Confession

Kay Francis is heartbreaking. Everything about it seems so simplistic. We are never going back but it’s hard not to look at movies like this and realize how little you ACTUALLY need to move your audiences. No one these has the chops I’d assume

The movie opens with the life of sweet innocent Jane Bryan being courted by the sexual predator Basil Rathbone, but then at 23 minutes in it's all about the life of Kay Francis! You've never seen her like this before! She takes the persona of someone disgraced and it's wonderful to see her get a more demanding part. Not that she was 100% perfect for it, but definitely a welcome experience seeing her try something different then her usual glamorous romance roles.

The first half hour is wonderful but it really loses something in the extended flashback in the middle that makes up half the film. The drama seems to have been tamed and distilled in a way that removes a lot of the tension. It does pick up at the end, though, and I noticed some really nice shots.