I Loved a Woman (1933) User Reviews

Clearly a pre-code flick from Warner Brothers

[planktonrules · 5/10 · 25 December 2018]

During the so-called 'Pre-Code Era', Hollywood was essentially in charge of policing themselves. Considering that there was no rating system AND Hollywood was really pushing the boundaries of morality in many of their films, there was an uproar and in July, 1934, a new, tougher Production Code was adopted...thus heavily sanitizing films for the next three decades. Gone were the old Pre-Code plots and occasional nudity...in now it was a squeaky clean era. "I Loved a Woman" was a Pre-Code film that certainly could NOT have been made just a year later, as its plot glamorizes and seems to excuse adultery...something specifically outlawed in the new Code, as adultery was either NOT to be in films or was to be heavily condemned.

John Hayden (Edward G. Robinson) is the heir to a meatpacking fortune and has just learned that his father has died. Despite claiming to being the champion of improved working conditions, wages and cleanliness, he spends the next few years leaving the company to essentially run itself while he devotes his energy towards raising a family. However, he slowly realizes that his company is going bankrupt AND his wife couldn't care less, as her father is the head of a group of meatpackers who are opposed to Hayden's STATED ideals. I say stated because during his absence from the company, he pretty much ignored his fine talk of running a progressive company.

Now with a company in trouble and a marriage a bit rocky, Hayden decides to run the company like the rest....or worse. Cleanliness and safe hygience mean nothing to him. In addition, he's got a new sweetie (Kay Francis) and his energies are focused on her and making millions...his wife, well, she's expendable. When war breaks out, he's more than happy to sell the government tainted meat for the soldiers! Nice guy, huh? If you haven't guessed, he's essentially a jerk!

So what did I like and not like about this film? What I didn't like was that Hayden changed so dramatically...too dramatically to make any sense. One minute he's a champion of the little people and a good husband, the next he's the opposite. His change was just too abrupt to be believable. On the positive side, the acting is very nice and the film has all the polish you'd expect from a Warner Brothers epic...though I could have done without all the times the film used "Home on the Range". Overall, decent but hardly among Robinson's best...and much of it is because no one in this film is likable and so you lose interest along the way. Plus, it never seems to know when to quit...so it's overlong to boot.

Early E.G.R, via Upton Sinclair...

[xerses13 · 6/10 · 12 December 2011]

Seldom seen even on TCM are a series of Edward G. Robinson (E.G.R.) films made at WARNER BROTHERS (W.B.) from 1931 too 1934, with loan-outs to other Major Studios. Many featured themes of rags to riches to rags, with I LOVED A WOMEN (1934) as one such effort.

E.G.R, John Mansfield Hayden, scion of wealthy Chicago Meat-Packer returns from Greece to take over the business after his Father dies. Not really cut out for it he marries competitors daughter Martha Lane (Genevieve Tobin). Then meets his muse in aspiring opera singer Laura McDonald (Kay Francis). Now with confidence he builds a 'Empire of Meat' and if it means selling a defective product to the U.S. Army, so be it. In the end he is betrayed by his own ambition and lover. Living in exile in Greece (with his ill gotten gains) he escapes indictment, but his mind goes to the point he has no grasp of reality or his former love.

This story is right out of one of Socialist Upton Sinclair's muck-raking novels. THE JUNGLE (1906) being a prime example of the type. E.G.R. gives it his usual effort and is quite convincing as a turn of Century (19th/20th) 'Robber Baron'! Giving a performance the equal of Warren William, who usually filled that slot at the W.B. of the ruthless 'Business Tycoon'. Fine supporting cast backs him up and film runs in a crisp 90" so will not tax the modern audience. Watch it and be entertained.

Behind Every Great Man is A....

[GeoPierpont · 7/10 · 17 January 2016]

Well it's certainly not a great woman with morals, but stupendous ambition! I could not believe the lower ratings from review sites and almost did not watch. This was fascinating cinema eclipsing the rare talents of Edward G. Even having our dear Uncle Teddy chasing down Trust scoundrels to boot! The capture of many decades and stock footage enriched many scenes and the sets were scrumptious.

Perhaps "Home on the Range" will never sound the same and always in the wrong context. I was prepared for an onslaught but the final touch was sentimental. That good ol' Dementia is something to look forward to whilst obliterating memories of your miserable life and failures.

