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Having apprenticed on 15 B-Westerns and melodramas for his uncle Carl Laemmle at Universal, William Wyler signaled his readiness to take a big step up in class with this expertly directed movie about, well, class. John Barrymore gives a crackling performance as a dynamic Manhattan lawyer who's worked his way to the top, yet still has the hunger of an immigrant Jew who came over in steerage. Seemingly master of all he surveys--his offices are in the Empire State Building!--he suddenly finds himself facing disbarment, and ditching by the elegant WASP wife (Doris Kenyon) who's always wished he would practice law "like a gentleman" (read "Gentile man"). The entire movie takes place in the legal suite. Such a stagy stratagem (Elmer Rice adapting his own play) usually spells static filmmaking, but Wyler brings off a cinematic tour de force with tensile camerawork, sharp performances, and brilliant set design (Charles D. Hall) that gets great visual excitement out of all the doors, glass walls, and skyscraper windows.The apprenticeship was definitely over. --Richard T. Jameson ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Barrymore performance transcends conventions
The more theatrical movie acting style of the first half of the 20th century may strike some modern viewers as hopelessly artificial, but for those observers, John Barrymore's performance in "Counsellor-at-Law" may be instructive.

Barrymore wasn't part of the Group Theater/Lee Strasberg school of acting that revolutionized the art by mid-century, but realism isn't always conveyed by the Method.

Watch Barrymore in the scene when he talks to the rebellious son of a old family friend, who has been arrested and beaten for espousing Communism. Listen to his tone of voice as he tries to convince the kid to do things his way. Watch his facial expressions. This is a convincing job of acting, and Barrymore maintains this level of integrity throughout the film.

Bebe Daniels, as his devoted secretary, and Doris Kenyon, as his spoiled wife, are very good, as well. Their portrayals are much more obviously grounded in the conventions of 1930s film acting, yet remain completely effective.

lively Depression-era story
John Barrymore shines in "Counsellor at Law", along with an extremely strong supporting cast in this 1930s-era tale of an ambitious New York lawyer. We meet him in his offices at the Empire State Building, where a procession of clients streams in and out of his extremely busy day. When his sweet immigrant mother appears, we realize his humble roots, so different from "the Mayflower boys" whose professional ranks he has penetrated.

Fast-paced, with witty dialogue, brittle humor, and barbed social commentary, this film transports us back to Great Depression. Barrymore, faced with an ethical dilemma, also finds his marriage is in jeopardy; his wife, a superficial society woman, holds values quite different from his own.

Although in some ways light and frothy, as befitting movies made for 1930s audiences seeking escape, this William Wyler film remains timely with its deeper questions of integrity and what goes into true success and authentic relationships. Barrymore's masterful performance reminds us yet again that as an actor, he was far more than a handsome facial profile. Highly recommended for a step back into another time!

A PRIME JOHN BARRYMORE PERFORMANCE.
An excellent movie, superbly directed by pantheon helmsman William Wyler early in his directorial career. John Barrymore gives one of his finest performances as a Jewish lawyer who works his way to the top of his profession only to have his gentile wife (Doris Kenyon) leave him. At the bustling Manhattan law offices of Simon and Tedesco, highly successful Jewish attorney George Simon, who has risen from the slums of New York, returns to his roots when he bails out Sarah Becker's son Harry, a young Communist who has been brutalised by the police. Simon's socialite wife, Cora, is embarrassed at Simon's notoriety and of his heritage while Simon's secretary Regina "Rexy" (Bebe Daniels, in her final film of any merit) secretly loves him...The dialogue is crisp and snappy additionally aided by Barrymore's spellbinding deliveries. The film was noted to have been made in breakneck speed: Barrymore was letter perfect except he kept flubbing one line which took 52 takes. Paul Muni was originally sought to play the role, but he played the role on stage and didn't want to be typecast a Jew. The film opened to public and critical applause and today, the lightening still crackles through this masterful film.

A warning about the transfer
I love the film, but just a few words about the transfer: I don't think it's as fine as the other reviews would make you think. It's not horrible, but I don't believe the source to be a 35 mm print of the movie, it looks more like vhs, especially for the lack of sharpness (compare it with any of the latest 30's movies Warner releases). Even an older title like 'The love trap' (1929!), another Kino release from the William Wyler Collection, has a much better and sharper transfer, especially the first half of the movie. Just don't expect too much and you won't be disappointed.

