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I'm No Angel

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"I'm No Angel" is widely considered to be the film which saved Paramount Pictures from bankruptcy;it also contains hilarious double ententres written by that great shady lady of the screen - Mae West.From beginning to end, this movie is a real gem; this was made before the censors made her "tone done" her ribald style which most of the public loved and could'nt get enough of. Miss West was forty, fat and feisty; she was a cinema original the likes of which the public had never seen before (or since)-she made prudes blush,and prissy women giggle at the same time.Here she plays carny gal Tira, who, for a healthy hunk of change, actually gets into a cage and puts her pretty little head into a lion's mouth! Tira camps it up with her plump black maids and says to one "Beaulah,peel me a grape",a line which spoofs everything. Catch her scene with the lady-like Gertrude Michael-it's a riot- as is the courtroom scene where she puts every man in his place and wins the admiration of the judge.The29 year- old Cary Grant is ONE of her many love interests and he's the guy she ends up with.Recommended viewing for young and old alike;Mae was liberated and saucy,but she always had a heart of gold and there's nothing truly offensive about her famous wisecracks;she made fun of sex and in 1933 the movies grew up a little- in 1999 she's still fascinating to watch!

Perhaps her best film, "I'm No Angel" (1933) finds Mae West at full suggestive power before the Production Code reared its ugly head. Immortal one-liners abound in this fascinating social satire, with romantic support from a young Cary Grant and Mae's inimitable rendition of "They Call Me Sister Honky Tonk." A Depression-era classic directed with stylish flair by Wesley Ruggles.

Mae West is outrageously funny as "Tira" the lion tamer, a woman supposed to be completely irresistible to all men. Her smart wisecracks, full of double-entendres were her trademark, and here they're at full display, just before the Production Code's censorship toned down her lines, which were written by herself.

Her hip-swaying, her moans and fluttering eyelashes, etc., are a joy to behold...her lines, spoken with her woman-of-the-world-reassuredness are top-notch. Her scenes with her maids are especially funny, because they're full of non-stop wisecracks about us men. A must!!

A very young Cary Grant plays the object of Mae's affections and Edward Arnold is the circus owner and Mae's employer.

The dvd quality is good, although it has no bonus material at all.

Mae West was purportedly quoted as saying, "I fear no man". Whether she actually did, I have no trouble believing it. In "I'm No Angel", Miss West plays "Tira", a carnival hootch dancer who becomes a lion-taming headliner in "The Big Time", and has numerous men orbiting her, like moons around Venus. She is a women completely at ease with herself, fears no one, makes no apologies, and the men love her for it, in spite of themselves. Miss West played, essentially, the same role in real life, the "Bad but not Evil" woman. No beating around the bush for Mae-she told you who she was, what she wanted, take her or leave her-and made you laugh! She was "Women's Lib" in flashy gowns, big hats, and lots of diamonds. There are many of West's famous lines in "I'm No Angel", such as "When I'm good, I'm very, very good, but when I'm bad, I'm better", "Beulah, peel me a grape!", and many more. Her co-star is screen legend Cary Grant, whom Mae selected for 2 of her films on sight. The first was "She Done Him Wrong", and then this one. She said, "He was so good I had him twice-in pictures, I mean." The lady was an original. She was not "beautiful" or slender, but men were drawn to her (her brains being her sexiest feature), progressive (she defended homosexuals long before Stonewall), had interracial friendships and romances (she had lovers of African descent, as well as having black performers in her films), and was still attracting men well into her 70s! She also wrote her own material. So, if you're feeling a bit adventurous, go West, because "You can be had!"

Mae West was an unlikely sex symbol. She was a small woman with a face that defied most standards of beauty and an unremarkable body--and by the time she hit film she was edging into middle age. But as West herself might have said, it ain't what ya got, its what ya do with it. If anybody knew what to do with it, Mae West certainly did, and I'M NO ANGEL finds her doing it in remarkably fine style indeed.

