Rip Tide (1934)

Riptide, written and directed by Edmund Goulding and produced by Irving Thalberg, was the kind of romantic comedy/drama that MGM rattled off with ease in the mid-1930's. Hopelessly swamped by its upscale setting and characters, who move amid its lavish settings and costumes, it oozed class consciousness and high-toned dialogue in its time, spiced by the sheer superciliousness of its characters' needs and concerns -- Lord Rexford (Herbert Marshall) and his valet drolly observing the ridiculousness of the "insect man" costume that he has been told to wear to an impending party; the whirlwind courtship of Rexford and Mary (Norma Shearer); and Mrs. Patrick Campbell's wry-witted and knowing persona, as Mary's aunt; and Robert Montgomery as her cheerful ex-beau Tommie. And there is the plot's emphasis in one point on drinking alcohol -- and Mary's and Tommie's consequent tipsiness -- which was then a newly-restored legal and public pleasure in 1934 (and worked its way into lots of scripts at the time), for an overlooked piece of period detail. It all seemed pleasant but trivial when it was released, and for years after. Thanks to the spirited performances of the players, however, and exquisite photography of Ray June -- and the sets by Edwin Willis, and costumes and art direction by Adrian, Fredric Hope and Alexander Tubuloff -- the movie has now aged gracefully into a fine-looking period piece. The plot is still only a diverting trifle, but the style of the performances and the look of the movie have given it an extra-special appeal 75 years on. And for those who wonder what Montgomery's and Sheeter's appeal was in their time, this is as good a vehicle as any to observe it on screen. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide