously in the background in an early scene before she has properly entered the story. It's worth noting that this was the first time Wyler worked with his long time editor Daniel Mandell, who must have fully respected Wyler's unconventional shooting patterns. Elmer Rice's play from which the film is adapted works a lot on changing pace. The opening scenes are snappy and bustling, zipping from room to room and one character to the next. Gradually the pace slows and the scenes start to crystalize which, coming after the business and light comedy of the first half, give the important moments more impact. Wyler acknowledges and compliments this pacing, keeping the camera constantly moving in the earlier scenes, and keeping it close to the action. As things slow down his camera keeps still and often hangs back. Unfortunately some of the camera moves are a little shaky, and some of them are not entirely necessary - Wyler's later pictures would be far more subtle in this respect. Counsellor at Law is mainly worth seeing for Barrymore's understated performance, but there is plenty more going on. The story is not outstanding, but it is well told. And Wyler's direction, while it still had a long way to go to the standard he would eventually reach in Best Years of Our Lives or The Heiress is nevertheless bold and daring, and here teases the drama out of the comedy.

"Counsellor at Law" gives us one of the best screen performances of John Barrymore, before he started to use cue cards or became difficult to work with, due to his problems with alcohol. In some respect, it's incredible to see him perform at such an intense level, but he is clearly at the top of his game, and enjoying himself. William Wyler has taken the Elmer Rice play (adapted by Rice) and turned it into a wonderful film about a lawyer (Barrymore) who has worked his way out of the gutter, into a position of respect and leadership. His character never forgets where he came from but is mindful of his mistakes and all that he has to lose. At only 82 minutes, the viewer had better listen closely because the dialogue comes at you with rapid-fire speed. All in the supporting cast are excellent. 8 out of 10

Elmer Rice's long running Broadway play about a Jewish lawyer who never forgets his class roots became a hit for star Paul Muni. If the screen rights had been bought by Warner Brothers instead of Universal, I'm sure Muni might have repeated his part. It's a pity we have no record of his performance because I'm sure he was a natural for the role. Although the casting might seem bizarre John Barrymore does a superb job in the role Muni created om Counsellor at Law. This is a man who did live out the American dream, rising to the very top of his profession by hard work and a natural aptitude for the profession of law. He lives a good life style with a trophy WASP wife and a couple of step children who really don't like him. He never forgets where he came from and is available to many from the Lower East Side Neighborhood from where he sprung, pro bono. Counsellor At Law with its lead character of George Simon is no doubt based on real life attorney Samuel Leibowitz who at that time was engaged in the biggest case of his career, defending the Scottsboro Boys in Alabama. There are also echoes of another famous Jewish attorney, Louis D. Brandeis who sat on the United States Supreme Court. Like Barrymore's character Simon, Brandeis and Leibowitz both aroused the jealousy and resentment of some of the old time lawyers of the WASP white shoe persuasion. It was some of those who led the opposition to Brandeis when Woodrow Wilson appointed him to the Supreme Court. Here the opposition is in the person of Elmer Brown, your basic bigoted White AngloSaxon Protestant whose ancestors came over on the Mayflower or shortly after and think of America as their private preserve. He's gotten some information that on a previous case that involved Barrymore getting John Qualen off, an alibi witness is saying the alibi he provided was false. Problem is the alibi was false and the witness is saying Barrymore suborned perjury. Universal was fortunate enough to get Elmer Rice to adapt his own play for the screen and William Wyler does a fine job in directing so much so that you're not conscious of the fact that it all takes place within Barrymore's rather large office. Though it's not shot in those long takes like Alfred Hitchcock's classic Rope, Counsellor at Law has that same feel about it. It also has several plot lines running at once, very similar to William Wyler's later work, The Detective Story. Barrymore's marriage is on the rocks, wife Doris Kenyon is seeing Melvyn Douglas on the side. Barrymore has also been asked to defend the son of his mother's friend played by future director Vincent Sherman who is a Communist radical making inflammatory speeches in Union Square back in the day when that was the thing to do. One very ironic scene involves young Sherman with his head bandaged waiting with his mother in the anteroom, where Barrymore's snobbish bratty stepkids are waiting. The young boy stepson is played by Richard Quine who also became a pretty noted film director himself. There are also some very good performances by Bebe Daniels as Barrymore's loyal secretary and an ironically funny one by Isabelle Jewell as the switchboard operator. John Barrymore had a very good grasp at screen characters who were reaching the end of their rope. Counsellor at Law very much follows in the same vein as his characters in Grand Hotel and Dinner at Eight. With Louis D. Brandeis and Samuel Leibowitz very much in the public eye, Counsellor at Law had a built in audience when it was released. Nevertheless 75 years later it holds up very well for today's audience. I don't think even Paul Muni could have played it better.

