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4.2/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 4.2/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. The Time, the Place and the Girl remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
You should only watch this if you have a real soft spot for those creaky early talkies from the late twenties. If you’re looking for a smooth movie night, stay away. This is for the people who like seeing how movies struggled to find their feet when sound first showed up.
It’s a musical comedy, technically. But the music feels like it was dropped in from another room. Jim Crane, played by Grant Withers, is a total jerk at the start. He’s a football star who thinks he’s the smartest guy in every room because he can throw a ball.
Then he gets to Wall Street. The movie does this funny thing where it tries to show he’s out of his depth. He’s wearing these heavy suits and looking confused. It’s actually kind of satisfying to see his ego get bruised a bit.
His boss is a piece of work. He realizes Jim can’t sell a sandwich to a starving man, but he can flirt. So he has Jim sell 'bad stock' to women. It’s 1929, so the movie treats these women like they’re just waiting to be tricked by a handsome face.
You can tell the actors are nervous about the microphones. They stand very still sometimes. It makes the 'musical' parts feel a bit stiff. Like they're afraid if they move too fast, the sound will disappear into the floorboards.
There is one scene where Jim is trying to be charming, and you can almost hear the gears turning in the script. It’s not as fluid as something like The Wheel which at least knew what it was doing visually. Here, everything feels a bit trapped in the office or the parlor.
Betty Compson shows up and she’s fine. She has to play the boss's wife who Jim accidentally tries to scam. The coincidence is a bit much. Like, of all the women in New York, he picks the one who could get him fired?
I kept thinking about how this was made right before the big stock market crash. There’s a weird energy to it. Everyone is obsessed with getting rich quick by selling paper that isn't worth anything. It feels more like a documentary of a bad idea than a comedy sometimes.
Grant Withers has this face that’s hard to like at first. He’s got that pouty look. But by the end, when he’s actually trying to be a decent human, you kind of root for him. Just a little bit.
The pacing is all over the place. One minute they’re singing, the next there’s a long, silent pause where someone is just looking at a desk. It’s not 'cinematic.' It’s just... there. It’s like watching a play where the actors are tired.
It’s definitely not as grand as Ramona. That had a different kind of heart. This is just a fast-talkin' city movie that doesn't always know when to shut up. Or when to start talking.
"He knows how to charm women, but he doesn't know a ticker tape from a necktie."
That line isn't in the movie, but it should be. That’s the whole plot. Jim is just a handsome dummy. The way the movie handles his 'deflation' is actually the best part. He really does look like a popped balloon by the middle of the second act.
I noticed a weird shadow in the background of the office scene. Probably a boom mic or a light. Nobody cared back then, I guess. They were just happy the voices were coming out of the speakers at the same time as the mouths moved.
The ending is very sudden. It just sort of stops. It’s like the film ran out or they decided everyone had heard enough singing. If you’re into the history of Warner Bros and the Vitaphone era, it’s a neat relic. Otherwise, it’s just a loud, slightly confusing mess of a comedy.
I wouldn't call it a 'must see' for anyone but the hardcore nerds. It’s clunky. But it has that specific 1929 smell to it. You can almost feel the dust on the costumes.
One more thing—the boss’s wife is way smarter than the boss. That’s the only part that felt real. She sees through the nonsense pretty quick, even if the script wants her to be a 'gullible female' for a while.
Anyway, it’s a short watch. If you find a copy that isn't too hissed out, give it a look just for the suits. The hats are pretty great too.
IMDb 7.1
1926
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