Barrymore & Wyler Rule in Counsellor-At-Law
At last, one of the major omissions of the video revolution has been rectified with this dvd (and vhs) release of William Wyler's first major directoral effort. And if anybody ever questioned why John Barrymore was so highly regarded in his day, this film will resolve any controversy in Mr. Barrymore's favor. This release restores a true classic to general circulation (The Movie Channel ran it a few times several years ago.)

Universal balked at paying Barrymore's typically huge salary and hired him at the rate of $25,000 per week for a total of two weeks' employment. Despite fast work by Wyler and Barrymore, (all other non-Barrymore scenes were filmed after the star was off the payroll) more time was needed and Barrymore ended up working one more week. These terms were a come-down for Barrymore who had enjoyed multiple-film deals with Warners ($200,000 per film, for five films), MGM and RKO only a short time before.

John Barrymore had been a star in films since 1914 (well before his "Hamlet" in the theater) and was virtually the only film star of his vintage who successfully transitioned to "talkies." But by 1933, years of alcohol abuse were taking their toll on the 51 year old actor and producers began to distrust him.

Ironically, no longer offered long term agreements with major studios, this one-shot deal at Universal and another at Columbia in February 1934, (the screwball comedy, "Twentieth Century") turned out to be the best two films Barrymore ever made. Counsellor At Law shows Barrymore as the finest dramatic actor of his generation and launched Wyler on a remarkable career; Twentieth Century (long available on VHS) shows him as the finest farceur of his era and launched Hollywood's cycle of screwball comedies (it didn't hurt the career of director Howard Hawks either).

Alas, Barrymore himself would not be a beneficiary of either film and would be reduced to supporting roles by the mid 1930s, ending up spoofing himself on radio right up to his death in 1942. But then this is the stuff that legends are made of. The fine KINO VIDEO transfer for the dvd version captures the vividness of the film when it was new and makes 1933 seem as though it wasn't so long ago. Bravo! ... Read more

Description

The Master of Spectacle, Cecil B. De Mille, directed this risque all-star revue of decadence which must have been jaw-dropping in 1921 and remains astonishing today. Anatol de Witt Spencer (Wallace Reid), as incredibly wealthy as he is naive, and his child-like bride Vivian (Gloria Swanson) are on their honeymoon. At a posh speakeasy he spies his high school sweetheart, who is obviously the sex toy of flamboyant old Gordon Bronson . To Vivian's dismay, idealistic Anatol decides to rescue the seductive Emilie, but soon she goes back to Bronson.The cycle begins again when Anatol tries to save another wayward woman from her life of sin before finally succumbing himself to the ways of the flesh. In "The Affairs of Anatol," not only does DeMille show women smoking, drinking (during Prohibition), exposing body parts seldom before seen on a movie screen, and frankly pursuing men who attract them; he also presents this debauchery with amazing visual flair. With film design by Erte, De Mille clearly meant "The Affairs of Anatol" to be as much a decorative as a dramatic feast.The film is digitally mastered from an elaborate original print featuring hand coloring, stencil coloring, and dozens of changes in color tint and tone, in itself a striking work of art. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

The 1920's soap opera king
CB DeMille hit pay dirt as far as I am concerned with this one. It is a soap opera and as soap operas go a very good one. I still in my young mind can not phatom how Gloria Swanson became such a big star under the tuotoship of CB. She is a OK actress though much better than in shifting sands (1918) This will appeal to you if you want to see what a young Gloria looked like before Sunset Blvd. But I wish someone would tell me what was her magnetism. I still prefer Pola Negri to her any ole time

Witty, Cynical Film But Poor Picture Quality
THE AFFAIRS OF ANATOL is one of the great but elusive silents from the early 1920s that turn up only as tantalizing photos in film books. So it is a real joy to discover a tinted and toned print on DVD with a serviceable new music score. The film also provides an opportunity to view the sophisticated work of Cecil B. DeMille when he was still very much of a creative film-maker and before he settled into the "cotton candy" purveyor of comic book-type films of the sound era.

Perhaps the spendid visual quality of some recent DVD silent film releases has spoiled me, but as all silent film buffs know, the flesh tones in silents are crucial. When the actors all look as though their make-up is white flour, you know you're watching a print a few generations removed from a good original. Since the liner notes claim that ANATOL was taken from a 35 mm. original - hence the elaborate stenciling, tinting and toning - I was shocked at the rather muddy pictorial quality and dead white faces of the actors. It's still a wonderful film but the disapponting visual quality will limit its appeal to established silent film buffs. It's tough sledding for others.

