The Naughty Flirt (1930)

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

As with so many other early talking pictures, "The Naughty Flirt" is only interesting for its look at an up and coming star. In this case, that's Myrna Loy. She doesn't have the female lead, but the top supporting female role. Yet, of the more than dozen actors in this film, Loy is the only one movie fans would be able to recall in just 20 more years. Alice White has the lead as the wealthy socialite, Kay Elliott. Her character is quite flighty, which doesn't seem to enhance the comedy or romance in this film. It's a typical plot, and not much of a story. The film flopped with the critics and the Depression era audience of the day. All the rest of the roles are forgettable except for Loy's. In this film, she shows a side of acting that could be more serious and cunning. As one watches many films of the first few years of talkies, it seems apparent that the pre-code era (from 1928 to 1934) just happened also to be the flushing out time. That's when many silent era performers saw their careers take a nose dive while a smaller number not only survived but were catapulted into major film careers. Myrna Loy was in the latter category while everyone else in this film was in the first group. Alice White had just started in silent films in 1927. She was making five or more films a year, but by the mid-1930s, her roles dwindled and her film career ended in 1942.

Alice White plays a rich and shallow playgirl who is constantly getting in trouble because she's bored and hangs around with equally shallow friends. The film begins with the lot of them going to court over some disorderly conduct charges when she meets an ambitious young lawyer (Paul Page) who works for her father's firm. He's horrified at her behavior and is even more horrified when she appears ready to marry some young guy she hardly knows. So, wanting to do right by his boss, he abducts her and takes her to daddy. Although you'd think she'd hate Page for doing this, in the tradition of "Taming of the Shrew" she is smitten. The problem is that he isn't exactly excited by the idea of marrying this pretty and rich lady because she is such a ditsy mess. Eventually, when it looks as if she's winning him over, an evil suitor and his sister do everything they can to break up this budding romance.This is an enjoyable but easily forgettable film from Warner Brothers with decent but overdone acting. The story is amazingly simple and predictable, but despite all this, it's a decent film--mostly because it is so short and breezy that it's over before becoming tiresome. Not exactly a glowing review, but that's really about all I can say about this silly trifle of a film.By the way, Myrna Loy appears in a rather substantial part in one of her films before she became a star.

I just wanted to see this film because of Myrna Loy. I love Myrna Loy. But Myrna doesn't have much to do in this film. Most of the spotlight is on little, vivacious, cute Alice White. I became a fan of her. She's the ultimate flapper. She reminds you of a Clara Bow or Toby Wing. She's very natural- even though many say she didn't like talkies and feel uncomfortable. She didn't seem like it. This is a pre-code picture about a flirtatious woman which is played by Alice White who makes bet too see which guys she can hook, line, and sinker. But with one of the guys she ends up falling in love. Myrna Loy in this picture is coming into her own trademark acting in this film. Her aloof, snotty, sophisticated comedy/acting would be noticed and loved not along after this picture. If you can find it, you'll treasure it.

While not a particularly good film, "The Naughty Flirt" does have some enjoyable moments. Traces of director Cline's comedy short background can be found in several scenes--most of the comedy being visual. Myrna Loy is good as the scheming one, with her best movie years still ahead. Alice White does well in a role more suited to her talents. The studio tried to turn her into this big song and dance star with the advent of talkies but she was much more comfortable in comic roles, as she displays in this movie and later ones. This was her last First-National film and by this time nobody cared. She did make a reasonably successful comeback a few years later, in comedy roles, which she should have been given from the start. The supporting players also do well but the film, as a whole, does not. The cast tries hard but is overcome by weak material. Still, it's worth a peek.