Flesh

It's sometimes hard to find John Ford's touch here.This is a pure melodrama that recalls Stahl's works:the German side is also present in "back street" released the same year.The characters are close to Marcel Pagnol's ones (see" Angèle"(1934),"la fille du puisatier"(1941))It does not matter if the action takes place in Germany ,in NYC or in Provence:unmarried mothers abound in Pagnol's movies.Wallace Beery's character reminds me of Fernandel's parts:both are good guys,naive with a very strong heart.

Actually ,Ford's touch can be felt when it gets to wrestling scenes.We find back his great moral stature ,his values,when Beery shows his dislike for the "I tell you when you win and I tell you when you lose" thing.This might have influenced other directors for better (the set- up,Robert Wise,1949)or for worse(Rocky,Alvidsen,1977).

Wallace Beery is undeniably the stand-out,but the supporting cast is excellent.It's strange how the drinks work on a man!When Wallace sticks with beer (good for wrestling?)everything works out fine,but when he switches to whiskey (evil drink?),it's the beginning of the end.How many 2001 movies will be still watchable in 2070?This one deserves to be seen.

Despite what people say about Wallace Beery, considered misanthropic and difficult to work with by many of his colleagues, the man can ACT!

When watching the film, I realized that if you have great actors in a film, the film works. This film has GREAT actors and a very good story too.

Beery plays a wrestler. Karen Morley has just been let out of prison and he takes her in. Beery plays a "Marty" type of character where he feels no one would ever all in love with him because he is ugly and dumb. But he adores Morley.

Berry does not realize that Morley is just waiting for her boyfriend Ricardo Cortez to be released from jail also. Despite how nice Beery is to her, she just can't fall in love with him. It is clear, even to her, that she is making wrong choices but she can not help herself.

There are some plot twists that I do not want to give away. It is definitely worth watching. Everyone does a great job making this into a Classy Classic.

Yes, it's a predictable, old fashioned, transparent soap opera, but there are things which keep you interested to the end.

Beery has a difficult task. Being a wrestler (he was no Mr. Universe), holding onto a German accent, and playing a slow witted character. He does it. He seems to be doing his own wrestling (I zoomed in with slow motion), his accent doesn't slip, and being dumb, as hard as can be to be performed..he carries it off with only a bit of his patented "Ain't I the lovable slob" shtick.

Morley nails it as a cynical, world weary woman eager to make the wrong choice in men. Cortez is at his best playing slick sociopaths, and he does it here again. Their performances keep you watching when Beery and his Germanic crew get too schmaltzy

Flesh (1932)

*** (out of 4)

John Ford's drama about an ex-con named Laura (Karen Morley) who gets released from prison with nothing and after stealing some food it appears she's going back until Polakai (Wallace Beery), a German wrestler, comes to her aid and soon takes her in. It doesn't take long for Polakai to fall in love but what he doesn't know is that Laura has a partner (Ricardo Cortez) in prison who is about to cause trouble. FLESH isn't the greatest film in Ford's career but I found it to be one of those unique ones that really doesn't get enough credit or any credit at all. It seems that all great directors like Ford, Hitchcock or Bergman have films that are special but they get overlooked because they don't quite measure up to the masterpieces. I think that's where FLESH falls in because while it's no where near the masterpiece of THE SEARCHERS, it's still a pretty unique movie on a number of levels. The best thing going for the picture is Beery who easily steals things. You'd think Beery playing a wrestler wouldn't be that much of a stretch but the actor brings so much to the role that you can't help but be impressed with him and fall for the character. Playing dimwitted is never easy and most actors fail but Beery perfectly nails it. Even better is the way he brings across this certainly level of feeling and emotion for everything that happens in the story. Morley is also extremely good in her part as she makes you believe everything you're watching. The chemistry between the two leads is quite remarkable. Cortez is also good in his supporting bit as is Jean Hersholt. The one problem is FLESH is that it's a tad bit too predictable and has one too many clichés but the performances and the look and tone Ford delivers makes it worth seeing.

Flesh is the story of two people who would seem to be unlikely alliances. This is just one example of how films in the golden days of Hollywood center on character and how they relate to each other to further the plot rather than action or violence. There is something natural or humanely real and raw about this film. That's probably why it's called Flesh. But it's not centering on lust or sex, like today's films would, with Flesh for its title. This is about the basic need to give and receive love and acceptance to each other, even in the last place you'd look. If you're looking for an intelligent film about human relationships and don't mind the early 1930s look of black-and-white, this film shows Karen Morley, a vastly underrated actress and largely forgotten today, and Wallace Beery at their best. This could very well be Ms. Morley's finest hour in films. To not see this film would be missing a lesson in love.