The often hammy film appearances of the great profile, John Barrymore, often overshadowed his greatness. He was at his best on screen in 1933 with at least three classics: "Dinner at Eight", "Topaze", and this version of the Elmer Rice play where he plays a high powered New York attorney who came up the hard way and is beyond determined to remain where he is. He helps the sweet old Jewish ladies who lived where he grew up, often charging them little (if anything) yet raising the rates of the man crazy socialites and gold digging dancing girls. When he discovers scandal concerning wife Doris Kenyon, his own legal expertise might not be enough to prevent his downfall. Barrymore is surrounded by the most outstanding cast, standouts including Isabel Jewell as his obnoxiously chatty receptionist, future "His Girl Friday" killer John Qualen as one of his former clients turned informer and Bebe Daniels (just coming off of "42nd Street") as a lovelorn assistant. So much happens in a very short period of time that you might find yourself watching it over and over to pick up the tough, feisty dialog. It is perfectly directed by William Wyler who wasn't as of yet in the top line of movie directors. The screenplay, mixing high comedy, drama, political satire and legal mumbo jumbo, is brilliant. This is representative to the tea of America in the depression era 1930's with all sorts of references to what was going on at the time deep inside the world of the working class, fighting high society in its efforts to find justice. The fact that Barrymore didn't get an Oscar nomination for this is a great mystery, and had there been supporting nominations at the time, I'd vote for Isabel Jewell to get one as well.

Elmer Rice's play about the stresses in the life of a successful lawyer was a huge Broadway hit of the 1932 season. Paul Muni had been the star but for the film John Barrymore was chosen. This film restored his prestige for at this point his career and health had been in decline. Even though the story is confined to the Empire State Building, the plot is very intense and involving. William Wyler directs at a frantic pace the magnificent cast, including John Qualen, who was recruited from the original Broadway play. The film is an ensemble piece with the main focus being on George Simon (Barrymore) a top attorney, who has pulled himself up from his poor Jewish background to the prominent position he now holds. After fighting off the grateful attentions of a client, Mrs. Chapman (Mayo Methot) he has acquitted of murdering her husband, his next client is an elderly woman, whose son has been arrested for making communist speeches. He has a lot of time for her as she was a neighbour in the tenement where he grew up. George's mother drops in to see if he will help his "black sheep" brother out of a gambling debt - he does so, grudgingly. George is married to a divorcée, Cora (Doris Kenyon), who, by looks and actions, shows, that in her eyes, George's background places him far below her in society. His secretary, Regina Gordon (Bebe Daniels) observes all, the cold and superior attitude his wife adopts towards his mother (in a scene that is quite chilling), the fact that Cora is not only having an affair with a mutual friend Roy (Melvyn Douglas) but is also planning to run away with him. On top of that are George's two spoiled step children (Barbara Perry and Richard Quine) who enjoy a different type of social life than George (they still have their father's name). Regina, through all this, has to remain the perfect secretary - loyal and silent. When a case that George defended 10 years ago, threatens to ruin his career, that, along with the fact that he realises his wife has been unfaithful, pushes him to the brink of suicide. It is only the cries of Regina and a frantic phone call for help on a domestic murder case that gives him back his fighting spirit. This is a superb film with a cast list that reads like a who's who of pre-code movies. Apart from Bebe Daniels, who give a mighty performance and Doris Kenyon, a respected stage and screen actress, there was Mayo Methot as the "husband killer", Isabel Jewell, giving another quirky performance, as a sassy switchboard operator, Thelma Todd as Lillian LaRue and Melvyn Douglas in an unsympathetic role. Highly, Highly Recommended.

Elmer Rice wrote the intriguing play "Counsellor-at-law," then fashioned it into a fine film scenario. My personal recollection is Rice's 1954 play, "The Winner" (which the Theatre Guild toured with Tom Helmore, Joan Tetzel and Frederick O'Neal). That wonderful play also had the legal office setting, which Rice knew and wrote about so well. In this 1933 film, Director William Wyler coaxes John Barrymore to render one of his finest film performances. It is deeply felt, subtly executed and hypnotic to watch. The staging is choreographed in a manner in which camera and actors move smoothly, with every shot a solid statement. One of the great motion pictures of the thirties, and a triumph for the entire cast and crew.

