Customer Reviews

Too Hot to Handle [VHS]

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

 

 

"Too fast to flop!!!" is how the advertising for this film ran prior to the 1938 release of this classic teaming of the then newly elected "King", and "Queen", of Hollywood, Clark Gable and Myrna Loy. Proudly "crowned" as Hollywood's reigning monarchs on Ed Sullivan's radio program the two were at the peak of their popularity when this film was released in guaranteeing huge profits at the Box office.

"Too Hot To Handle" directed by MGM's brilliant Jack Conway who was responsible for guiding so many classics around this time, certainly provided Clark Gable with one of his most enjoyable roles during his peak years as an MGM star. Often accused of being simply Clark Gable playing Clark Gable, here he has a rich role laced with the usual masculine qualities but also combining a creative comic tone which suits him perfectly. Gable plays Chris Hunter a "creative" newsreel photographer who will do just about anything to get a great scope for the leading article of his boss's (Walter Connolly as "Gabby' MacArthur is a highly energetic and hilarious perfromance)newspaper. The scenes of him reporting on a fake invasion of China are hilarious complete with paid Chinese children, fake miniature planes representing bombers and supposed devastation caused in the war. He is a rival of old friend and nemesis Bill Dennis played by Walter Pidgeon in a dramatic variation to his usual gentlemenly portrayals. Gable and Pidgeon make a surprisingly compatiable screen team and when dare devil aviatrix Alma harding (Myrna Loy) comes into the picture the two men find themselves not only squaring off against each other for the best photos but also for the same girl. Myrna Loy had worked with Gable to fine effect in "Manhatten Melodrama", "Wife Vs. Secretary", and "Test Pilot" and here she has an easy rapport with her leading man through the fast paced, screwball comedy. In her wonderful autobiography Loy said that she didn't think her role in "Too Hot To Handle" was much at all but considering the leading men she is up against I believe she does very well as the adventure seeking flyer with a mind of her own. The story while highly incredible, rolls along at lighting pace and takes them through a faked flight dropping off serum, to photographing a burning navy vessel, to making a trip up the Amazon in search of Loy's brother missing but believed to be alive as a prisoner of a native tribe. All these goings on are delivered with an energy and polish often unseen in modern films. The schemes that Gable and Pidgeon's characters get up to to outwit and outpace the each other are brilliant and are excellent comedy.

"Too Hot To Handle" also benefits from the terrific supporting cast that is along for the ride as well. As mentioned Walter Connoly as Gable's befuddled boss has never been better and his attempts to divorce his wife and stay in control of Gable's schemes from behind his office desk are priceless. Henry Kolker also shines as Walter Pidgeon's boss at Atlas Newsreel. Leo Carrillo as Joselito, Gable's assistant is also wonderful in particular in his reactions to getting caught up in his boss's schemes to win over Alma by fair means or foul. The usually comic Marjorie Main one of my favourite character actresses, is fairly subdued in her role as Kitty Wayne, Connolly's patient secretary but also manages some of her usual comic brilliance with some of her deadpan observations of what it is like to work in the boss's office with all this madness going on all the time.

Special mention must also be made on the very fine on-location photography which was used in this film for the South American secquences. Beautiful aerial photography of the Amazon Basin and all its tributaries are stunningly captured on film and really add to the terrific flavour of this section of the film. Much of the location work was done in Dutch Guiana and is really exceptional. For the scenes involving the native tribes the production team had the rare honour of being allowed to photograph the Matawais tribe performing the beautiful and rarely seen Dinka Fire Dance which adds tremendously to the look of the film. Despite some objections to these scenes there is nothing offensive in the way the natives are portrayed and indeed some of the scenes in this part are among the best in "Too Hot To Handle". I believe alot of people are far too sensitive nowadays and can't see the work for what it is which is entertainment. Gable's performing as a white spirit in front of the natives also often critised, in reality makes him look more foolish than the natives anyway and is a wonderfully comic scene when he runs some newsreel footage of planes and trains for the natives to convince them he is a God and has come to take away Loy's prisoner brother.

"Too Hot To Handle" is frothy, fast paced entertainment of the first order. If you enjoy rapid fire dialogue, a snappy very 1930's story, a gorgeous leading lady in a gutsy role, and funny rivalry between the leading men in work and romance then this film is for you. Rarely have I seen Clark Gable in finer form
and his comic playing really is the heart and soul of this film. Enjoy it as an example of grand old film making of the highest order when the Hollywood studios were at their peak.