The story and script, by West herself, is hilariously improbable. West stars as Tira, a carny entertainer who divides her work between a hootchie coochie act (which gives her the opportunity to perform a sizzling "They Call Me Sister Honky Tonk") and a lion taming act--but when she runs afoul of a small town romeo she hits the road for New York, where she captivates both city and Cary Grant with her circus act. Needless to say, there are comic complications galore, but like the Mounties, Mae West always gets her man.

West did a number of justly famous films during the 1930s, but I'M NO ANGEL is arguably her best, salted with with one memorable quip after another as she cracks whips, snubs snobs, frolicks with her maids ("Peel me a grape!"), and waylays the willing Cary Grant with considerable aplomb. If you've never seen a Mae West movie but have always wondered what made her a great star, this is the film to see!

It's hard to believe they let this go out of print. It's one of Mae West's brightest and funniest films. Before the censorship czars got after her, that is. Legendary Mae struts and sings her way through this tale of circus hootchie Tira who gets in a legal jam thanks to her hoodlum boyfriend. Needing fast cash for an attorney, she reluctantly agrees to be the show's lion tamer and put her head in a lion's mouth. She becomes an immediate star and rises to the top. She hooks a rich beau (Kent Taylor) but falls for his business partner Kirk (Cary Grant) and they become engaged to marry. But her old circus cronies won't let her retire and try to frame her in a scandal to break up the engagement. When the ruse works and Kirk breaks off with Tira, she takes him to court for breach of promise. "I'm No Angel" is all Mae. From the screenplay (which she wrote) to the gowns (which are knockouts---especially the "spider web" gown) she's the star and dominates every scene she's in. She's absolutely wonderful. From strutting around and singing with her maids to taking over her own case in the courtroom, you can see there was no one like her and never would be. She was totally unique and unequaled in terms of sheer star power. Some of her racy quotes are here in "I'm No Angel" but, alas, the better ones lie in "She Done Him Wrong" (also with Grant) and that one never made it to DVD. These two are the better of her films---"My Little Chickadee" with W.C.Fields notwithstanding---and it's a shame they're not in print. The Universal DVD of "Angel" looks good and is a collector's item now. But I'm for re-releasing ALL of her films on DVD. As I'm sure she would love to know, Mae West still has an audience and always will.

Mae West was one of Hollywwod's more unusual creations and in the early 30's she created quite a stir with her type of humour that was laced with a strong sexual slant that delighted audiences but raised the scorn of the censors.

Writing most of her own material she created some gems that still amuse and titilate viewers of her films. Her classic films "She Done Him Wrong" and "I'm No Angel" were luckily free from the Hays office censorship laws that whitewashed much of the humour from the mid 30's onwards resulting in her later vechicles being much milder and indeed weaker showcases for her humour. Here we see Mae West in her prime in a story designed around her unique talents which gave full rein to her sexual brand of humour.

Mae plays Tira, a carnival performer who ends up being blackmailed by a former lover "I'm No Angel" benefited from having a lavish budget provided which is even a step up from that of "She Done Him Wrong". While the overraul humour is not as fresh as it is in "She Done" it nevertheless contains some of Mae's more memorable lines like "When I'm good I'm good but when I'm bad I'm better" and in response to Rajah the fortune tellers prediction from his crystal ball that Tira will have a man in her life, her response is "What only one!!". Hilarious stuff and as always it is delivered by Mae in that unique style of hers which always seems to make you feel that underneath the sexual tiger was a nice woman who at the end of the day is a decent type.

Once again Mae is supported by Cary Grant in one of his earliest roles and once again I feel he comes across as quite wooden, nowhere near being the wonderful charmer he was to become in his later career as a Hollywood great. He lends able support in the romance stacks but no more. Edward Arnold as Big Bill Barton also has an effective role as the manager of Tira's carnival. As in "She Done Him Wrong" Mae has some very funny sequences with her black maids and in this film she at one stage actually has 5 of them !! Gertrude Howard is the main one and her delivery of snappy dialogue opposite Mae is a total delight and will keep you laughing. Also watch out for Hattie McDaniel as another of the maids in what is one of her very earliest screen appearances.

