The Female Animal

Tawdry and salacious for its time, it's hardly the titillating extravaganza of Lamarr's signature role in 1933's Ecstasy.

A shallow and formula-ridden drama about life in Hollywood, with Hedy Lamarr as an "ageless" glamour-girl, Jane Powell as her rebellious daughter, and George Nader as a high-minded muscle-boy who is torn between them.

Somehow this might have had more impact had the squabbling women been arguing over Errol Flynn or Clark Cable. George Nader, well he just doesn't really cut it as the hunky object of the desires of the fading Hollywood star "Vanessa" (Hedy Lamarr) whom he has saved from an accident at the studio. Quickly, his allure extends to that women's dipso daughter "Penny" (June Powell) whom he also manages to rescue - this time from a guest at a party who has wandering hands. What now ensues sees poor old "Chris" try to juggle the affections of both women whilst keeping safely distant from some hungry man-eating flowers. It probably isn't quite fair to describe this soap, but it isn't far off. The plot has the odd, semi-comic, twist as we head down a well travelled road of familial discord, a little bit of familial rivalry before an ending that offers little by way of innovation. There is something honest about Lamarr here, though. Perhaps her role suited her actual declining status in Hollywood, so she maybe felt free to let the badger loose a bit. Also worth noting is Jan Sterling's rather acerbic contribution as "Lily" - a woman never far away from her next put-down. Oddly enough, I found myself wondering how much better this might have been had it been made pre-code, and the strong - almost salacious - sexual elements of the plot been permitted to develop a bit more, bit as it is, it…

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