Screwball Comedy of rival newsreel men fighting for a story any whay they can get it.

Chris Hunter is played by Clark Gable and in a pinch he makes up the news if there isnt any. Walter Pidgeon is his main competition. Mryna Loy shows again why she was just a sublime comedic actress. The real fun is in watching those great supporting actors. Walter Connoly( It Happened One Night) is Gable,s boss. Henry Kolker is Pidgeons boss. Both of them are frenetic. Marjorie Main, as Connoly,s secretary is hilarious . Leo Carillo, Gable,s camera man could have inspired Norm Crosby.s routines.

Its all absurd and its all fun. This is a rare turn for Gable during his MGM years. After 62 years this comedy has legs.Directed by Jack Conway.

Too Hot To Handle got the wonderfull thing to be a mix of comedy,romance,and adventure.The director Jack Conway who had great sucess such has "libeled lady"and later "love crazy"made a good darn picture.
Clark Gable,Mirna Loy and Walter Conely are at the top.
A satiric film sometimes againts the newspaper.
The best scene I think is the fake shoting of the chinese army with a toy of a plane and starring a girl paid ,and her dumb familly who make gable shot a pain.
Great story,wonderfull cast,and exelent directo rmake the film:
a must see film.

Clark Gable and Walter Pidgeon are newsreel photographers working for different companies on the search for the same stories. There isn't much they won't do for a story, especially Gable, and one of the film's highlights comes at the beginning of the story as Gable creates a battle scene in China just to satisfier his boss' demands. When famous aviatrix Myrna Loy enters the scene, the boys' competition only intensifies. The story is entertaining, although the scenes in the Amazon were hard to believe. Gable carries the film, with his charm and energy, while a number of supporting actors really add to the fun as well. It's a timely film to watch these days, as people are questioning how much of the news is made more newsworthy by tabloids and over-zealous reporters looking for a good story. This film takes a comic slant to that question, but makes its point nonetheless.

Another great Gable flick, this one with Myrna Loy (the Queen of Hollywood, to Gable's King). Clark plays a ruthless newsreel photographer trying to stick it to rival Walter Pidgeon and woo Amelia Earhart-style aviatrix Myrna. Fast, funny, and politically incorrect. Did I mention fast?

A solid classic film with some very minor knocks. And none regarding "political-correctness". Good grief, I'm so sick and tired of knuckleheads who *have* to view everything through the incredibly narrow prism of the 21st Century. How ridiculous. Only fools approach a film wearing rose-tints expecting to see 'realism' or a slice of social anthropology. Seriously, you have to be monumentally naivé or just plain stupid to completely disregard the period when a film is made. 1938 is not 2011 - do the math and crack open a history book.

Anyway, in this film the always enjoyable Clark Gable portrays daring and talented, albeit unscrupulous, newsman Chris Hunter. Back in the day, reporters were more than just flaccid talking heads; they were often a one-man-show encompassing every job imaginable. Not limited to, but including: Reporter, Investigator, Instigator, Anchor, Writer, Editor, Account Executive (salesman), Ombudsman, Lawyer, and even Photographer; which, unlike today, was an extremely technical field often taking years to master.

Either by hook or crook - he has repeatedly scooped his competition and they've had enough. Their frustration culminates in the form of a very young Walter Pidgeon; he and his peers have decided to take matters into their own hands and plot to outfox Hunter by faking a story that he can't and won't know about. Pidgeon's character, Bill Dennis, has arranged for his would-be girfriend Alma Harding, a female pilot played by Myrna Loy, to fly in vaccine for a spurious cholera epidemic.

This fake news story sets the stage for events to follow, and brings the characters into a semi-dramatic film interlaced with fun touches of comedy as our three main players continually skip and dodge around one another in an attempt to see who will end up with whom and who can out-scoop the others.

I have to admit at having mixed feelings about Myrna. On one hand, she starred in some of my all-time favorite films. On the other, with the exception of her many extremely enjoyable pairings with William Powell, those roles in my favorite movies could've so easily and more appropriately been performed by more suitable actresses.

As such, and in this film specifically, initially finds Myrna's skills stretched beyond believability. In a nutshell: She's overacting. She was never the type to carry off the tough wise-cracking moll. Every time I've watched her attempt it - it looks and plays phony. Her forté has always been a woman of high style with the slightest touch of sweet snobbery. Thankfully, as the movie plays out, her role changes to a more typical Loy-type character; once again becoming the aloof and proper lady. Comparatively, this more than anything else speaks to her inability to maintain the boisterous opinionated independent woman seen in the first twenty minutes of the film.

