Skyscraper Souls: Greed, Concrete, and Way Too Much Drama

Is it worth your time?

Honestly, if you like watching people ruin each other’s lives for a bit of real estate, you’ll probably have a blast. It’s got that specific 1930s cynicism that feels surprisingly modern. If you need your heroes to be, you know, actually likable, you are going to be miserable for the entire runtime. 🏢

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Skyscraper Souls (1932) through its definitive frames.

Warren William is at his absolute best here. He’s essentially playing a guy whose personality is just greed. He looks at people like they’re chess pieces, and he’s constantly knocking them over.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Skyscraper Souls (1932) through its definitive frames.

The whole thing takes place in this massive building, and it really does feel like a character in its own right. The camera moves through those floors with a kind of restless energy. Sometimes it feels like the movie is trying to capture the sheer scale of the city, not unlike the vibe you get in People on Sunday, though this is way more dramatic and less about just hanging out.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Skyscraper Souls (1932) through its definitive frames.

The small stuff

There’s a weird amount of detail in the background extras. Some of them look like they have absolutely no idea where they are supposed to be standing. I kept getting distracted by a guy in the background of the lobby scene who just keeps looking at his watch.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Skyscraper Souls (1932) through its definitive frames.

Maureen O'Sullivan is in this, too. She’s fine, but the movie is so focused on the power plays that she feels a bit sidelined. It’s a very male-heavy, cutthroat environment. Everyone is sweating through their suits.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Skyscraper Souls (1932) through its definitive frames.

Boris Karloff shows up for a bit. It’s always fun to see him in something that isn’t a monster movie, even if he’s doing his usual thing. He brings a nice bit of grit to the proceedings.

A few random thoughts

• The dialogue is sharp, maybe too sharp. Nobody in real life talks this quickly while holding a martini.
• The lighting in the office scenes is honestly kind of moody. It makes the whole building feel like a trap.
• I swear the same elevator operator appears in every single scene that takes place in a hallway. Poor guy.

It’s not perfect. The pacing hits a wall about an hour in. It feels like they had all these grand ideas about the building’s soul, but then they just went back to having people yell at each other in mahogany-paneled rooms. It’s still a wild ride, though. Far more interesting than the usual stuff from that era.

It’s definitely not as weirdly experimental as something like Der Sprung ins Dunkle, but it works. It’s a solid, nasty little piece of work. Just don’t expect a happy ending. Or a happy middle. Or any happiness at all really. 🍸