A few plot twists and unpredictable moments made for a great showcase of 1933 talent. I am not a big Francis fan but she showed a lot more range in her role as a talented, beautiful, vampy, confident and energetic opera singer.

Did I feel sorry for Hayden and his lost millions? Almost, he had such wonderful progressive intentions and deteriorated to dust in the end over a woman. How pitiful and he barely remembers her in his final moments.

I definitely recommend this to all Robinson, Francis, and TR fans. There is substantial dramatic as well as romantic action. And of course....revenge!

Worth looking for

[jaykay-10 · 27 May 2002]

Here is yet another of the films from early in Edward G. Robinson's career that has inexplicably and unfortunately been forgotten. A tale which anticipates "Citizen Kane" in an astonishing number of ways, it tells the moving story of a multi-dimensional character transformed from an idealistic and impetuous young man into a ruthless, demanding, ultimately abandoned force in business and politics. Robinson's character, John Hayden, knows how to get what he wants, but is never sure what that really is. Solid performances by a first-rate cast complement a scenario able to cover decades with crisp efficiency.

There are some unfortunate sequences in which the dialog becomes florid, stilted, and too much in the manner of a lesser Victorian romance. And the use of "Home On The Range" as a Rosebud motif comes across as ludicrous, to put it charitably. Such flaws, however, do not seriously lessen the impact and entertainment value of this undeservedly obscure picture.

How exactly was Orson Welles spending his time in 1933?...

[AlsExGal · 6/10 · 14 October 2020]

... because at first blush this forgotten Warner Brothers film looks an awful lot like 1941's Citizen Kane, except without the polish. The film was based on David Karsner's book about a determined businessman, loosely based on the life of Samuel Insull. However, it also bears some resemblance to the life of William Randolph Hearst, and specifically how that life was interpreted in Citizen Kane.

Edward G. Robinson stars as John Hayden. The film opens in 1892 with him as a young man buying up all the art he can find in Europe, when he is called home at his father's death to take over the family packing business in which he really has no interest. He falls in love with and marries the daughter of a rival packer (Genevieve Tobin) and finds her exciting and thinks she is a reformer, but she soon transforms into just another social climber and their romance cools. When that happens he falls in love with an ambitious opera singer (Kay Francis), and offers to build her an opera house??? Now tell me that Orson Welles the teenager was not in the front row of the theater, chowing down on popcorn, and thinking how he might spruce up this tale when he got his big chance?

The similarities between the tales end there, and it turns out Kay Francis' character is no Susan Alexander Kane, and also the ignored wife turns out to be more persistent and vindictive than Kane's wife. The film is ultimately a variation on a common Warner Brothers' Depression era theme - a cautionary tale against greed for greed's sake.

Kay Francis may be second billed, but ultimately Edward G. Robinson is the whole show. Since Robinson was two inches shorter than Francis, it looks like the director came up with all kinds of inventive ways for them to embrace and it not look like she was picking him up off the ground to kiss him. Finally, why would anybody think "Home on the Range" would be a good tune to be "our song" for any couple? It's all part of the wonderful weirdness that was early 30s Warner Brothers. Recommended for the novelty of it all.

Beware of pre-code films that run for 90 minutes

[meaninglessname · 6/10 · 12 July 2020]

I love pre-code films, often even when they're less than great. They're usually so fast-paced, packing more plot and ideas into one hour than today's movies do in two and a half, that one is willing to overlook inconsistencies and implausibilities in the script, if such occur.

But when they reach an hour and a half, they sometimes bog down and become as dull as the inane films the Production Code later foisted on us.

This film is a good example. The history of Edward G. Robinson's transformation from a young idealist inheriting his father's meat-packing business to a ruthless capitalist defies credulity both for his naivete and the ease of his rise to the top when he discards his scruples. The characters are mostly one-dimensional stereotypes. The character of his opera star mistress, a somewhat miscast Kay Francis, who eggs him on with Nietzschean pep talks about dominating the world, sounds like Ayn Rand on steroids.

All this is fine for the first hour or so, when the rapid succession of events keeps you guessing what will happen next and too busy to think about the logic of it all. The last half hour or so, about his well-deserved downfall, goes by much more slowly and grinds to an undramatic ending.

Still worth a look for pre-code fans for Robinson, Francis and other fine actors, but don't put it at the top of your list.

