Movies like Evelyn Prentice give me one of the greatest satisfactions I get from watching films; discovering an obscurity from an actor's filmography which I end up considering to be one of their finest films. Myrna Loy superbly carries Evelyn Prentice , dominating majority of the screen time, with William Powell delivering one of his finest dramatic turns, while seeing Rosalind Russell in her screen debut is just a mere bonus. Russell doesn't have a whole lot to do but she still comes off as a memorable screen presence despite this, although it is a little odd hearing her speak in an English accent and not at a machine gun rate. Loy and Una Merkel make for a fun duo, with Merkel having a very memorable comic sounding voice. Just the deco of Evelyn Prentice itself makes me love this film more, whether it's a smoke filled night club, the lavish interior of Powell and Loy's home to even the clothes worn in the film (the costume department really knocks this one out of the park), sucking me into the world of the 1930's.Scenes such as the family exercising or the father and daughter playing piano together helps humanize them, making me more fearful that a character played by the sweetheart Myrna Loy could be going to prison, or maybe get the electric chair! The tension builds as the film progresses. The scene in which a witness arrives at the Prentice household while Evelyn is present to describe the women she witnessed leaving the murder scene, this women of course being Evelyn buy nobody else knows that, feels like the type of moment you would get from a Hitchcock movie. In fact the entire premise of the movie could be given the Hitchcock treatment.I often feel like Hollywood make being a lawyer look like the coolest job ever. Even if John Prentice (William Powell) is missing time from his family, his turn during the film's courtroom climax makes the profession look like a constant flow of hair raising excitement. The film's final twenty minute courtroom sequence had my heart pounding, eating up every minute of its melodramatic glory while screaming in anticipation to how the characters are going to get themselves out of this situation. At the same time however I was tense that the movie would pull the characters out of their intense dilemma in a contrived manner, I'm pleased to say I was not disappointed. The outcome of the case is movie fantasy but it didn't feel like a cop out. Throughout this sequence Powell and Loy do some of the finest acting work of their careers. Myrna Loy is generally not highly regarded as a dramatic actress but I would defy anyone say otherwise as she lays on the tears and the passionate pleas. I must also give credit to Judith Wilson, whole also left an impression during these proceedings. As a fan of Powell & Loy partnership and courtroom dramas, their third film together satisfied more than I could ask for. Manhattan Melodrama, The Thin Man and Evelyn Prentice all in one year, ain't too stingy.

About 15 minutes into this film I had the strong feeling that I had watched it before, yet I knew I hadn't because a few details weren't falling into place. A little research turned up that it was remade in 1939 as "Stronger Than Desire" with Walter Pidgeon in William Powell's role and Virginia Bruce in Myrna Loy's role.Usually I could tell you that either the original or the remake of a story was better, but I can't really do that in this case. Each film has its strengths and its weakness, but each film is also quite excellent.In the Powell/Loy version, the marital relationship is portrayed best, although that's not to say that it is poorly portrayed in the Pidgeon/Bruce version. Perhaps its that natural chemistry that was so common between Powell and Loy, but make no mistake, this is no comedy like the Thin Man series...this is all drama.On the other hand, the courtroom portion of the story is better in the Pidgeon/Bruce version.But, in the Pidgeon/Bruce version, the best friend of the wife encourages the affair in a manner that seems malevolent, while in the Powell/Loy version it seems more a silly whim, which seems more likely based on the rest of the stories.In both the cases, the plot twist at the end is interesting! And I recommend you watch both films.In this version, the best friend is played nicely by Una Merkel, and she does so nicely, although she shined much more in other films. Interesting to note that in this film the part of the real murderess is played by Isabel Jewell, who played the woman going to the guillotine at the same time as Ronald Colman in "A Tale Of Two Cities" just a year later, and the prostitute in "Lost Horizon" three years later, and that "white trash Emmy Slattery" in "Gone With The Wind" in 1939.This film and the remake is highly recommended, and you may want one for your DVD shelf.

This movie had in it the elements that made the Thin Man a smash. The film crackles when Myrna and William Powell are on the screen. And it almost looks like a Thin Man movie with a lot of supporting actors from the series appearing in this movie. The movie is about a woman married to a successful and neglectful attorney and implies he may have had an affair with his client when he was out of town. During this time a barfly somehow is able to manipulate our heroine Myrna into spending sometime with him for teas, walks then try to blackmail her when she breaks it off. Someone else is blamed and for the rest of movie Myrna has a guilty conscious yet our heroine in the end does the right thing she thinks but in a pre M Night twist which i will not disclose all turns out. This movie was a bit slow and yes i had a hard time believing that a sophisticated lady would fall for such a douchebag but Myrna and Bill were awesome as usual. Not thin man quality but better than most.

Snarky summary aside, I enjoyed watching this picture for the unbelievably subdued performances of Powell and particularly Loy, and the ludicrous plot (played tirelessly straight) surrounded by gorgeous sets and costumes. This is such a film of its time. It's hard to believe something so flimsy could be made with such high production values and talented stars. At times it's strangely compelling, but mostly this is a picture for only die-hard Loy/Powell fans to see. It's amusing them to see them in such a soppy melodrama, especially juxtaposed with the bizarrely comic Una Merkell (who appears to have no life of her own, save to live in the Prentice household as a near-sister to Loy).Rosalind Russell is also unintentionally comic. As another reviewer commented, MGM had no idea what a firecracker they had on their hands. It's hilarious to hear her speak in that fake English accent that all upper-crust '30s characters affected.Others have described the "plot" on this site already, so I can only comment on the wonderful period mise en scene and the pleasure of seeing Loy and Powell in a picture they probably spent the rest of their lives lamenting. An excellent "time warp" piece that makes us wonder if audiences of the time were from another planet as well as another era.