Watch Behind Office Doors For Free

Touches You

Memorable, crazy movie

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

Mary Astor was so beautiful, but for some reason, she's cast as someone taken for granted in "Behind Office Doors," a 1931 film. Astor had a great career starting in silents and culminating with "The Maltese Falcon," in 1941. She moved into character roles in the '50s, and played her last role in 1967, due to a heart condition.Here Astor plays Mary Linden, an executive assistant to James Duneen (Robert Ames). She is the brains of the operation as he seems to only have two brain cells and one of them is on vacation. For reasons known only to herself, she's in love with him. He can't see her for dust and is not only a womanizer, but he hires a few of his bimbo girlfriends, one of whom buys sexy lingerie and shows it off to Mary.In the beginning of the film Mary meets Ronnie Wales (Ricardo Cortez) and he's crazy about her. One problem - he's married and not living with his wife. She's too interested in her boss, but eventually Duneen's womanizing gets to her and she leaves, heartbroken.This movie has many precode elements - trashy women, hash, sexual harassment, adultery, sexual innuendo.The main problem with it is that Mary is an idiot! Why isn't the boss played by someone good-looking and quick-witted like Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.? She deserved better than this shlub for sure. And what was his problem? He has a beautiful secretary who's holding him together, and he's looking around, sending flowers to other women and hiring her an "assistant?" All in all, very '30s, and very not feminist.

A good vehicle for Mary Astor, who always radiated intelligence and beauty; she's stunningly gorgeous as a secretary who's smarter than her boss, Robert Ames, and helps him to the presidency of a paper company while being utterly neglected. The sexism of the day is annoying--she should really be president--but the role allows Astor a lot of range, she gets to do both funny and poignant, and she's never less than a great camera subject. Ames, a major leading man who died not long after this, doesn't reveal any great appeal or ability, and the ending's never much in doubt. But it's one of the better early-talkie looks at the great Mary.

.....especially if she is surrounded by such dim witted men!!!! First of all there's Ronnie Wales (Ricardo Cortez) - he is attracted to Mary but will never divorce his wealthy wife as she controls the money. Then there is the man Mary (Mary Astor) really loves - Jim Duneen (Robert Ames) an idiot par excellence. He's crass, vulgar, always drunk and attracted to dopey flappers - which is why he is not interested in Mary. She is a super efficient girl Friday for Ritter and Co. and Jim is their top salesman. When their boss retires, due to ill health, he takes on board Mary's suggestion that Jim will be perfect to fill his place. He more than fulfills the faith Mary has in him - but does he really??? Although he takes all the credit, it is really Mary's efficiency and business sense that keeps the company at the top. She also teaches him how to talk and how to dress until he catches the eye of Ellen (Catherine Dale Owen), a wealthy society woman.Was Catherine Dale Owen the worst actress of that time - or was there another one!!! She said her lines as though she was playing in a 1929 talkie - not one from 1931!! Slowly, deliberately and enunciating every word. There was a scene between her and Mary Astor (one of the best actresses) - Mary was her beautiful, natural self but Catherine was all "Grand Dame". As John Springer once wrote - "Perhaps it wasn't John Gilbert's fault that he seemed ludicrous in his first talkie, after all, his leading lady was Catherine Dale Owen"!!!Ellen finds out that Mary loves Jim and forces her to leave the company - of course the place falls apart. The secretary that Jim has installed (Edna Murphy), one of his flings, almost burns his house down by falling asleep with a lighted cigarette!!! The ending is very disappointing but apart from that, the movie has lots of pre-code moments. When Mary rings Jim at midnight, they both happen to be "entertaining" and when Mary goes to Atlantic City with Ronnie, the complete casualness, as they both lounge about in peignoirs and smoking jackets!! There is one scene that makes the movie worthwhile - it is when Mary resigns and finally sees her path in life clearly (or so she thinks). She puts all her energy into this one little speech and she is just great!!!I like Mary Astor so much. In a sea of platinum blondes she stood out like a beacon with her calm dark beauty and poise. That's why the ending was so silly - Mary was far too smart to make the decision she did. Leaving her "damsel in distress" period with the silents, she entered the thirties with a variety of roles. She was always perfect as the quiet dependable wife, friend and secretary with ripples of sensuality just below the surface. Robert Ames, who seemed to excel a bit too much as the "boozey boss", was an actor that Radio Pictures had a lot of faith in, but in real life he was a hopeless alcoholic who died the same year (1931) of the D.T.s.Recommended.

This pre-code film is not quite as daring as other precode Hollywood movies, but it holds up very well today and is quite enjoyable.Mary Astor plays a receptionsit at a paper mill company. She has her eye on Robert Ames, a young salesman with the company. When the boss is forced to retire, Mary Astor pushes for Robert Ames to take the job, and when he does, Mary is promoted to being his secretary. She is secretly in love with him, only he never seems to notice. As he rises in the company Mary Astor is constantly by his side, giving good business advice as well as advice in his personal life. When Ames marries someone else, Astor is so upset he quits, and the company begins to fall apart.Mary Astor, I feel, has never quite gotten her due in film history. She is a wonderful actress, and watching her in a film role, you are assured you will get a natural performance that will hold up as well as if it had been shot yesterday.Robert Ames, a former stage actor, is quite good in the role. Ames died shortly after this film. His death was thought at first to have been caused by foul play, but it was determined he had died from too much drinking.