Worth It to See Robinson and Francis in 1933

[tr-83495 · 7/10 · 10 April 2019]

This film bit off more than it could chew. At first, the thirty-year time span seemed pioneering for 1933, but as it lumbers on everything becomes routine and boring.

It's still worth it to see Robinson, Francis, and the other actors as they appeared in 1933.

The plot was not perfect and needed some paring down, and the ending left something to be desired, but this is a film you should see.

Two women attract his attention in a powerful but lonely life.

[mark.waltz · 7/10 · 4 May 2018]

Here's the chance to see what I've been waiting for for years: Kay Francis singing (obviously dubbed) "Home on the Range" in an operatic voice to Edward G. Robinson. That standard American ditty is heard over the opening credits, and later on when Robinson requests it. It becomes their love theme, albeit a silly one, but somehow it adds charm to this saga of a meat baron's life from taking over the family business to his later years after he's pretty much lost everything and ended up like Michael Corleone in "The Godfather Part III": All alone.

Robinson as usual is commanding, although this is very similar in nature to his 1932 drama "Silver Dollar" and another 1933 Warner Brothers film about a wealthy man's rise and later disappointments, "The World Changes", with Paul Muni. His character's rise is often sketchy, as the film focuses on the various scandals that plague his years in the business, including his relationship with his pretty wife, Genevieve Tobin, who is obviously shallow at the start and never completely stands by her man. She loses his love to opera singer Francis who is faithful to him for years, but suddenly leaves him for another man, turning him cold and bitter and ruthless in his quest for power.

There are political and historical references in this film with passing mentions of the Spanish/American War, McKinley's shooting (which eventually lead to Teddy Roosevelt becoming president and fighting the wealthy barons like Robinson's) and World War I. This was a Warner Brothers "A" picture running in at 90 minutes, so there's plenty of time for various details to be explored, but sometimes it does seem to be missing some important ones to fully explain everything which was going on at the time this took place. Robinson's character remains consistent in his manner and desires, often torn so his performance is one that deserves re-discovery.

As for the two women, they couldn't be any more different. When first seen, the beautiful blonde Tobin is sitting in her fancy wagon in the middle of the mud in the Chicago slums, and Robinson quickly charms her with his memories of their childhood friendship. But she quickly reveals to the viewer that she never really loved Robinson and only married him for status, eventually becoming a bitter older woman still beautiful but the hatred in her displayed on her soulless face. She reminded me of Miriam Hopkins in the film version of Theodore Dreissler's "Carrie" without the spitting venom.

The always ravishing Kay Francis is the true strength behind Robinson's character, prompting him to go after what he truly wants and encouraging him to be ruthless in getting it, something she is obviously doing in her efforts to become an A class opera star. I had first thought that Francis was the gypsy girl who sings to Robinson as he stands on his balcony, later returning as a hopeful star to be, but my research in the credits proved that to be incorrect. So the women in Robinson's life are far from perfect, far from completely loyal, and this is much more realistic than the many films which had the long-suffering wife willing to put up with all sorts of trauma as her husband neglected her for success. A far from flawless film, this is aided in its lavish presentation and the performances by the three stars plus a gallery of familiar faces in the supporting cast.

Early Edward G. Robinson

[blanche-2 · 5/10 · 6 September 2008]

"I Loved a Woman" is a 1933 film starring Edward G. Robinson and Kaye Francis. It's the story of an art-lover in the Victorian era whose family is in the meat-packing business in Chicago. With his father's death, John Hayden cuts his trip to Greece short to go home and take over the company. A humanitarian, he is interested in making life better for the employees by cleaning up the packing house district where the employees live, and he is not interested in the cut-rate practices of his competitors. He meets and falls in love with the pretty Martha Lane, whose father is just such a competitor and in need of money. Martha, too, is interested in causes. She and John marry, but they grow apart as she becomes more practical. John is approached by an aspiring opera singer Laura McDonald (Francis) who wants him to back her studies; he agrees, and he falls in love with her. Laura, however, is ruthless and convinces John that he must be, too. He goes against everything he ever believed in to put his company back on top with disastrous results.

I have to admit I was less impressed with this film than the first person who commented. First of all, with all of the beautiful operatic music in the world, why is the only song Laura sings "Home on the Range" - many times? Okay, I get the cattle theme but it was too much. And I didn't understand John suddenly becoming this ruthless man willing to send to soldiers overseas bad meat with fillers and other substances. Laura gives him one little lecture, and he turns into a third world dictator.

