MovieChat Forums > The Prizefighter and the Lady (1933) Discussion > Surprisingly

Surprisingly

posted 13 years ago by iferleigh
3 replies | jump to latest

I ended up sympathizing more with Willie Ryan.

Max Baer's character had his charms, but once he started tom catting and outright lying to his wife, that was it for me. To me, it seemed Willie Ryan never treated Belle badly and only ever did things for her...while, of course, Morgan was doing his own thing and all.

Kinda felt bad for Willie--which surprised me because in my head I expected him to be a typical gangster and expected he would be darker and meaner--but, of course, since this is a movie on love and Max Baer's character was the lead...of course he would end up with Myrna Loy.

Poor Willie though. He obviously did love Belle and worshiped her, leaving her portraits/photos around his office even when she'd long left him and married a pugilist.

Otto Kruger, right? I'd only seen him in Another Thin Man movies with Myrna Loy and William Powell...and I thought he was okay but I liked his Willie Ryan. Sweet gangster...but of course, only in the movies.

[–] nastypuppy 12 years ago

the willie ryan guy was just a sugar daddy type to me. i know he was a so called gangster but he seemed soft, not dangerous + exciting like a james cagney or humphrey bogart type of gangster. u know us girls like the bad boys. belle would naturally be attracted to the sexy, young + strong steve. plus he was an athlete, not a gangster. otto kruger just did not make a credible gangster. he seemed too desperate. belle was not a typical "dame" type either. liked this movie. max baer was really handsome + i can see where "jethro" got those hunky good looks! myrna loy + max made a really hot couple on screen. on the level of brad pitt + angelina jolie.

[–] HoferPM-1 12 years ago

I've always like Otto Kruger in any movie, but if you dangled this Max Baer in my path I would grab him and never let him go. Baer was amazing in this film. A boxer who could sing and dance.........he was amazing ! Loved this movie and am going to buy it if I can. I also love boxing ! Another thing, when I lived in Manhattan a long long time ago, I would see Jack Dempsey sitting in the window at a table in his restaurant named "Jack Dempsey's" !!!!!!!

[–] mdonln 8 years ago

iferleigh says > Poor Willie though. He obviously did love Belle and worshiped her, leaving her portraits/photos around his office even when she'd long left him and married a pugilist.

Poor Willie? The guy was ready to murder his rival so he could hold on to her even though all she was to him was another possession; something to boost his image. I don't care if he thought he was in love with her, what mattered, and what he figured out later, is that she was not in love with him.

The fact Willie stepped aside in favor of Steve does not prove his love for Belle. He did it for purely selfish reasons. He could have held on to her but he knew she was still in love with Steve. He could have bumped Steve off; eliminate him from the picture, but he had enough sense to know he was linked to him through Belle. If any harm befell Steve, Willie would naturally be suspect number one. All he could do was let her go; it was self-preservation. That's what all gangsters do; they look out for themselves.

Woman, man! That's the way it should be Tarzan. [Tarzan and his mate]