Overall, I had a great time watching this mixed dramedy. As always Gable delivers what Robert Downey Jr. could easily recognize in his own performances.

Movie Note: I can only speculate that this was Hollywood's very first attempt at a quasi-biographical portrait of Amelia Earhart. Loy's character, Alma Harding, states that she was attempting an aerial circumnavigation of the world, very much the mission of the legendary aviatrix who had been lost only a few months before 'Too Hot' began filming. And noticeably, Loy herself physically resembled the flyer.

Too Hot to Handle is like a two part story. The first part involves a group of newsreel cameramen. Chris (Clark Gable) is the best in the business although he sometimes resorts to deceitful methods. Just to spite him, a group of cameramen from another company fake a major event and don't tell him about it. He finds out and gets some of the best shots of a beautiful woman Alma (Myrna Loy) crashing a plane. However, the sound picks up and carries some information that could destroy her career.

After a fiasco with that, Chris and Alma team up to make a trip to South America to find Alma's lost brother, a pilot whose plane crashed in the jungle quite some time ago. Always looking for some great footage, Chris does all he can to manipulate the scenes with savage tribes for his benefit. Tension, hilarity, and great entertainment ensue.

This is a wonderfully fun movie starring two major movie stars in their prime. They're both in top form here and play beautifully off of each other.

This is a great DVD with outstanding quality. I had never seen this movie before buying the DVD but it is very enjoyable and Clark Gable is just great. Lots of Laughs! Highly Recommend!

All of the Archive Collection DVDs are available from the Turner website for $17.99. Please support Turner with getting more classic movies onto DVD.

. . . but you can still enjoy great movies from the Golden Age. Clark Gable, Myrna Loy, Walter Pidgeon -- all in their prime. Adventure, romance, comedy -- what's not to like? Pounce on this one!

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) presents "TOO HOT TO HANDLE" (1938) - (107 min/B&W) -- Starring: Clark Gable, Myrna Loy, Walter Pidgeon, Walter Connolly, Leo Carrillo & Johnny Hines

Directed by Jack Conway

Alternating effortlessly between comedy and suspense and back again, Too Hot to Handle stars Myrna Loy as famous aviatrix Alma Harding and Clark Gable as an opportunistic newsreel photographer, Chris Hunter. Hunter and rival shutterbug Bill Dennis (Walter Pidgeon) agree to accompany Harding on her search for her missing brother, sensing a good story and excellent photo opportunity. Their odyssey takes them into the deepest jungles of the Amazon, where Chris's photographic prowess saves everyone's lives when hostile natives attack. Along the way, both Chris and Bill fall in love with Alma.

A classic re-teaming for Gable & Loy, following closely from their successful Test Pilot (1938)

Special footnote: -- The classic opening sequence in Too Hot to Handle, in which the resourceful Gable fakes a bombing raid for the benefit of his cameras, was allegedly conceived by Buster Keaton, then a free-lance MGM gag man ~ Clark Gable spent two days working with a newsreel crew to get a feeling for his part ~ The film was one of MGM's biggest hit of the year.

BIOS:
1. Jack Conway (Director)
Date of Birth: 17 July 1887 - Graceville, Minnesota
Date of Death: 11 October 1952 - Pacific Palisades, California

2. Clark Gable
Date of birth: 1 February 1901 - Cadiz, Ohio,
Date of death: 16 November 1960 - Los Angeles, California

4. Myrna Loy [aka: Myrna Adele Williams]
Date of Birth: 2 August 1905 - Radersburg, Montana
Date of Death: 14 December 1993, New York City, New York

5. Walter Pidgeon
Date of Birth: 23 September 1897 - Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada
Date of Death: 25 September 1984 - Santa Monica, California

6. Walter Connolly
Date of Birth: 8 April 1887 - Cincinnati, Ohio
Date of Death: 28 May 1940 - Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California

7. Leo Carrillo
Date of Birth: 6 August 1881 - Los Angeles, California
Date of Death: 10 September 1961 - Santa Monica, California

Mr. Jim's Ratings:
Quality of Picture & Sound: 4 Stars
Performance: 4 Stars
Story & Screenplay: 4 Stars
Overall: 4 Stars [Original Music, Cinematography & Film Editing]

Total Time: 107 min on DVD/VHS ~ Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) ~ (September 1, 1998)