Robinson is very good, though he and Francis wear a lot of makeup. The characters, however, weren't especially likable or sympathetic. John does have the audience's sympathy at the beginning and at the very end, where Robinson's acting really stood out.

Edward G. Robinson as an Early Meat-Packing Version of Charles Foster Kane!

[malvernp · 7/10 · 26 January 2022]

In his acclaimed and enjoyable autobiography All My Yesterdays published in 1973 (the year he died), Edward G. Robinson explained in considerable detail the process that produced the interesting but disjointed movie I Loved a Woman (ILAW). Basically, the prevailing Studio System that was then an integral part of Hollywood movie-making allowed for several people (of varying ability and differing agendas) to modify a novel or play as it became the final screenplay that when shot was the film we finally saw in the theater. Each "contributor"to this process may have worked independently of all the others, and the result was somewhat like "putting Bandaids on boils" rather than attempting to produce the best cure for the condition. As Robinson further explained it, he as an actor/artist also took an interest in fashioning the final script, and often frustrating battles ensued over just how much of his input (if any) would be acceptable. No wonder that ILAW seems like a film that some think is too long and others too short---or that some believe contains incomplete or confusing characterizations while others are bothered by the abrupt/inconsistent aspects of the dramatic narrative.

Nonetheless, ILAW is entertaining and absorbing with its often rambling tale of a Chicago robber baron loosely modeled after real life meat-packer Samuel Insull. And while the romantic scenes between Robinson and his leading ladies Kay Francis and Genevieve Tobin may lack appropriate chemistry or credibility, it cannot be denied that in ILAW Robinson delivered a robust and commanding performance. He was a powerful actor in this early pre-code effort, and certainly gave us every indication that he would evolve into the superb character actor that became his future destiny.

As for veteran director Alfred E. Green, he would go on to direct The Jolson Story, The Fabulous Dorseys and The Eddie Cantor Story among many other films.

ILAW is little known today. That is too bad, because it provides an excellent time capsule that captured three accomplished actors as they were moving into their peak career period, as well as just how the Warner Brothers Studio System actually worked in practice. Next time TCM shows ILAW, check it out!

King of meat

[bkoganbing · 4/10 · 13 January 2016]

Some plot strains from Citizen Kane are present in this melodrama involving meatpacking tycoon Edward G. Robinson who is married to Genevieve Tobin but his heart belongs to opera singing Kay Francis. Would that I Loved A Woman were as good as the Orson Welles masterpiece.

Robinson ages over 30 years in I Loved A Woman. When we first meet him he's a young art student on the holiday in Europe that rich young men had back in the day. That's when he hears his father has died and comes home to take over the business.

He becomes the Donald Trump of the meatpacking industry in the 1890s. In the famous tainted beef case of the Spanish American War he skates on that when Theodore Roosevelt can't bust the meat trust. But it's his personal life that this film is concerned with.

He marries Tobin, daughter of rival Robert Barrat, but as he eclipses Barrat in standing in the industry he finds she married him for social standing and to bring his business into dad's fold. It works the other way around however. Like Charles Foster Kane he finds a Susan Alexander with another aspiring singer Kay Francis. Naturally it's a given with me that Kay's voice was dubbed, but why would an aspiring opera singer be rehearing with Home On The Range?

In any Kay let's him down as well and soon things in the business world go bad on him. Let's just say Robinson made some bad business decisions and overextended himself.

British actor E.J. Ratcliffe plays Theodore Roosevelt in a brief scene with Robinson. He does his best, but when TR succeeded William McKinley TR was 42 years almost 43 our still youngest president. The 70 year old Ratcliffe was ridiculous in the part. In fact the whole story about TR's involvement in the scandal about the tainted beef is all wrong.

In the Citadel Film series book on the films of Edward G. Robinson we learn he wasn't happy with the script and story. Seeing what I saw I couldn't blame him. In fact no one in the cast look like they took it all too seriously.

The versatile EG Robinson at his best

[audiemurph · 8/10 · 28 January 2012]

This film is a rollicking tour-de-force that has as its primary focus the incredible acting talents of the incomparable Edward G. Robinson. Robinson takes us on a roller-coaster of a ride, as he sails back and forth from joy and elation to depression and pathos and back again. It is sometimes dizzying trying to keep up with the swinging emotions of Robinson's multi-millionaire meat-packer John Hayden. Robinson carries it off beautifully, and I think this film really proves what a fine, fine actor he was.