"I'm No Angel" has many memorable scenes including the priceless courtroom scene near the end when Mae, in indomitable style, turns the tables on her accusers, her seduction of Cary Grant in the memorable Rhinestone Spider Web gown (what a creation it is!!) and the much commented on carnival sequences when Mae gets to play Lion tamer and puts her head in the lions mouth!!!

As in all West films more is implied than actually ever done which gives the work an ageless quality and keeps her humour as amusing and fresh today as it was in 1933. When you think of how sex is thrown in our faces constantly in modern films this type of approach is far more effective. As Mae herself was quoted as saying "What the audience goes away thinking is far more important than what they actually see" So true!! Enjoy "I'm No Angel" and in conjunction with "She Done Him Wrong" is a vivid showcase of this truly unique performer from yesteryear.

Mae West basically saved Paramount Pictures from bankruptcy with this and her other hit film of 1933 "She Done Him Wrong" (her other career highlight, also with Cary Grant). She was 40 when she made this film, and even for the early 30s she was plumper than the female ideal, and her face was wide and her nose was too long. But since she acted like she was the sexiest thing who ever was, and told you so too, you believed her: her uncontrollable sex appeal was her costant running joke and it never ever palled. Here she's Tira the lion tamer, who tames the richest men in New York society with equal ease: when Cary Grant withdraws his engagement she sues him for breach of promise, and she has great fun cross-examining the witnesses in her trial. Years before Lucille Ball or Carol Burnett, Mae West proved the old sexist canard that "female isn't funny" is an out and out lie. Who could be funnier than she is, sashaying around with her African-American maids delivering her ripest lines?

OK. If you love Mae West, Cary Grant, or just comedies, for that matter, see this film!!! It is absolutey hilarious. West can mean more, but say less than any woman in history. Grant is wonderfully romantic and can definetely hold his own opposite her. The film loses nothing in the love story and nothing in the comedy. The only drawback: Grant just doesn't show up fast enough!

Tira (Mae West) is a gold-digging circus performer who reluctantly agrees to a dangerous lion-taming act to get herself out of a jam. The act is a great success, making Tira the talk of the town. Her flashy show at Madison Square Garden catches the eye of a wealthy businessman named Kirk Lawrence (Kent Taylor), who becomes infatuated with Tira and lavishes her with expensive gifts. Concerned for Kirk's social situation, his cousin and business partner, Jack Clayton (Cary Grant), attempts to convince Tira to reconsider their relationship. She does, and falls head over heels for Jack. But just as it looks like Jack and Tira will live happily ever after, Jack breaks off the relationship. A heartbroken but still stubborn Tira decides to sue him for breach of promise.

1933's "I'm No Angel" was Mae West's second starring role on the silver screen. After her previous film, "She Done Him Wrong", saved Paramount Pictures from financial ruin, the studio gave her carte blanche to do whatever she liked on this one. "I'm No Angel" was written entirely by Mae West. It's a romantic comedy, but West's character is not a romantic. Tira is nothing if not practical in her relationships with men. And there is no mistaking that the film exists entirely to showcase Ms. West's oversized personality and eye-catching figure. This is Self promotion and Star vehicle with capital S's. Mae West was 40 years old and a tad chunky when she made this film. But she didn't hesitate to cast herself as a sex goddess whom men of all ages found irresistible. And she gets away with it by sheer force of personality. West deserves a lot of credit for making audiences root for a union between a trash-talking middle-aged strumpet and a 29-year old gentleman of means. Such a relationship wouldn't gain approval in real life in 1933, and it wouldn't now. The success of "I'm No Angel", then and now, is testament to its star's great charisma. Cary Grant is more handsome than he would be during his years of star status, and surprisingly thinner. I don't think any actor could hope to share a scene with West without being upstaged by her, but Grant does a nice job of making Jack Clayton sympathetic, especially during the trial scenes. "I'm No Angel" is sometimes absurdly contrived, but that's the nature of romantic comedy. No bigger personality than Mae West ever graced the screen, and it's her presence that makes this film worthwhile. The DVD has no menu, only scene selections. And the movie begins as soon as the disc is inserted into the player.