What a surprise this film was: the boring title hardly leads you to expect much. Barrymore really shows his chops as a pure actor, someone who can bring off a character through expression, gesture, posture, accent, tone of voice, body language, mannerisms, &c. This is an adaptation of a play about an self-made Jewish lawyer in New York. It's hard to believe that Barrymore was, in life, more like his character's wife than the lawyer he plays here. He brings off the self-made man's insecurities in every detail, from his macho way of walking to his fidgety hands and overloud way of talking and laughing. He even drops some of his g's, and I love the way he says "Yeah" (Oscar Jaffe would blanch). The script is full of telling details. Notice how the lawyer offers a guest a choice of cigar or cigarette from an expensive box, and then forgets to offer him a light. Because Wyler is at the controls, these nuances aren't hammered at the audience either. Many film scholars have claimed that Wyler, maybe because he avoided catfights with his studio bosses, was no "auteur". Wyler never puffed himself up, either, in the way someone like Welles did. Yet the style is already visible here, long before Deep Focus, in the simultaneous double and triple reaction shots, the multiple planes of action, the underplaying and long takes, the natural dialogue, the strong performances from the bit players-- and most of all in the realistic, accurate, detailed design. This is basically a B movie. It's all shot on one basic set, in fact. But what a set! Get all that Art Deco glass and the Socialist-Realist reliefs. Those who don't think Wyler had a style should check out "Carrie" (1952), separated from this film by almost 20 years and starring this other guy by the name of Olivier-- who always credited Wyler for teaching him how to act in films. Barrymore maybe got a few pointers for his performance here, too. All in all this is a great way to film a play, and a nice Depression period piece too.

A really good movie with John Barrymore playing a successful Manhattan attorney who rose up from humble roots. His loving Yiddishe Mama comes by his Empire State Building office to visit (because she has all the time in the world), his switchboard operator is a blond Lily Tomlin (one ringy dingy) who when she is not sending out for chocolate shakes and tuna sandwiches (because she's got a bad stomach), is a fun addition to the cast and one of his henchmen is a reformed con who is now his gopher/tail. Barrymore's secretary is secretly in love with him but he only has eyes for his WASP of a wife with 2 children from a previous marriage. She cares only about herself and her reputation as one of New York's elite 400. She addresses his mother as Mrs. Simon and they go no further than shaking hands. His career is jeopardized when an old mistake surfaces to threaten him but luckily it is put to rest when he finds a solution. However his elation is short lived as he wishes to share it with his wife who has gone off on a cruise to escape a possible scandal and he finds that she is with another man. Distraught he attempts suicide but luckily his secretary finds him in time and the last phone call of the night puts his life in perspective as he goes off with her to solve yet another problem. The Art Deco scenes of the interior of the Empire State Building are nothing short of magnificent. Absolute beauty at its finest.

Always admired John Barrymore and his great acting skills and in this picture he plays a Jewish Lawyer, (George Simon),"Midnight",'39, who is very successful and climbs to the top of his profession, not only helping the very rich but also his old time neighbors and especially is mother. William Wyler directed this great film classic and was able to help John Barrymore give an outstanding performance despite his drinking problem. It was in this picture that John Barrymore started to forget his lines and need cue cards, however, he gave an outstanding performance. The entire film was at a very fast pace with all the actors running through their dialog which was the practice during the early 1930's. Melvyn Douglas,(Roy Darwin),"The Old Dark House",'32, played a very brief role and managed to steal George Simon's wife away from him on a cruise. This is a great film classic and worth the time to view.

One of my all-time favorite movies. John Barrymore the ultimate WASP gives a stunning performance as the assimilated wealthy Jewish successful lawyer. He finds himself on a higher level than that of the scum he believed it was worth aspiring to. An unfaithful arrogant wife, spoiled rotten step-children are forgettable personages here. Look for the genuine types: Gold-Hearted Momma Simon who "has plenty time!", the Irish ward heeler who has a lovable spot for Momma Simon, the former crook who saves the day for Mr. Simon, Momma Becker whose son "got such a "klopp"; on the head!" and the son who is the street corner revolutionary (in other words the Mr. Simon who did not succeed). The unforgettable scenes: The discovery of his wife's worthlessness and the "encounter" with Peter J. Malone whose illegitmate son makes Mr. Simon legitimate. Am I telling too much? You'll never get enough of this movie - Foist Kless - voit' a milyun dollehs!