And how lucky we are that a film company like First National existed in the early 30's, pumping out films with stars like EG Robinson at a rate that would leave a current studio breathless. What an exciting time it must have been. We are the beneficiaries of this fascinating time, when studios had to release new films in a rapid succession, such was the hunger for new films.

"I Loved a Woman" takes place over a 40 year period, taking us from late Victorian Chicago of 1892 to industrial Chicago of just a few decades later. The fashions change subtly over the 90 minutes this film takes. While some of the romantic scenes with Kay Francis are a bit dated, and the lovers' dialogue a little stilted, Robinson never fails to captivate us when he is on screen. If anybody can carry this stuff off, it is him (Robinson even sings in this movie, though happily not too much).

The supporting cast is strong and full of First National perennials, such as Robert Barrat, playing EGR's father-in-law. A special treat is the speaking appearance of one of John Ford's silent screen favorites, J. Farrel MacDonald.

This movie also features a speaking role for Theodore Roosevelt, who personally threatens to destroy the meat packer Hayden for selling rotten meat to the soldiers of the Spanish-American War.

Perhaps the only annoyance is having to put up with Kay Francis repeatedly singing Home on the Range in an opera voice while playing an upright piano. Once, maybe, but three times?....

One funny thing to look for early in the film: Robinson returns home from abroad after hearing of his father's death. A painting of dad hangs on the office wall - looking exactly like EG Robinson with full whiskers! A very nice touch.

This is a strong entry from First National Films, and a great way to get know the many sides of Edward G. Robinson. I highly recommend this one.

The Skies Are Not Cloudy All Day

[museumofdave · 7/10 · 28 August 2015]

What a peculiar (but often fascinating!) film! The title has a little to do with Robinson's character, but it really isn't a woman he loves, but the meat-packing business! Eddie G., who wants to make the world more artistic and to clean up the Chicago slums, inherits an unsavory but highly successful business from his father, and makes an attempt to break away from corporate alliances--enter Kay Francis, in one of her vamp roles, this time as an opera singer aiming for the top European houses, but needing a little cash infusion to get there--she seduces the good EGR by sitting down at the piano--and suddenly warbles a contralto version of "Home On The Range"! No Tosca, no Mimi, no Traviata--this overdressed little flower brims blooms with the Western tune a total of three times--and it becomes an ironic interlude throughout the film--Robinson also attempts to capture the world food market, even buys cattle instead of just canning it! (Some echoes of Upton Sinclair feeds plot complications).

For early fans of Mr. Robinson and Our Kay, this is compelling fun, and frequently details fascinating turns of historical event--Teddy Roosevelt makes a personal appearance and WWI turns the world upside down. For those expecting the powerful one-note (but perhaps less well-rounded) characterizations which Robinson was often gave, there may be surprises as he ages--and hides out in another country. For others, this is a historical curiosity peopled with familiar early First National Faces.

"They didn't cut the boy's curls till he was 14. His mother wanted him to look like Little Lord Fauntleroy."

[utgard14 · 4/10 · 15 December 2014]

Bohemian Edward G. Robinson has to take over his late father's meatpacking business. He tries to run it honestly but eventually becomes corrupt. Meanwhile, he takes opera singer Kay Francis as his mistress, which doesn't sit well with wife Genevieve Tobin.

Slow-moving melodrama with moments of unintended hilarity. The romantic scenes are especially bad. Kay Francis hams it up, as was her tendency. You either like her or you don't. I dare you not to laugh when she sings "Home on the Range." Eddie Robinson does fine, except for the aforementioned romantic scenes. He has zero chemistry with Francis. Genevieve Tobin is badly miscast as the villainous wife. She was better suited playing likable characters. It's a pretty boring effort. Final line of the movie sums it up best: "I'm sleepy."

Through the years Saga with EG Robinson

[mush-2 · 11 January 2009]

Forgotten epic of a meat packer played well by Edward G. Robinson who takes over his fathers business and becomes ruthless.

I agree with the previous reviewer who complained about the many holes in the plot and inconsistencies- Robinson is first presented as a lover of humanity and the arts. He has a complete personality switch and becomes a ruthless, amoral business man all because of a little Machiavellian advice from lover Francis.

