The One About The Woman Who Sleeps With A Married Man & Doesn't Get Punished

[hepclassic]

Many pre-codes dealt with sexual liberation, and some even on the scandalous side. Do you have a favorite? 

[hepclassic]

Personally- I like Midnight Mary. 

[mr6666]

liked this too....

 

[hepclassic]

liked this too....

 

I saw that a while ago-and she liked it kinky too. 

[TheGayDivorcee]

Being a little slow on the uptake, I didn't realize these wonderful Genre Forums were here!  

 

One of my favorites of that era is Baby Face, 1933, with Barbara Stanwyck and George Brent.  Most entertaining, with some great lines.

[jamesjazzguitar]

liked this too....

 

 

 

The movies is enjoyable,  but one thing I noticed with many pre-codes is they have no endings or very weak ones.   i.e. they just END.

 

We all know that the Production Code forced endings and many of those were phoney.  But I felt Red Headed Women needed a better ending.     Not because the women was immoral based on the standards of the era but because she was just rotten to the core.     So I felt some type of comeuppance would have provided some degree of balance to the picture. 

[hepclassic]

The movies is enjoyable,  but one thing I noticed with many pre-codes is they have no endings or very weak ones.   i.e. they just END.

 

We all know that the Production Code forced endings and many of those were phoney.  But I felt Red Headed Women needed a better ending.     Not because the women was immoral based on the standards of the era but because she was just rotten to the core.     So I felt some type of comeuppance would have provided some degree of balance to the picture. 

I've noticed that too, but that's the draw of the PreCodes- that a character can come away without judgment. 

[jamesjazzguitar]

I've noticed that too, but that's the draw of the PreCodes- that a character can come away without judgment. 

 

I don't think her character comes away without judgement;  Notice the speech that got caused her to shoot her husband;  He was correct in how he judged her.  

 

But none of her actions came back to bite her in the film since at the end of the film it is clear she had found yet another old sucker that she would take advanage of.      To just shoot someone and almost kill them and than to just laugh it off was a little much even for a pre-code film.

[hepclassic]

I don't think her character comes away without judgement;  Notice the speech that got caused her to shoot her husband;  He was correct in how he judged her.  

 

But none of her actions came back to bite her in the film since at the end of the film it is clear she had found yet another old sucker that she would take advanage of.      To just shoot someone and almost kill them and than to just laugh it off was a little much even for a pre-code film.

I think Precodes gave room for audiences to decide what they think about the characters whose story they see in the film. 

 

With the Code, the judgment by him would have stood as punishment alone and she would have been shamed for living as she did to the point of  the audience not being able to pick up on who she was to begin with because the interest groups represented wouldn't be comfortable with such subjects to handle a mature look at them. 

 

The problem with films made under the Code, as well as the legacy of the Production Code, is that audiences are believed already to be mature enough to not explore and discuss taboo topics that the Pre-codes and films made post-Code were unafraid to explore. But, if the Pre-Codes are any marker, it seems that the audiences were mature enough to see a film like Red Headed Woman for it to have the legacy it has. Besides, the people who were protested in the name of "morality" didn't see the films they were protesting. 

[jamesjazzguitar]

I think Precodes gave room for audiences to decide what they think about the characters whose story they see in the film. 

 

With the Code, the judgment by him would have stood as punishment alone and she would have been shamed for living as she did to the point of  the audience not being able to pick up on who she was to begin with because the interest groups represented wouldn't be comfortable with such subjects to handle a mature look at them. 

 

The problem with films made under the Code, as well as the legacy of the Production Code, is that audiences are believed already to be mature enough to not explore and discuss taboo topics that the Pre-codes and films made post-Code were unafraid to explore. But, if the Pre-Codes are any marker, it seems that the audiences were mature enough to see a film like Red Headed Woman for it to have the legacy it has. Besides, the people who were protested in the name of "morality" didn't see the films they were protesting. 

 

My guess is that MGM ended the movie Red Headed Women the way they did was because they wanted Harlow to get away with attempted murder.    MGM didn't want a Harlow character to be punished.   Also,  they were just cheap.    One can see how rushed these 30s movies are and how little care was taken as it relates to making a film.    So why waste money to script and shoot a better ending when it was cheaper to just put up the 'The End' card!

[hepclassic]

My guess is that MGM ended the movie Red Headed Women the way they did was because they wanted Harlow to get away with attempted murder.    MGM didn't want a Harlow character to be punished.   Also,  they were just cheap.    One can see how rushed these 30s movies are and how little care was taken as it relates to making a film.    So why waste money to script and shoot a better ending when it was cheaper to just put up the 'The End' card!

The same could be true for Production Code films as well. Also, I am sure with the Depression studios had to economize ticket sales with movie production. 

[jamesjazzguitar]

The same could be true for Production Code films as well. Also, I am sure with the Depression studios had to economize ticket sales with movie production. 

 

Note that I didn't mention the Production Code as it relates to studios making movies on the cheap.    I mentioned the decade of the 30s.   So yes,  the studios made movies on the cheap during the 30s, pre and post code.

[hepclassic]

Note that I didn't mention the Production Code as it relates to studios making movies on the cheap.    I mentioned the decade of the 30s.   So yes,  the studios made movies on the cheap during the 30s, pre and post code.

Duly noted.