Absolutely Fantastic

While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

I'm certainly not writing this review to praise Clark Gable. Loud,adamant,disrespectful to his director, William Wellman,and usually late on the set for this flick, Gable suffered from being overly confident about his slightly-above-average acting ability. His spoiled temperament and tardiness abruptly came to an end one day when Bill Wellman reprimanded him for his egregious disposition, and frankly told him that if he arrived late again on the set the next day, he would be canned immediately. Gable clammed up. He arrived on the set the next day and every day thereafter until the film was finally completed. This incident was verified on a PBS special.

Clark Gable meets Loretta Young in this 1930s adaptation of Jack London's The Call of the Wild, which takes place in Alaskan territory. I've never read the book, but I can only imagine that this was probably not very faithful to the novel, due to its emphasis of comic relief by supporting actor Jack Oakie. This is the movie that changed Clark and Loretta's life, as they fell in love during the making of this film, and she went away in private to have his baby - a fact she never told the public. While that may be neither here nor there, in reviewing this film, it's pretty evident that something was going on, by their quiet scenes together, which are very intimate and deep, considering this is a 1930s film. The plot revolves around a map that is needed to find a gold mine. Her husband, yes her husband, was the owner of the map, but Clark and Jack go after the gold mine, with Jack's memory and a rough sketch of it to use. They find Loretta alone, after her husband has been lost in the wilderness looking for help. Reginald Owen is very good and memorable as a nemesis in trying to find the gold mine too, when he learns of it. The production values and performances are solid and deliver the goods, but its corny comic relief mars the film's attempt to hit the mark with viewers, especially with its abrupt ending. I thought the novel was mainly about the dog, but, while the dog, who Clark is attached to, does have some screen time, the film doesn't feel like a dog film. The producers were probably thinking that would alienate some viewers, so they centered on pairing attractive leads Clark and Loretta together and Jack Oakie's one-liners. While I liked the film on the whole for Loretta's loveliness, memorable love scenes between her and Clark, and Reginald Owen's credible contribution to the film, I still feel it misses the mark for a completely fulfilling movie experience.

This is pretty good, as adaptations go. The author of the story, Jack London, was quite a guy and came up with some gripping adventure stories. In life, he was an oyster pirate in Oakland, a prospector in the Yukon, a correspondent in the Far East, a member of the artist's colony in Carmel, and finally an isolated heroin addict in a house near Napa, dying alone at forty.I haven't read the story since high school but, as a movie, it stands on its own. Clark Gable is the prospector and gambler who fits very well into the north woods. His comic sidekick in Jack Oakie. The dog he wins is Buck, a St. Bernard, who is enormously willful and strong, and is torn between allegiance to his master and "the call of the wild," meaning that out there in the forest is a pack of wolves and one of them is in estrus. Gable has the same problem. He and Oakie manage to rescue a lost damsel, Loretta Young, looking petite and pretty and plump lipped. But she's married and, uh, well, she and Gable obey the call of the wild.They did in real life too. Loretta Young was whisked out of town to bear a daughter. A few years ago, long after the two miscreants had disappeared down the memory hole of everyone but withering old movie buffs, a photo of her appeared in the press. Unfortunately for her, she looked much more like Gable than Young, except no visible mustache. She passed away only a few weeks ago, or I wouldn't have written this.William Wellman directed with his usual dash. It's not long, it's packed with action, and if you pay attention it raises some interesting moral and philosophical questions. Are we really that different from the beasts? How much slippage should we expect to see between nature and culture?

Gable has it all for a short while: easy pickings gold nuggets, a gorgeous girlfriend he found in the wilderness, a half-wild soul mate lead dog and a bashful wisecracking partner. But, his grasp on all of these is slippery, as the plot develops. I don't fault Hollywood for departing so flagrantly from London's story, which too was just a yarn. I found this version much more entertaining and profound, despite the stereotypical boss-sidekick relationship between Gable and Jack Oakie.Gable seems to represent sort of an ideal adventurous entrepreneur: a riverboat gambler at heart, who is willing to take big risks and to work for his fortune when necessary, but who tries to grab all he can and beat out the competition. The chief villain is a stereotypical pretentious cutthroat tycoon: the worst kind of capitalist. In contrast, Gable recognizes certain limits in gaining his fortune and honors his commitments to his partners, be they human or animal. Loretta's creed is yet more tempered: You will get what you want only if you deserve it. See the movie to find out how these various creeds interact to determine the outcome. This is perhaps Gable's most enjoyable role, along with those in "Mutiny on the Bounty" and "Boom Town". As in most of his best roles, Gable comes across as rakish: part hero, part scoundrel, but never dull. Like Gable, Loretta is at her physical peak at this time, making for a very romantic-looking couple.