That said, the movie is interesting, well produced, historically accurate in a lot of ways and finally quite moving as Robinson ends up alone, back in his beloved Greece but afflicted with dementia so the events of his life become momentary snapshots that come and go.

I also liked the portrayal of the deterioration of his marriage. As in many 30's movies, there is a lot of truth that is hinted at but not fully explored.Sometimes, this leads to a superficiality which is unsatisfying but sometimes it leads to motifs that suggest subtly the inner workings and leave it up to us to connect the dots.

Eddie G, the beef trust, and two unlikeable women

[marcslope · 6/10 · 15 April 2019]

Warners-First National did a bunch of sweeping historic sagas around this time (one particularly good one: The World Changes), and this history of the meat industry is lavish but lopsided. Edward G. Robinson, not young enough at the beginning as an art lover in Athens and not old enough at the end as a retired meat baron back in Athens to escape criminal charges in the U.S., but excellent throughout, not very willingly takes over his dad's beef business when the latter dies, marries a charming Genevieve Tobin, and falls in love with ambitious opera singer (ha!) Kay Francis, who keeps serenading him with his favorite tune, "Home on the Range." She's an eyeful, but ruthless, and we grow to hate her, and Tobin, initially a sympathetic do-gooder, becomes an angry neglected wife. Robinson, too, loses whatever sympathy we had for him as he sells tainted beef to the U.S. army, dodges taxes and hides the books, and cheerfully cheats on his wife. He ends up senile and bitter, which he appears to deserve. Some plotting and character holes in this one, and in the end there's no one to root for, but it's pleasingly sprawling and certainly well acted.

Stick with it

[vincentlynch-moonoi · 7/10 · 26 January 2022]

This is an interesting movie for a number of reasons. But there is a problem...you've got to stick with it through the first portion of the film which was so boring I almost gave up on it. I'm glad I didn't.

In terms of Hollywood trivia, it's interesting because the lead actress -- Kay Francis -- was near the peak of her popularity as one of the most popular actresses of the day. However, three major scenes of hers were cut, and while her character remains somewhat central to the story, she is nearly relegated to a supporting actress here.

The film is also interesting because rather than being merely fiction, it is closer to historical fiction...once it gets going. At the heart of the story is something I was not aware of -- the Embalmed Beef Scandal, in which, during the Spanish-American War, most of the meat arriving in Cuba for US troops was so poorly preserved, chemically adulterated, spoiled, and mixed with other 'meats' (than beef) that it was often toxic and caused enough illnesses and death that it was said that more American soldiers died from the resulting dysentery and food poisoning than from enemy bullets and bombs. And the theme of this story is that once ethical meat packer Edward G. Robinson gets greedy and become the focus of the scandal, along with plenty of other unethical practices. You'll see Teddy Roosevelt portrayed here regarding the scandal.

In the early part of the film, Robinson just doesn't look like a reasonable paramour in his affair with Kay Francis' character But as the industrialist he's superb here. Again, you've got to get past the beginning of the film.

I rather like Kay Francis in quite a few films, but not here. She simply does not come across as a singer, even with the voice-over. No wonder her scenes were cut.

I was not familiar with the actress Genevieve Tobin, who here plays Robinson's wife, although I must have seen her in a number of old films. But she did nicely here...better than Francis.

With sophistication in Hollywood improving, this film would have been so much better had it been made just 3-5 years later. But still, it's worth watching, and reminded me of another bit of historical fiction that Robinson starred in -- "Silver Dollar" -- just a year earlier.

This is terrible!

[1930s_Time_Machine · 2/10 · 26 November 2023]

I hope the quality of corned beef is better now than it was then - I love that stuff. That's important because this is set against the backdrop of the history of corned beef. I guarantee that there'll be more people interested in that than in the film.

The corned beef stuff is actually quite interesting but the film isn't. It's so bad that at times it's actually unintentionally funny. Forty year old EGR with make-up to look (nothing) like an art student sets the tone for this silliness. Even though EGR probably felt quite at home discussing high-brow art, having found the dressing-up box, he is utterly unbelievable in this role. He then meets gorgeous Genevieve Tobin (surely she's Joan Blondell's posh sister?) after which they decide to put the world to rights. This story of improving the lives of the workers (and the quality of the corned beef) alone if expanded could have made a pretty good picture itself but after five minutes that's all over and the whole thing changes.

