Date and Time for this Past Event
- Saturday, Jun 15, 2024 3:45pm - 5pm
Details
"Pre-Code: Sex and Censorship" electrifies the first AFI Silver Classic Film Weekend. Immerse yourself in the thrilling era of pre-Code cinema, a fleeting moment from the late 1920s to 1934 when films defied convention before the Hays Code stifled Hollywood's boldness. These movies, lighthearted or dramatic, showcased complex women and flawed heroes struggling against social injustice, and unflinching explorations of sex, ambition and crime. Witness legendary stars ignite the screen: Clara Bow, James Cagney, Barbara Stanwyck, Cary Grant, Jean Harlow, Joan Blondell, Spencer Tracy, Warren William, Anna May Wong and Josephine Baker. Festival guests, including film historians Richard Koszarski, Steven C. Smith, Farran Smith Nehme, Katie Gee Salisbury and David Stenn, will introduce each film.
LADIES MUST LOVE
Introduction by film historian Farran Smith Nehme
Three Broadway gold diggers played by Sally O'Neil, Dorothy Burgess and Mary Carlisle encourage their housemate Jeannie (June Knight) to pool the sucker-money they fleece from their sugar daddies. When Jeannie falls for a rich playboy (Neil Hamilton), the agreement, a diamond bracelet and an errant cat threaten their romance. Given the star treatment by Universal, former Ziegfeld girl Knight shines as she sings and dances on screen. As MoMA curator Dave Kehr notes, "At one point, the down-on-their-luck roommates go work as 'hostesses' in a 'nightclub' operated by one 'Madame Fifi' (Maude Eburne), where their duties clearly entail more than checking coats." Showcasing smooth direction by German expat E.A. Dupont, snappy dialogue, beautiful sets, several songs and uncertain morals, this is a ripe-for-rediscovery pre-Code comedy-drama.
