Evelyn Prentice (1934)

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Evelyn Prentice stars William Powell and, in the title role, Myrna Loy, a romantic duo that never fails to draw me in. It's a murder mystery and they play husband and wife, but this is nothing like The Thin Man with which they'd just had a hit. Rather, they are tender towards each other, but feeling estranged because Mr. Prentice is a big shot defense lawyer who's never home. His brush with adultery teaches him a lesson, but her own, more timid, gets her into hot water with a blackmailer, which culminates in his untimely death. It's all fairly ordinary stuff, aside from a few charming domestic scenes, until the courtroom climax where realistic procedure takes a backseat to top notch acting from the two leads. I'm so used to seeing them in fluff pieces, it kind of shook me to see them so invested in the drama, and Loy in particular was extremely touching. It's not a long film, so the two-act set-up doesn't make you wait TOO long for a great, heartfelt pay-off. 4 years 6 months ago