Movie of the Week: Polly of the Circus (1932)

This week, Clark Gable is a preacher in love with sassy acrobat Marion Davies in Polly of the Circus (1932).

Clark is Father John Hartley, a small town minister living a peaceful life. The circus comes to town, with its star attraction: trapeze artist Polly Fisher (Davies). She is enraged when her risqué posters are covered up and confronts Hartley, who admits that her posters aren’t appropriate in the town. The crowd mocks her at her next performance, causing her to fall. She recuperates at Hartley’s house at his insistence since he feels guilty. Soon they fall in love. But his parish and bishop uncle (C. Aubrey Smith) don’t support him marrying a circus girl. When the church turns its back on him, the newlyweds struggle as he refuses to let her return to the circus and she doesn’t understand his devotion to the church.

William Randolph Hearst, producer of the film and Marion Davies’ paramour, insisted that Clark be put in this role. He is completely and utterly wasted in it, and it feels so nonsensical for MGM to put their newest star, who shot to popularity by playing brutes and gangsters, in a film where he’s a soft-spoken minister.

He’s pretty much left to be the butt of Marion’s jokes as she mocks his religious convictions.

Clark and Marion don’t have great chemistry either. They still didn’t when re-paired years later in the unremarkable Cain and Mabel (1936).

The script is sappy and seems old fashioned even for 1932—makes sense when you find out the original play first premiered in 1907! It’s supposed to be a struggle for her to give up being an acrobat to be with him, and he’s supposed to be willing to throw away his whole life for her. Of course in the end she’s the one that makes sacrifices. I guess we’re supposed to believe that despite their difference she’ll be perfectly happy as a small town minister’s wife?