EGR then meets sultry Kay Francis' ambitious singer. Miss Francis herself had quite a reputation at the time and it's on that which would have explained EGR's sudden infatuation with her because it certainly couldn't have been her character. She wasn't a bad actress but in this she's absolutely atrocious employing her trademark one face for all emotions trick. The voice they used for her operatic singing couldn't sound less like a voice Kay Francis herself could ever possibly have. It sounds and looks hilarious.

Suddenly it's a different film again. EGR's character has been completely changed as a result of his infatuation with Kay Francis which again could make a film itself but how this 180-degree evolution happens is not really explored. At the same time Genevieve Tobin seems to be playing a different role - again, that could have been a film itself but it's all rushed over. It's the same with Kay Francis. Her character who literally sleeps her way to success would also provide enough material for a whole film but we just get snippets of her life.

Further corned beef related stuff happens but the whole thing feels like the producers have found a twenty chapter book and just filmed chapters 1, 5, 10 and 20 in isolation. Because it's all so shallow, you can't engage with anyone and the jarring changes in pace and theme makes it impossible for it to retain your attention.

An hour and a half is just not enough to do justice to a story about the conflict between altruism and ambition, love and lust, sexual and business rivalry.... and Corned Beef.

Eddie G. in a period piece

[HotToastyRag · 5/10 · 28 May 2021]

Anyone in the mood for something fresh and different? How about Edward G. Robinson in a period piece? Check him out in the melodrama I Loved a Woman, about an unhappily married businessman in the 1800s. Genevieve Tobin is his wife, and while they used to be close when her father was alive, when he died and transferred his meat packing company to his son-in-law, they grew apart. Eddie G is ethical and fine, but he still feels something is missing in life.

When he meets aspiring opera singer Kay Francis, he finds the missing element. He falls head over heels for her beauty and confidence, and Kay plays him like a fiddle. There's nothing to break your heart like watching Eddie G get swindled and hurt, is there? The sad part about this movie is that he doesn't take Kay's gold-digging schemes lying down. He gets really angry, and his whole character changes from a sweet fool to a tyrant. But at least he gets some love scenes out of it, which he doesn't usually get to film in his movies.

Robinson the meat tycoon

[nickenchuggets · 8/10 · 13 February 2022]

I've talked about several obscure movies before, but this one is on a whole new level of rarity. Hardly any websites know about it, so once again it's up to me to explain why I think it's too bad this film went mostly unnoticed. For one thing, the movie stars two timeless actors who epitomize the 1930s; Edward G Robinson and Kay Francis. In this only film they made together, both of them are given interesting personas that help pull the story along. Robinson plays John Hayden, a man whose father runs a powerful meat packing enterprise. While taking some time off in greece, John receives word that his father is dead. John comes back to america, and it is now the late 1800s. While in chicago, he tries taking over his father's business but he isn't very good at it, which encourages him to find a better way to spend his time. He meets socialite Martha (Genevieve Tobin), with whom he has a relationship. Martha is also the daughter of a rival meat packer. Later on, an opera singing girl named Laura (Kay Francis) starts to lure John away from Martha and his other priorities. A few years later, the spanish american war is underway, and a US military detachment in cuba (led by colonel Teddy Roosevelt) is being supplied meat distributed by Hayden's company. A paper later publishes a story saying how more american servicemen were put out of action in cuba because of illnesses induced via consumption of contaminated meat rather than spanish gunfire. Roosevelt himself later threatens Hayden to his face and says he will put him out of business once he becomes president. After this, John's relationship with Laura continues, despite the fact he's married to Martha by this point. John is truly convinced that Laura is going to love him forever, but predictably, she abandons John right as his company starts to falter. John tries to get Martha to help him with his problems regarding the company following world war 1, but she reveals that she knows all about his affair with Laura. Laura and John haven't been together in years, but in Martha's eyes, it doesn't matter. She refuses to help him, and John is later indicted over the whole "sell the US army infected meat" thing from 2 decades before. He manages to run away back to greece, and even though Laura eventually visits him, he can no longer remember who she is. I Loved a Woman may not be on par with Little Caesar, but I thought it was a decent Robinson movie. Robinson is the key word here, since his performance is easily the best on offer. It seems like no matter what movie he was in, he was great. I thought the story was quite predictable, and as soon as Robinson started to go out with Kay Francis, I knew something bad would end up happening. Overall, this movie isn't amazing, but I still think it's worth investing time in since Francis and Robinson never collaborated again.

