''Hot Saturday'' is a 1932 American

pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship guidelines, popularly known ...

" programmer" drama film directed by William A. Seiter and starring

Cary Grant Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. He was known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He was one o ...

Nancy Carroll Nancy Carroll (born Ann Veronica Lahiff; November 19, 1903 – August 6, 1965) was an American actress. She started her career in Broadway musicals and then became an actress in sound films and was in many films from 1927 to 1938. She was t ...

, and Randolph Scott. This was Grant's first role as a leading man. Based on the novel ''Hot Saturday'' by Harvey Fergusson, the film is about a pretty, virtuous small-town bank clerk who becomes the victim of a vicious rumor.

Plot

A pretty young bank clerk, Ruth Brock, attracts the young men in the small town of Marysville. Rich playboy Romer Sheffield is no exception, even though he has Camille staying openly at his mansion, scandalizing the locals. Jealous, Camille soon leaves. Ruth, however, is all business whenever Romer tries to become better acquainted with her at the bank. She agrees to go on a date on Saturday with fellow employee Conny Billup. Romer invites Conny and his crowd to party at his estate, offering free food and drink, just so he can spend some time with Ruth. They stay long enough for Romer to take Ruth on a long walk and have a heartfelt conversation. The gang then heads to a lakeshore dance hall. Conny gets Ruth alone on a nighttime boat ride, but she jumps ashore to avoid his unwanted advances. Out of spite, he leaves her behind. She has to walk to Romer's estate. Conny eventually finds her there, but she does not want to see him, and Romer makes him drive away without her. Romer sends Ruth home in his chauffeured car; she is seen arriving home early in the morning by Eva Randolph, the daughter of an important bank executive. Inside, Ruth is pleasantly surprised to find childhood friend and geologist Bill Fadden in the kitchen. He has returned to do some surveying after seven years away. Bill makes it clear he is in love with her. When Eva questions Conny about what happened the night before, he lies. The lies quickly spread, and soon the local gossips have distorted the story so much that everybody thinks that Ruth and Romer are having a brazen affair. As a result, Eva's father fires Ruth. After quarreling with her mother, Ruth flees to Bill's campsite. Caught in a rainstorm, she faints just outside Bill's shelter. Bill finds her and brings her inside. When he is unable to awaken her, he removes her wet clothes to keep her warm. When she does regain consciousness, they become engaged, though she does not tell him about the ugly rumors. However, Conny maliciously has Eva invite Romer to the dance hall where Ruth and Bill are. Once Romer grasps the situation, he graciously tries to bow out, but Bill hears the vicious gossip and breaks off the engagement. By the next morning, Bill has reconsidered, but she informs him that while the stories were not true the night before, they are now in the morning. She spent the night with Romer. Romer picks her up and tells her they will get married in New York.

Cast

as Romer Sheffield *

as Ruth Brock * Randolph Scott as Bill Fadden *

Edward Woods Edward Woods (July 5, 1903 – October 8, 1989) was an American actor. He is probably best known for his extensive role as Matt Doyle in ''The Public Enemy'' opposite James Cagney. Life and career Woods' parents were Mary Clark and Will ...

as Conny Billop *

Lilian Bond Lilian Bond (January 18, 1908 – January 25, 1991) was an English-American actress based in the United States. Life and career Bond was born in London and made her first professional stage appearance at the age of 14 in the pantomime ''Dic ...

as Eva Randolph * William Collier, Sr. as Mr. Brock, Ruth's father *

Jane Darwell Jane Darwell (born Patti Woodard; October 15, 1879 – August 13, 1967) was an American actress of stage, film, and television. With appearances in more than 100 major movies spanning half a century, Darwell is perhaps best remembered for her p ...

as Mrs. Brock * Stanley Smith as Joe *

Rita La Roy Rita La Roy (born Ina La Roi Stuart; October 2, 1901 – February 18, 1993) was an American actress and dancer, beginning her career in 1929, and having her last significant role in 1940. Career La Roy appeared in over 50 films, the best k ...

as Camille * Rose Coghlan as Annie Brock, Ruth's younger sister *

Oscar Apfel Oscar C. Apfel (January 17, 1878 – March 21, 1938) was an American film actor, director, screenwriter and producer. He appeared in more than 160 films between 1913 and 1939, and also directed 94 films between 1911 and 1927. Biography Apf ...

as Mr. Randolph *

Jessie Arnold Jessie Arnold (December 3, 1884 – May 5, 1955) was an American character and film actress. She was a character actress who appeared in more than 150 films from silent shorts to the early 1950s. She starred in the 1916 film ''Cross Purposes'' dir ...

as Aunt Minnie *

Grady Sutton Grady Harwell Sutton (April 5, 1906 – September 17, 1995) was an American film and television character actor from the 1920s to the 1970s. He appeared in more than 180 films. Early years Born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Sutton was raised ...

as Archie, a bank teller

Reception

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' review stated that the film "describes the evolution of an idle bit of gossip in an average American community with considerable freshness and candor, and in the main manages to survive a meandering script and some uneventful writing" and praised Carroll's performance. Dennis Schwartz rated it B+, calling it an "agreeable dramedy".

Home media

''Hot Saturday'' was released on DVD as part of a three-disc, six-film set entitled ''Pre-Code Hollywood Collection'' on 7 April 2009.

References

External links