Fancy Baggage: A Charming, If A Bit Shaky, Early Loy Romp

For folks who dig those early talkie comedies, the kind where everyone's trying to pull a fast one, Fancy Baggage might be a nice little distraction. It's not gonna change your world, nope. But if you're into seeing Myrna Loy before she was "Myrna Loy" or just want something breezy and kinda silly, you might get a kick out of it. If you need big laughs or a super tight plot, maybe skip this one. 🤷‍♀️

The plot is simple enough: our main gal, Kay (Myrna Loy, looking really young here), needs to snag some important business papers back from a rival, Mr. Fosdick. So, what's her plan? Pretend to be his new secretary. Pretty standard stuff for a screwball setup, honestly.

Loy, even in these early roles, has this spark. She's got this way of looking at people, a little mischievous, a little knowing. You can tell she's already figuring out her screen presence.

The whole "undercover secretary" bit is where most of the gags come from. There are a few scenes where she's trying to be all efficient, but it's clear she's way out of her depth.

One moment, she's trying to file things, and it's just a mess. The papers go everywhere. You can almost feel the director saying, "Okay, more chaos!"

And Mr. Fosdick! He's played by George Fawcett. He's this blustery, easily flustered guy. He keeps falling for Kay's obvious ploys. You kinda feel bad for him, but also, like, come on man, pay attention!

There's this other character, a kind of love interest, played by Wallace MacDonald. He's fine, I guess. He mostly just looks handsome and confused by Kay's antics. Their chemistry isn't exactly sizzling, but it's there enough to push the plot along.

A specific scene that stuck with me: Kay is trying to sneak into Fosdick's private office after hours. She fumbles with the lock forever. It goes on a bit long, that scene, almost painfully so. But then she finally gets it, and the relief is palpable. It’s those little moments.

The dialogue, being an early talkie, sometimes feels a touch stilted. Like everyone's waiting for their cue. But then Loy will deliver a line with this perfect little smirk, and it snaps right into place.

The "important papers" themselves are almost a MacGuffin. We don't really care what they are, just that Kay needs to get them. It's all about the chase, the back-and-forth.

Some of the humor relies on mistaken identities, which can get a little convoluted. At one point, someone thinks Kay is someone else entirely, and it leads to a whole mini-plot that feels a bit tacked on. It's like they ran out of ideas for the main scheme.

The ending is pretty neat, though. Everything wraps up quite quickly. Maybe a little too quickly. You're left thinking, "Oh, that's it?" But hey, it's a light comedy. No need for a grand finale, I suppose.

It’s definitely a product of its time. The pacing is different than what we're used to now. There are these quiet stretches where characters just are on screen. Sometimes it works, sometimes you're just like, "Get on with it!"

If you're a big fan of Ramona or The Sorrows of Love, probably not your bag. This one's way lighter, a completely different vibe. More like a frothy dessert than a big meal.