Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		5.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

Libeled Lady Blu-ray Movie Review

Stop the presses!

Reviewed by Randy Miller III March 8, 2021

A light screwball comedy with charisma to spare, Jack Conway's Libeled Lady features a talented cast that makes the most of a somewhat tangled story. It was nominated for Best Picture during a stacked year that included A Tale of Two Cities, Dodsworth, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, San Francisco, and others... all of which would lose to The Great Ziegfeld, which also co-starred William Powell and Myrna Loy. (The popular duo also joined forces in yet another 1936 film, After the Thin Man.) They're as charming as ever here but are only half of the key players in Libeled Lady, which reminds us that hell hath no fury like a woman falsely accused of homewrecking by a major metropolitan newspaper.

The $5,000,000 libel suit issued by wealthy Connie Allenbury (Myrna Loy) is in direct response to a poorly-researched headline by the New York Evening Star that paints her as the sole cause of a high-profile marriage breakup. Although just 50 copies of that hastily recalled morning edition made it into the hands of customers, that's more than enough to get managing editor Warren Haggerty (Spencer Tracy) in hot water with his boss, Hollis Bane (Charley Grapewin). The bright side is that it's also allowed him to put his own wedding on hold again, much to the dismay of fiancée Gladys Benton (Jean Harlow) -- Warren seems more concerned with saving his own skin than putting a tux on. Ultimately, his snafu solution involves the help of former reporter Bill Chandler (William Powell), who's now part of a cockamamie plan that involves a fake marriage and adultery setup that'll leave Connie with no choice but to dismiss her suit.

Warren's plan starts as a sitcom-grade setup with misunderstandings and other twists along the way, gradually spiraling deeper into absurdity as everything falls apart. This path eventually won me over in the end, but more due to Libeled Lady's terrific cast than "guess what happens next?". Bill and Connie play perfectly off one another because of course they do, even if William Powell and Myrna Loy's handful of shared scenes seem a little off because he doesn't get black-out drunk once. When a secondary romance develops between Bill and his new pretend wife Gladys (which surprisingly ruffles Warren's feathers, despite his perpetually cold feet) -- that's when Libeled Lady gets a little more interesting, but thing eventually return to abnormal soon enough. It's a nice little twist on an expected formula that still ends up working, and its satisfying conclusion has the good sense to give almost everyone their just desserts. But yes, it's the cast and their cumulative charisma that gives the film its immediate and lasting appeal; that, and a variety of picturesque locations including a lavish ocean liner, the luxurious home of Connie's father J. B. (Walter Connolly), a cozy little retreat in the middle of a lake, and an evening charity benefit that looks like an awful lot of fun.

Behind-the-scenes drama -- which included the fact that William Powell and Jean Harlow were an off-screen couple long before and after the film's casting and production (until her sudden death in 1937), and that Spencer Tracy and Myrna Loy may have had an affair during filming -- could have contributed to some of the film's narrative turbulence, which does end up working... but just barely. Ultimately, Libeled Lady still plays very well almost despite all those twists and turns and, as a whole, has aged a little better than expected during the past 80+ years. Warner Archive's recent Blu-ray edition, as expected, puts their usual stamp on the film's A/V presentation with a fantastic 4K-sourced 1080p transfer and a nice little collection of DVD-era supplements. Die-hard fans will absolutely eat this one up.

Libeled Lady Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Another day, another brilliant five-star restoration from Warner Archive. This new 1080p transfer is reportedly taken from a recent 4K scan and, although the source material(s) were not identified, it's a very stable and consistent-looking image from start to finish. The best-case scenarios look as close to an original negative -- or at least an interpositive -- as you're likely to get, with a full range of silvery grays and a fantastic amount of image detail loaded with natural grain from its nitrate elements. Even the slightly less impressive stretches don't look to be one or two generations away from original and, as a whole, it's just a wonderfully resolved and film-like image with no signs of excessive digital noise reduction, edge enhancement, compression artifacts, or even dirt and debris -- in short, it's more solid work from WB's most reliable arm for purist-grade presentation quality. Although I have not personally seen Warner Archive's own 2017 DVD, it wouldn't surprise me if this transfer was a head-and-shoulders improvement as it offers a clear visual upgrade from WB's standard-def disc released back in 2005. But really, these screenshots speak for themselves.

As usual, Warner Archive has uploaded a few YouTube videos showing off the new transfer, including the three and a half-minute opening sequence, Gladys Benton's wedding blues, and the lively theatrical trailer.

Libeled Lady Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Although I'm likewise unsure about the source material used for Warner Archive's DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio mix, this split mono track is at least serviceable with what appear to be a few baked-in problems. A somewhat gauzy distortion is combined with occasional background hiss that hinders a few conversations, although most of Libeled Lady's dialogue sounds perfectly clean and clear. Likewise, the original score by William Axt enjoys a solid dynamic range with only a few instances of strain on the high end, while background effects are balanced nicely. There's probably very little room for improvement on what is essentially an 80+ year-old recording and, for the most part, it's a rock-solid effort.

Optional English (SDH) subtitles are included during the main feature, but sadly not the extras.

Libeled Lady Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This Blu-ray ships in a standard keepcase with original one-sheet poster art and a few period-specific bonus features.

• Classic MGM Shorts

• Keystone Hotel (14:53) - A 1935 live-action short remastered in 1080p with lossless audio, Keystone Hotel was directed by Ralph Staub and stars Ford Sterling, Ben Turpin, and Chester Conklin.
• New Shoes (10:23) - Conceived and directed by Sammy Lee, this playful 1936 short involves a love affair between singing shoes. It scores a solid 7.5 on the Quentin Tarantino Foot Fetish Scale™.
• Little Cheeser (9:22) - An uncredited Rudolf Ising directs this 1936 Happy Harmonies short in which a cute little mouse endures a heated debate between both sides of his cute little moral compass.

• Leo Is On The Air (13:30) - A segment from MGM's long-running radio series promoting Libeled Lady.

• Theatrical Trailer (2:47) - This lively vintage promotional piece can also be seen here.

Libeled Lady Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Jack Conway's Libeled Lady is a deliriously twisting screwball comedy that, although ultimately enjoyable on its own terms, relies more on the absurd strength of its cast rather than a bulletproof narrative. For that reason, any and all fans of its key players -- Jean Harlow, William Powell, Myrna Loy, and Spencer Tracy -- are encouraged to check this one out if they haven't already. Warner Archive's Blu-ray makes the decision even easier, thanks to its terrific A/V presentation and decent collection of extras. Recommended to die-hard fans and newcomers too!