THE AFFAIRS OF ANATOL!
Directed by the immortal CECIL B. DeMILLE! Starring the dazzling GLORIA SWANSON! A tawdry little tale of the JAZZ AGE! Swanson plays Vivian, the wife of Anatol DeWitt Spencer, played by WALLACE REID! They are a young married couple who end up CHANGING their HEARTS along with their PARNTERS once they are seduced by the DECADENT PLEASURES of New York City! Featuring BEBA DANIELS as the wickedest woman in the Big Apple, Satan Synne! The story might not be much but the COSTUMES and the SETS are pure DEMILLE! "The Affairs of Anatol" is based on a novel and play by Arthur Schnitzler! In DeMille's hands it becuase a SOPHISTICATED FARCE! This SILENT film is presented with its original COLOR TINTING! This would be a good one to check out before watching GLORIA in "Sunset Blvd"!

Watch out for Satan Synne
The Affairs of Anatol, although concerned with adultery, is really quite a moral film. Anatol de Witt Spencer has the best of intentions with regard to the three women, other than his wife, who he is involved with. His affairs, at least in terms of what is seen, don't amount to more than a lustful look and a kiss. Nevertheless the film depicts a world which Hollywood would soon be unable to show. Later censorship would not allow a character called Satan Synne who is obviously a prostitute and it certainly would not allow us to see her invite Anatol into her bedroom.

The episode concerning Satan Synne is the best of the film. This is partly because she is played by Bebe Daniels. Anyone who has seen 42nd Street will recognise Daniels as the star who sprains her ankle. She was an important silent actress and her beauty allows her to convincingly portray a temptress known as 'The wickedest woman in New York.' Satan Synne is a wonderful character and fascinating not because of her supposed wickedness, but because Demille shows her in such a sympathetic light. Thus although Demille's film is moral it does not moralize. It does not condemn the world it shows.

The film, as a whole, is entertaining and very interesting, but it does not quite attain greatness. Anatol comes across as just a little too naïve to be completely believable, while his wife, played by Gloria Swanson, lacks understanding and is seen to be simply spiteful. The viewer is left wondering what her problem is, and thus at times her actions lack motivation and justification. This means that she is a less sympathetic character than she ought to be.

The Affairs of Anatol is a good film, but one of the main reasons to see it is that the print presented on the DVD is quite superb. It is unusual to see a print which shows such elaborate colouring techniques. Not only are there a large number of tinted scenes, but also at times the print has been coloured in such a way that different parts of the negative show different colours. Furthermore, the titles are inventive with coloured drawings and even on occasion animated scenes. The spectacle of the film is thus heightened and the viewing experience becomes unforgettable.

Silent films are often shown in black and white even when they were originally coloured. It is rare indeed to see a film which shows the variety of colouring techniques which existed in the silent era. It is for this reason that The Affairs of Anatol should be added to any silent film fan's collection. ... Read more

Description

The star attraction of this disc is Mabel Normand in her feature film "Suzanna" (1922). It reunited the team that had made "Mickey" a great success a few years earlier: producer Mack Sennett, director F. Richard Jones and Mabel herself. Even George Nichols came back to play the father. Unfortunately, the film was still in production when the William Desmond Taylor murder scandal hit, and Mabel's career was never the same.

Long out of circulation, "Suzanna" now exists with two reels missing, but the gaps have been bridged by explanatory titles. Although the source material was a 35mm print, the image quality is a bit lower than Unknown Video's usual standard. Still, it does look pretty good, and the rarity of the film (and Mabel's enduring popularity today) make this a must for fans of the silent cinema.

Supplemental material: Also presented is the only surviving footage (about a reel's worth) of William S. Hart's feature "Riddle Gawne" (1918), feauring Lon Chaney as the villain! Also presented is a Harold Lloyd rarity, the one-reel comedy "A Sammy in Siberia" (1918).

Bonus: There's also a magnificent collection of vintage coming-attractions slides, in gorgeous color, collected expressly for this DVD. Included are over 40 images, featuring stars like Douglas Fairbanks, Norma Shearer, Tom Mix, Clara Bow and many more! ... Read more