Customer Reviews

Executive Suite

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Executive Suite is an often overlooked drama, but I beleive it to be one of the best films of the 1950's. The death of the president of a large furniture company creates a power struggle among the remaining board members. Competing for the top job are William Holden as an idealistic designer and engineer, and Fredric March as the company's chief acccountant. These two spend much of the film jockying other members of the board for their votes. The climactic showdown comes in the form of a board meeting where one man snatches victory from the jaws of defeat, not by force or cunning or even any kind of cleverness, but simply by telling the truth. One of the finest scenes you'll ever see in any film.

Holden and March are both outstanding, with straightforward direction by Robert Wise. One interesting note: this film has no musical score, very rare for a film from the 50's--only the bell from the company's clock tower.

This is a film that should be seen by anyone interested in story structure or conflict resolution. Definitely a film whose time has come again.

Forget about "Wall Street," "Boiler Room," or "Other People's Money." Forget "The Hudsucker Proxy" and the other seriously over the top spoofs of business. "Executive Suite" is the real thing.

Fifty years old, scenes ring true. William Holden's closing, impassioned speech, about the need to invest in the future instead of dividend maximization, is a classic treatment, useful for a business school class. What is perhaps most remarkable is the timeless nature of his points, about customers, quality, pride, and growth. Sure, the technology is dated. Telegrams. Dial phones. The board room looks like the reception area to Fred Munster's house. People step on and off planes without security, parking problems, or laptops in hand. But that only makes the story all the more credible. The important things haven't changed. And it shows that some things we think are new problems in business -- insider trading, board manipulation, sexual harrassment -- are at least as old as this fine film, certainly older.

Here's the basic story line: The president of Treadway furniture firm dies in the street en route to a train and a meeting in Philadelphia. An opportunistic Treadway executive of sees the crowd in the street and -- shades of today -- shorts the company's stock. The president's death is not immediately known to all, leaving some intrigue and lots of ambiguity. And, oh yes, there's the top salesman having an affair with a nubile Shelley Winters, and a frozen-appearing Barbara Stanwyck -- a Treadway -- also apparently on the verge of suicide from the cold shoulder she has received from the overworked, now-dead president.

Counting votes, twisting arms, and playing politics, Holden and Pidgeon contrive a plan to move the election of the president in their direction. The last twelve minutes of the film, including an apology from Holden's jealous-of-how-the-work-consumes-her-husband wife -- a glowing June Allyson -- allows hopes and schemes to unravel and others to gel.

If it is still out of stock, don't be shy about perusing the used VHS offerings. It's worth it.

The first reason you need to see this film is for William Holden. I make it a point of trying to see every film he's in. He is my favorite actor of all time. Now that thats out of the way...Robert Wise has delivered a suspenseful and tremendously well made film that doesn't use a lick of music and has stunning camera work. I was particularly blown away by all the smooth dolly shots and the opening POV sequence in the beginning of the film...Seeing everything through Bullard's eyes, the dead man who sets this story off and running. It reminded me a great deal of the John Frankenheimer film "Seconds" in that sequence and Suite was made sometime before that film. This is a must see office drama that really was ahead of its time from a technical filmmaking perspective. The script is solid and watching Holden fight to be the President of the company is a joy to watch! And you've gotta love a movie that has Stanwyck and Holden together again in the same film.

Finally on DVD, this forgotten 1954 drama would certainly be ripe for a remake in the age of Enron, Halliburton and Tyco. As it stands, it's a slick MGM package directed by Robert Wise with an all-star cast but also a surprisingly incisive film about a corporate power struggle within a leading furniture company. Even though there is an air of soap opera naiveté about it, the movie benefits significantly from an economical, provocative script by Ernest Lehman, his first for the big screen, and a powerful cast of star actors performing like a well-oiled machine. An intriguing subtlety of the story is that the company is publicly held and consequently questions regarding stockholder value and dividend payouts take on a surprising dramatic resonance.

The linear plot focuses on the sudden death of Tredway Corporation president Avery Bullard on a Friday afternoon. With no succession plan in place - a gap felt by many companies today - six VPs are all possible candidates to take over - perennial also-ran Alderson, oily Caswell, weak-willed Dudley, retirement-ready Grimm, power-hungry Shaw and up-and-comer Walling. Each has his own advantages and obvious shortcomings, with the additional complication of Julia Tredway, the chief stockholder, who is also the daughter of the company founder and as it turns out, Bullard's frustrated mistress. What follows are the weekend machinations of the men, culminating in a Monday morning showdown in the corporate boardroom where the successor is named. What I like most about the film is Wise's no-frills approach toward what could have been a rather by-the-numbers story about company politics. He takes the predictably episodic aspect of following the five men and integrates the threads tightly and seamlessly. Wise uses no music to highlight the drama, which ironically allows the histrionics to work on their own, and a neat first-person POV to open the film dramatically.

The heavy-duty cast does well in economic turns that epitomize the concept of ensemble. As Walling, William Holden was at the height of his film career in 1954 (he was also in Sabrina, The Country Girl and The Bridges at Toko-Ri that year), and he provides the comparatively youthful charisma to get away with the high-minded speech at the end. With her trademark frog-throated sincerity, June Allyson plays Walling's dutiful wife with efficiency. Walter Pidgeon also makes his moments count as Alderson, especially in the cathartic scene when he comes to accept his own limitations. As Dudley, Paul Douglas plays another variation of the bearish, brash role he played in Joseph Mankiewicz's A Letter to Three Wives, while a young Shelley Winters is surprisingly low-key as his secretary/mistress.