Entertaining Programmer with Edward G. Robinson!

[JLRMovieReviews · 8/10 · 7 April 2016]

Young Edward G. Robinson is discovering the art and culture of Greece and finding himself, when he gets a telegram from home. Heir to a beef- packing business, he reads his father has just died. He rushes home but didn't have much plans or a business mind to take over, when he meets Genevieve Tobin, who is an heir to a competitor. In fact, there are several meat-packing companies, but they don't all use pure beef in their product/business. Edward's father did and their business was number one in the industry, in this film was takes place in 1892, just before Teddy Roosevelt becomes President. In fact, Teddy and Eddie meet and become enemies of sorts. But, I'm ahead of myself. Getting married to Genevieve Tobin, and using only prime beef, Eddie does take over, but the business does not do so well, just adequate and others become more successful. Meanwhile, a young aspiring opera singer (Kay Francis) looking for a backer comes to him, asking for capital as an investment. When he hears her sing and she knows his favorite song, "Home on the Range," he obviously falls for her. But what he didn't realize was that she was what she was. She did form a fond attachment for him, but never claimed to love only him. She was a very cavalier lover. When he is inspired by her gusto to live life fully and go for the gold, he becomes ruthless in getting contracts for his business and in cutting costs, not always using premium beef, like everyone else. But in his getting fat deals, his food affects more people, more important people. So when the fit hits the shan, he is the scapegoat. Meanwhile, Genevieve learns about Kay and she lives for the day to show Edward up. This is a very well-made film that does not overdo its dramatics. In fact, this played out very well and was very realistic. While not a very important film or that great a film in the long run, it really delivers with great performances by all. This was not a turkey by no means, as Edward felt he was being thrown into them by the movie studio all the time. They were uninspired and repetitive to him, as he was a stage actor by heart. He never understood the appeal of "Little Caesar," despite the fact it made him an overnight movie star. Playing a gangster was not all that it was hyped up to be, but this film he felt at least was "about something," as he said in his autobiography. And, he had fond memories of Kay Francis. If you see this on TCM one day, watch and enjoy Edward G. Robinson, one of Hollywood's most versatile actors, who earned an Honorary Oscar for his performances of men in all walks of life.

Really Bad Melodrama

[Michael_Elliott · 31 December 2011]

I Loved a Woman (1933)

* (out of 4)

John Hayden (Edward G. Robinson), an art lover staying in Greece, receives word that his father has died so he returns to Chicago to take over the family meat packing business. Hayden sticks fast to his morals of running a good, clean business until the day he meets an opera singer (Kay Francis) and decides to do whatever it takes to make money to keep her happy. If you own a Leonard Maltin movie guide then you know it's quite rare for an older film from this era to receive a BOMB rating. If you go through every single page you'll notice that very few receive such a bad rating but this is a film that does get that. Even though I didn't find it that bad there's still no question that this is one of the worst from Hollywood's golden age. I guess the first place to start is the fact that this thing moves as slow as molasses. At 91-miutes the film seems three times as long and I couldn't help but feel as if I was watching two or three moves rolled into one. I say that because by the time you're at the thirty-minute mark you've already forgotten everything that happened previously. You hit the hour mark, bored out of your mind, and you're shocked to realize how much has happened in the film and how much you don't care. The film takes place in the late 1890s and you go through various things from a marriage to a childhood sweetheart (Genevieve Tobin) to the affair with the singer. The big turning point in the film has Robinson being too good of a nice guy and then out of no where he's an evil, money hungry idiot who kills some American soldiers without feeling bad. This turn in Robinson's character is never explained and how it comes off is unintentionally hilarious. The performances really aren't all that memorable, although they do contain some camp value. Francis is OK in her part but you can't help but laugh when it comes time for the singing. Tobin is unintentionally funny playing the wife who has her own ideas of revenge. Robinson isn't too bad here but you really have a hard time believing that he's a lover of art. I also didn't buy his transformation into the bad guy but then again the screenplay can be blamed for this. As bad as I LOVED A WOMAN is, it's almost hard not to recommend it to film buffs just so they can see how bad it actually is.