Pretty draggy screen version of Sinclair Lewis's sensational novel about a small-town doctor who must navigate the murky place between contributing to scientific truth and helping people get better.Ronald Colman plays Arrowsmith as well as he can, though his dandified diction and general European air were at odds with my image of the character. The film feels truncated and half baked, not surprising since it condenses a meaty novel into about 100 minutes. "Arrowsmith" was nominated for four Oscars in the 1931-32 award year, and actually tied with "The Champ" for the most nominated film of the year (can you believe there was a time when the most nominated film would only have 4 nominations?). But it lost all of them, and honestly it didn't really deserve to win any of them. The only one I might be able to argue for is Richard Day's art direction, which takes the story from small midwestern farm houses to the tropics of the West Indies. Its other three nominations included Best Picture (in a year that saw eight nominees in this category), Best Writing (Adaptation), and Best Cinematography.John Ford, who directed, shows none of the style and stateliness he would bring to his later career.Grade: B-

Goldwyn prestige at its stateliest, with John Ford direction and a Sidney Howard screenplay from a famous Sinclair Lewis novel. It means to be a serious look at the corrupting influences on the medical profession--interestingly, it tells a story not unlike, and with the same ending as, Rodgers and Hammerstein's "Allegro." It's hardly exciting, however, and the deliberate pacing makes one impatient for more to happen, faster. You're also asked to believe a fortyish Ronald Colman is a twentyish medical student, that he has an impeccable British accent though he's solid American stock, and that he and Helen Hayes would meet cute and fall in love cute, in a few hours. (She simpers a lot, and though she's excellent a year later in "A Farewell to Arms," here she's mostly annoying.) Ford's work is a little over-obvious here--note that close-up of the poisoned cigarette, killing any forward plotting for the next half-hour. Compensations include Myrna Loy, playing an honest and appealing upper-class lady at a time when studios were mainly casting her in Oriental-floozie roles, and a rare portrayal of an African-American doctor who's smarter and more dignified than anyone else among the dramatis personae. The production design's nice, too. If only there were more drama, and if we believed it more thoroughly.

I was very confused. What happened to the Doctor on the telephone line? What happened between Mr. Colman and Ms. Loy? I guess this is a case where less is not more. (So, a scene with Colman resisting Loy's advances, and she respecting him for it, was cut?)The acting is a collision of three types: Stage, Silent, and Talking. Some of the camera work was nice... most everything else was way below what you'd expect from even an early talking movie.The doctors in these early films sure drink and smoke a lot... The moral of the story, I guess is that women should not smoke - witness what happens to poor Ms. Hayes! *** Arrowsmith (12/7/31) John Ford ~ Ronald Colman, Helen Hayes, Myrna Loy

Well OK this is NOT a real filmization of Sinclair Lewis' novel. Whether the fault is with the script, the director (John Ford), or the editing, we'll never know. But what is left is still a watchable film with attractive stars. Just don't expect Lewis' novel.Ronald Colman plays the idealistic hero (yes he's too old for the part), married to a down-to-earth woman (Helen Hayes). He battles the hypocrisy of research science funded by a huge foundation just as he battles the "bad science" of small town America, and the third-world conditions that foster epidemics (sounds relevant now).While the plot here is a mish mash, the performances are solid. Colman was a careful actor and seemed content to deliver his crisp diction without delving much into character. Hayes is quite good as the wife. Richard Bennett is excellent and steals the film as the Swedish doctor. Myrna Loy has a small role (that was apparently cut). Also on hand are John Qualen, Beulah Bondi, A.E. Anson as the skeletal Gottlieb, Russell Hopton, Bert Roach, Nora Cecil, Claude King, Adele Watson, and David Landau as the arrogant vet.