Joan Crawford Double Feature: ‘Dance, Fools, Dance’ And ‘The Damned Don’t Cry’ Reviewed

Warner Archive provided me with free copies of the Blu-rays I reviewed in this article. The opinions I share are my own.

Joan Crawford will dance and manipulate her way into your heart in these two films recently released by Warner Archive.

Harry Beaumont‘s Dance, Fools, Dance (1931)

With a title like Dance, Fools, Dance it would’ve been more strange if the film hadn’t began with people dancing. But a frivolous lifestyle is only so fun to watch, which is why it doesn’t take long for Crawford’s Bonnie to suffer a serious setback. After losing all of his money in the stock market crash, Bonnie’s father (William Holden) dies of a heart attack, leaving Bonnie and her brother, Rodney (William Blakewell), penniless. Their reaction isn’t exactly that of grieving children. Any concern they have is for themselves, but while Bonnie accepts the fact that she’ll need a job, Rodney would rather drink and hope his situation changes.

If getting a job in a newsroom was as easy as Bonnie makes it look, writers would be feeling a lot better right now (the film does acknowledge that Bonnie had connections at the paper to help her out).

While it’s another role where Crawford gets to go through a transformation and ends the film in a very different place from where she started, the turning points aren’t as believable because they feel rushed (which isn’t to say she would’ve reacted as bad as Rodney, but she adjusts fast to not having cash). It is interesting, knowing what a popular screen pairing they were, that the main relationship in this movie isn’t between Crawford and Clark Gable but between brother and sister. Fans expecting romance might feel cheated, and Aurania Rouverol’s screenplay pales compared to other Crawford movies, but it’s still a sturdy role for the star.

Bonus Features:

Warner Archive’s Blu-ray comes with two Merrie Melodies cartoons featuring Foxy, who bears more than a passing resemblance to Mickey Mouse. In the first, he’s a cop with a crime storyline on theme with the feature. While the title of the second short (“Smile, Darn Ya, Smile!”) suggests a connection, it’s all about Foxy being a train conductor. “Hollywood: The Dream Factory” is a 50-minute documentary about MGM that feels on point with MGM celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, but provides more clips than information (and doesn’t name the films, so it’s up to viewers to recognize the actors and look them up).

Vincent Sherman‘s The Damned Don’t Cry (1950)

A man’s body is dumped in the desert. An oil heiress is missing. Once upon a time, Lorna Hanson (Crawford) was Ethel Whitehead and The Damned Don’t Cry is her story. The perfect vehicle for Crawford (who manages to generate chemistry with all four of the male co-stars she’s paired with in this movie), Ethel’s ambition-fueled transformation is a joy to see. Is it really a rule that when you become a tough broad you start chewing gum with attitude? Probably not, but it makes for good cinema, just like the decision to have Ethel’s hairstyles change with her circumstances. Not to be counted out but Kent Smith makes an impression as Ethel’s most worthy suitor and the one who goes through a transformation, too, thanks to Ethel’s interference.

Bonus Features:

“The Crawford Formula: Real and Reel” uses a lot of talking heads with film historians to discuss this film specifically, like how producer Gerry Wald had a background in journalism, which explains the use of newspaper headlines throughout the picture.  The commentary by director Vincent Sherman covers the plot a lot, but also includes nuggets of information about working with Crawford.

For the Screen Director’s Playhouse radio broadcast of The Damned Don’t Cry, Crawford reprises the role of Ethel, but Frank Lovejoy fills in for David Brian as George, the bad boy gangster Ethel shouldn’t get involved with. It’s also worth watching the original theatrical trailer to see how it spins the film to take away Ethel’s agency and blame her actions on George.

Dance, Fools, Dance and The Damned Don’t Cry are available on Blu-ray now from Warner Archive and to purchase from Movie Zyng.