The Dark Horse

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source: The Dark Horse

Moviecut—The Dark Horse

Dimwitted Zachary Hicks is nominated as the Progressive Party's candidate for governor, and it's up to a sly campaign manager to help him win. The Dark Horse is a sprightly comedy/romance/political drama. Warren William is good, and Bette Davis acquits herself well in a pretty thankless role. However, the whole film belongs to Guy Kibbee. It's fun to see him have a larger part than usual. Vivienne Osborne was quite good as William's vengeful ex-wife. The ubiquitous Frank McHugh also appears. Perhaps the oddest moment in the film is when Kibbee and Osborne play a game of strip poker!

Warren William steals the show in this film as a campaign manager appearing to be just about one step beyond his critics. It's basically the old tale of a political party nominating a dim-wit, in this case, the affable Guy Kibbee to be their candidate for governor, in the hope that they can control just about everything. Bette Davis makes an impressive look here as the secretary of the party who gets the regulars to hire the William character since he is the man she is romantically involved with. He is stuck paying alimony to a cunning ex-wife and when she is hired to create an embarrassment for Kibbee on the eve of the election, all comic hilarity bursts out.

Guy Kibbee gives the viewer a lot of laughs. Like most candidates, he knows almost nothing. Warren William, a very, under rated actor, is superb in giving instructions to Kibbee; that is, he teaches him to say something which means nothing to the voting public. A campaign based on no comment, "I'll take it under advisement," and "Maybe yes, but then again, maybe no," is the nearly perfect way to win an election. Succinctly, the dumber the candidate, the greater the chance he or she will win. After all, the public can identify with such a person. With respect to the movie, it makes for a lot of comedy.

Warren Williams leads a good cast in a fast-paced movie about politics and marriage. It's one of Williams' best performances. He's perfect as the fleet-thinking con man who juggles responsibilities -- electing a complete nincompoop as governor, and trying to squeeze out from under alimony payments and marry his secretary, Bette Davis. William's long snoot and pompous expressions resemble John Barrymore's in his later years. He may not be a gifted comedian but he delivers the goods. The political story is, well, I hate to say "relevant" -- but it's relevant. The romantic angle is well handled too. Nobody breaks into tears or begs forgiveness. The only emotions we see, besides an occasional gesture of affection, are anger and skepticism. Bette Davis is blond and pretty, and her eyes are extra-terrestrial. Fun, and worth catching.

The main reason to see this film is Warren William, who is in top form as the shyster campaign manager. He is electric, constantly finding ways to fool the public and defeat the opposing party in the midst of the biggest disasters. William is a great actor -- I feel he never got his due. Bette Davis as his girlfriend also shines in an under-written role. Personally, I found Guy Kibbee not quite right as the lame-brained candidate that William and the others are trying to foist on the public. He seemed more like an empty canvas than a person. I would have preferred to see a real character emerge rather than a non-character. The story itself is implausible, silly and clichéd. But Warren William and Bette Davis are well worth watching.