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ACTOR
Kay FrancisGeorge BrentIan HunterGloria Dickson
DIRECTOR
William Keighley
SYNOPSICS
Secrets of an Actress (1938) is a English movie. William Keighley has directed this movie. Kay Francis,George Brent,Ian Hunter,Gloria Dickson are the starring of this movie. It was released in 1938. Secrets of an Actress (1938) is considered one of the best Drama,Romance movie in India and around the world.
Two architects lose their heads over a glamorous actress.
Secrets of an Actress (1938) Reviews
Nice Francis fare
Kay Francis was slapped into B films and her billing demoted in order to drive her out of Warner Brothers; she was making $200,000+ a year, and they were no longer interested in her. She wouldn't leave. "Secrets of an Actress" is a pretty good B also starring Ian Hunter and George Brent. Francis teams up with an architect (Hunter) who wants to become a producer. Together, they make a great team. However, his partner (Brent) is less enthusiastic and at first suspicious of Francis. Then he falls for her and she for him. However, he's married to a real shrew (Gloria Dickson) - they're no longer together, but getting a divorce is proving difficult. Most of the B films Francis made were really more like A-, thanks to her. She had an elegant and likable presence that elevated everything she did. The acting is all-around good, especially from Isabel Jeans, who is a riot as Francis' friend Marion. Good for Francis fans.
Kay Francis Star Vehicle
Kay Francis stars as a minor actress who wants to make it on Broadway. She meets a bored architect (Ian Hunter) who has always wanted to produce a play. She has one. They team up and she becomes the toast of the Great White Way. But Hunter also has a partner (George Brent)and it's love at first sight. But he has a grasping wife (Gloria Dickson).... Fast-paced with a lot of one liners, this little Warners film is fun from the getgo. Francis is, as always, a delight to watch. Brent and Hunter are solid. Dickson is suitably vile as the shrew wife. Isabel Jeans is very funny as Marion, playing a combination of Alice Brady and Eric Blore. The 2 secretaries are nicely played by Dennie Moore and Penny Singleton. This was one of Kay's final film for Warners, and you'll note they had already demoted her to first billing but beneath the title. Her legal battles with the studio were front-page news in the late 30s. The studio put her in B films and then blamed her for slipping at the box office. Still, Francis had the last laugh; she turned in great performances even in the drek Warners gave her (while handing the plums to the new Warners queen, Bette Davis).
One of the better Kay Francis vehicles thanks to a clever script...
It's nice to report that once in awhile KAY FRANCIS actually got to emote in a fairly decent script. This one benefits from the participation of Julius J. Epstein, a writer at Warner Bros. who wrote many fine scripts for that studio and others. This one is a formula story that benefits from some clever lines and amusing dialog, factors often missing in Miss Francis' films. GEORGE BRENT and IAN HUNTER are her romantic co-stars, as architects who become involved in her show business aspirations. There's never much doubt as to which male will win her in the final reel, but getting there is pleasant enough with everyone getting a turn at some good quips thanks to a better than average script. PENNY SINGLETON (who later became "Blondie") is almost unrecognizable as a brunette secretary with eyeglasses, but the chief femme roles go to GLORIA DICKSON as a gold-digger and ISABEL JEANS as Francis' flighty roommate who is a bit annoying in her overacted role. Francis gives a smooth performance and it's a shame she never got a chance at scripts of this caliber during most of her early days at Warner Bros., the studio that had Bette Davis waiting in the wings to replace Francis as the number one dramatic star.
I Want To Be A Producer
Kay Francis must have had some interesting secrets in the way she had two men chasing her in Secrets Of An Actress. Beauty, talent, and that little something extra that makes one a star. In Secrets Of An Actress, Kay is the daughter of a famous stage actor who has tried to match that career. But all she gets is road company tours in various classics. She wants to be a hit on Broadway and in a role created for her. As it happens she has a play that she wrote with just that in mind. To find a producer is the key. Enter Ian Hunter who is a successful architect and pretty well fixed financially. A chance meeting in a bar with Francis and he's literally swept off his feet. Hunter has a younger associate in his firm played by George Brent who is likewise smitten with Francis, but he's just a little bit married to Gloria Dickson, one real piece of work. If you're a fan of Thirties screen comedies I think you'll know where this one is going. Doesn't mean the ride isn't pleasant. The script is a witty, sophisticated one and the cast performs it well. Look for a brilliant performance by Isabel Jeans as Francis's best friend, an old time actress with a little drinking problem. She plays it like a combination of Eve Arden and Zasu Pitts. In her case the old Latin phrase in vino veritas rings true as she has some really good observations, especially with a drink or two. A few years down the road, I think someone would have recognized Diana Barrymore for the model of Francis's character. Secrets Of An Actress, though from the Warner B picture unit is a bright comedy, very typical of its time.
For a Post-Code film, it sure has the look of a Pre-Code picture!
In 1934, a newer strengthened Production Code was put in place. Hollywood had agreed to clean up its act--removing nudity, adultery, bawdy language and excessively violent behavior from its films. During the rest of the 30s, divorce, for example, was hardly ever mentioned. In light of this, it was very surprising that SECRETS OF AN ACTRESS got the go ahead light. This film is about a new Broadway star (Kay Francis) and the men who love her (Ian Hunter and George Brent). In particular, she loves Brent, though she doesn't realize he's already married. To make this more palatable to the censors, they pointed out that Brent's wife didn't love him, was holding on to him for his money and that they'd been separated for several years. This was perhaps the only way the divorce angle could enter the film, though it also tended to make the film seem a bit contrived and impossible. Overall, the film is entertaining though also very predictable. The stars do a decent enough job, though the less than outstanding plot and the god-awful character of Miss Plantagenet (who was like a walking migraine every time she appeared on screen) did a lot to sink this film to the mediocre level.