This is what's considered a "Pre-Code" film, in that the behavior of its characters would probably not have been allowed in films less than a decade later. That's because the tougher new Production Code outlawed common things in films up until about 1935--nudity, adult topics and violence. While this film is pretty mild compared to many of them, it DOES concern a woman (Joan Crawford) that kisses up to a man and pretends to love him to help her fiancé! In addition, the young people in this film spend most of their time getting drunk, chasing the opposite sex and gambling! Apparently, Grandma was quite the party animal back in 1929! This is also an interesting film because it's transitional between silent and talking films. While technically some might consider it a silent since all dialog is on inter-title cards, sound effects and music were later added to make it almost seem like a sound film. THIS WAS A PROBLEM, THOUGH, as to make a silent film with sound effects, the movie was actually run at a slightly higher than normal speed (silent films were cranked at between 16 and 22 frames per second, sound was 24). So, the film looks a tad too fast! While this isn't always noticeable, when the people are dancing, they appear to be hyperactive, amphetamine-pumping gerbils!!! This doesn't really harm the film much, though.
As for the story itself, the production values are good BUT the plot seems a bit slow and dull. In addition to Crawford trying to romance Rod La Rocque for the sake of Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. (who was her husband in real life at the time), their mutual friend, "Kentucky" (Anita Page), was desperately in love with Douglas! And so the audience is left wondering who will live happily ever after--and we really are led to feel sorry for La Rocque and Page. Well, see for yourself what happens, but don't expect any magic. It's a decent film, but that's really about all.
As for the story itself, the production values are good BUT the plot seems a bit slow and dull. In addition to Crawford trying to romance Rod La Rocque for the sake of Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. (who was her husband in real life at the time), their mutual friend, "Kentucky" (Anita Page), was desperately in love with Douglas! And so the audience is left wondering who will live happily ever after--and we really are led to feel sorry for La Rocque and Page. Well, see for yourself what happens, but don't expect any magic. It's a decent film, but that's really about all.