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7/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 7/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. Call Her Savage remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
If you like movies where the main character is a total wreck, you'll probably dig this. But if you need your protagonists to be likable or make sensible choices, stay far away. This isn't a tidy story about growth; it's a tornado in a silk dress.
Clara Bow is just wild here. She plays Nasa Springer, and honestly, I don't think she has a single quiet moment. She's constantly brawling, yelling, or laughing at someone she shouldn't be. It makes The Whirlwind of Youth look like a tea party.
The pacing is honestly a disaster. One minute she’s throwing a glass in a fancy club, and the next she’s in a completely different city dealing with something entirely new. There’s no time to breathe, which is kind of the point, I guess.
There's a part in the middle where she loses everything and ends up in the slums, and the transition is just… abrupt. It’s like the movie got bored of being a high-society drama and decided to become a grit-and-grime tragedy overnight. It works, but it's weird.
You can tell the studio was trying to keep up with her energy. They barely manage. The camera lingers on her face during a breakdown, and you can see she’s genuinely exhausted. It’s a million miles away from the polished stuff you see in The Primitive Lover.
Is it a masterpiece? Probably not. Is it a fascinating train wreck? Absolutely. You can feel the desperation in the production, like they knew this was the end of an era. It feels raw in a way most movies from 1932 just aren't.
Also, I spent way too long staring at the background extras in the bar scene. Half of them are just pretending to talk to each other while staring directly at the camera. It’s impossible not to notice once you see it. 🙄