Louis Calhern turns his dignified persona inside out as Caswell, and Nina Foch brings a palpable sense of desperate grief to the role of Bullard's executive assistant. Dean Jagger has precious few moments as Grimm, while Barbara Stanwyck moves securely into Joan Crawford-at-Pepsi territory and gets to have a major meltdown as Julia. The final scene she has with Allyson speaking about the role of the tolerant wife is a dated piece of pre-feminist whimsy. Yet, out of this impressive gallery of scenery chewers, the best performance comes from Fredric March, who brings uncompromising, Machiavellian malevolence to a simmering boil as Shaw. The last scenes move so quickly that the ending feels a bit pat, but no matter, this movie still makes the backroom world of corporate politics utterly fascinating.

The 2007 DVD, released as a single disc or as part of the five-disc, six-film Barbara Stanwyck - The Signature Collection, boasts an enthusiastic commentary track from maverick filmmaker Oliver Stone, who views the film as a cultural milestone as well as a cinematic one (his own Wall Street is obviously inspired by it). As was typical with theatrical screenings back in the 1950's, there are a couple of vintage 1954 MGM shorts included - one an 11-minute live-action Pete Smith featurette, "Out for Fun", and the other is a Tex Avery cartoon, "Billy Boy". The original theatrical trailer completes the DVD extras.

Until this decade, "Executive Suite" was rarely shown on TV, for good reason. The building crescendo of human expectations would get side-railed and it would appear boring to the non-accountants. This is a wonderful send-up from Cameron Hawley, who also wrote "Cash McCall,"(scheduled for re-make), which tackled those leverage-buyout sharks in the 50's. Both were written at a time when business was rewarding for all ranks of life and a man could still spin an idealistic yarn, without targeting the lowest common denominator.Two cast members, Dean Jagger and Nina Foch appear in both movies playing minor, though important characters. I give this film high marks for answering two questions: Is a company the sum of its parts, or is it just the leadership? What is the purpose of a corporation? How prescient this film was, that the leaders today can not re-invent themselves without going overseas. Louis Calhern, Paul Douglas, Frederick March and Barbara Stanwyck must have realized they would be taking a stand on a way of life that should not vanish.Having worked in an accounting office and seen what one insignificant death in a company can launch within, I found this to be extremely fascinating for the human drives, conscious and unconscious, that corporate maneuvering drops on the corporate animal. When William Holden's character, very human and honest, testifies at the climax, the board meeting, by revealing his personal philosophy to win a concensus,there is tremendous release, because you feel he is speaking for humanity, if it cares about the future. Sadly, we know, that the nouveau ceo's have swung to epitimize the character of Frederick March, self-aggrandizing,low and soul-less.It succeeds without a music score, building upon its tight script, with room for another Shelly Winters cameo. Nina Foch, plays her role as the career executive secretary with great strength, decency and smarts. All the characters were nicely drawn, fleshed out. You could tell that by the way they all learned from one another and were grateful for it. If people work together, there's enough for all, even at the top. Isn't that a refreshing idea?

I can't remember who recommended this one, but it turned out to be a favorite! Young Wm Holden rises to the challenge as various inside and outside directors try to take over the corporation. Anyone who thinks business is boring should see this for a taste of what corporate politics at its worst could be. Great story!

The CEO of a large furniture-making company suddenly dies of a stroke, which triggers off a power struggle for the next in line. A number of junior execs vie for the position, but basically it comes down to a battle between Frederich March and William Holden. March plays the beady little calculating machine of a man who tries so hard to weasle his way into the presidency no matter what it takes, while Holden is the idealist who opposes him. It's company profits vs. old-fashioned pride in the product, with the latter obviously winning out in these more innocent, righteous times. The viewer's interest never flags, however, except for maybe during the long tirade Holden delivers at the end in the boardroom in favor of company pride. There's no doubt who wins the presidency. Although the gray flannel suit set was starting to come under scrutiny by cultural forces, the message of the movie is not yet tinged by the cynicism that would soon infiltrate the business world (at least as seen through the eyes of Hollywood). The script is strong and sharp in its humor. Definitely worth a watch.

I remembered this film from years ago when I was younger (I am 33). I watched this on either AMC (before they had commmericals) or TCM as the movie where the guy has a fit at the end and breaks the table. Later, as I grew to appreciate William Holden, I realized he was the guy and I watched the movie again. Great cast of 1950's heavy hitters: Holden, Barbara Stanwyck, Dean Jagger, Paul Douglas, Fredric March (who was one of Holden's boyhood idols), Nina Foch, June Allyson, the list goes on. I am glad to see this finally coming on DVD.

I have watched this excellent picture many times...and never tire of seeing it. I've always found the final scene to be quite gripping. There's nothing super heavy or extra special about this flick. Just really good acting by a great cast. And an above-average script. You will find yourself getting caught up in the story...and enjoying it! Fredric March is exceptionally good here.

Considering how much the business of business consumes of America's daily life, it's surprising that there haven't been more films like this one. The great John Houseman helped to put together this project and it's a superb study of a crisis in the life of a corporation, and the ambitions, ideals and practical necessities guiding the enterprise. The cast is fabulously good except for some scenery-chewing by Barbara Stanwyck. It's set in the 50's but anybody who's ever worked for a modern company will recognize plenty.