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7.9/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 7.9/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. Dangerous Females remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
Is this worth watching today? Honestly, yeah, if you have twenty minutes and want to see what high-energy panic looked like in 1929. You'll probably love it if you're a fan of old-school slapstick or if you just like seeing Marie Dressler make weird faces at the camera. If you hate loud, screechy dialogue and people being hit with brooms, stay far away from this one. It's a very noisy movie.
It starts out so simple. Two roommates are just hanging out in their apartment. The wallpaper in their place is insanely busy, by the way. It kept distracting me from what they were saying because there are so many floral patterns happening at once.
Then they turn on the radio. The announcer has this incredibly deep, serious voice that sounds like he's announcing the end of the world. He tells everyone that a dangerous murderer is loose in the neighborhood. You can almost see the gears turning in their heads as they start to lose it.
Marie Dressler is the real reason to watch this. She has this way of looking terrified that is also somehow hilarious. She doesn't just act with her voice; she acts with her whole chin and her eyebrows. It’s the kind of physical stuff you see in His Wooden Wedding, where everything is just a little bit bigger than life.
Polly Moran is the perfect partner for her. She’s like a caffeinated bird, fluttering around and making everything worse. They have this rhythm where one screams and then the other one screams louder. It’s exhausting but in a good way.
The scene where they listen to the description of the killer is my favorite part. The announcer says the guy has a scar, and Marie immediately looks at Polly like she might be the killer. They’ve lived together for years, but suddenly everyone is a suspect. It’s such a human moment of pure, dumb panic.
I noticed a small detail that made me laugh. There’s a lamp on the side table that looks like it’s held together by tape. Every time they run past it, the lamp wobbles like it’s about to give up on life. It adds to the feeling that the whole production was just a bit chaotic.
The way they barricade the door is ridiculous. They pile up chairs and tables like they’re expecting a whole army to break in. It reminded me a bit of the frantic energy in Naughty, where the characters just react first and think much later.
One reaction shot of Marie looking at a window lingers for about five seconds too long. It starts to feel like she forgot her next line, or maybe the director just really liked her expression. It’s one of those awkward silences that makes you realize how new sound technology was back then.
I won't spoil who actually shows up at the door, but the misunderstanding is exactly what you expect. It's that classic trope where someone is just trying to be helpful and gets hit with a household object. It’s much more grounded than something like Salamander, which is way more out there. This is just domestic chaos.
The lighting in the apartment is weirdly bright. You’d think for a movie about a killer in the dark, they would use some shadows. But no, it’s lit like a grocery store. It makes the 'danger' feel less real, which I think helps the comedy. If it was actually spooky, the jokes might feel mean.
I think the film is more about the faces then the plot. If you closed your eyes, it would just be two women yelling. But when you see Polly Moran’s eyes bugging out, it works. She has this energy that reminds me of the characters in Beaches and Peaches—just constantly on the edge of a breakdown.
There is a moment where they try to hide under a rug. It doesn't work. Obviously. But the way they struggle to fit under it is pure gold. It’s the kind of simple physical bit that modern movies think they’re too cool for.
The audio quality on my copy was a bit scratchy. Sometimes the sound of them moving around is louder than their actual talking. You can hear the floorboards creaking under them. It makes it feel like you're watching a play from the front row.
I wonder if they actually liked each other in real life. They have this chemistry where they can insult each other without it feeling hateful. It’s like watching two sisters who have been fighting for fifty years and finally found something to agree on: being scared.
It’s definitely better than Oh Teacher if you want to see how comedy transitioned into the sound era. Some of the timing is a bit off, but the effort is 100% there. They are working so hard to make you laugh.
The ending comes fast. It doesn't really have a big climax, it just sort of stops. It feels like they ran out of film or maybe they just got tired of screaming. I didn't mind, though. Eighteen minutes is the perfect length for this kind of thing.
If it was an hour long, I’d probably have a headache. But as a short, it’s a nice little time capsule. It’s messy and the plot is thin, but Marie Dressler is a force of nature. I’d watch her do anything, even if it’s just locking a door over and over again.
Anyway, give it a look if you find it. It's much more fun than Fog Bound, even if it’s not as 'atmospheric.' It’s just two funny women being dangerous females in the least dangerous way possible. I’m glad I watched it, even if my ears are still ringing a little bit.
IMDb 5.8
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