# Twentieth Century (1934)

### reviewed by
Christian Pyle

    Twentieth Century (1934)

    a retrospective by Christian Pyle

When searching this afternoon for a comedy my sick wife hadn't seen, I chose Howard Hawks' "Twentieth Century." She didn't laugh much, but this is one of those comedies that gets funnier with familiarity. John Barrymore stars in a delicious self-parody. His character, Broadway director Oscar Jaffe, is egotistical ham given to grand melodramatic gestures. From Oscar's catch-phrase expression of disapproval ("I cast the iron door upon you") to something as simple as turning over a picture, Barrymore plays every word, every movement with a perfect flair for the deliberately theatrical.

The plot concerns Oscar's relationship with an actress he discovered and groomed (Carole Lombard). She was a lingerie model named Mildred Plotka until Oscar decided she was an actress and changed her name to Lily Garland. Lily's career takes off quickly, but she feels smothered by Oscar's obsessive attention. She runs off to Hollywood and becomes a star; Oscar goes broke trying to create another star. They meet again on a train, the Twentieth Century. Since we saw her last, Lily has become just like her mentor-a melodramatic egomaniac. The ensuing conflict anticipates the battles of the sexes in Hawks' better known comedies, "Bringing Up Baby" (1938) and "His Girl Friday" (1940).

In addition to the dueling egos, Roscoe Karns is a treat as Owen O'Malley, Oscar's drunken publicist. More than any other aspect of the movie, O'Malley's sarcastic barbs showcase the wit of writers Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, best known for "The Front Page" (the basis for "His Girl Friday"). Etienne Girardot is also a hoot as an oddball who goes around the train putting up stickers saying, "REPENT for the time has come."

    Grade: B+

    © 1999 Christian L. Pyle

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