Vanity Street: A Grimy Little Slice of Old New York

Is it worth your time?

If you have a soft spot for 1930s crime melodramas where everyone talks like they’ve got a mouthful of gravel and the lighting is perpetually moody, then yeah, give this a spin. If you need your pacing tight and your logic bulletproof, stay away. This isn't People on Sunday, where you’re soaking in atmosphere; it’s a plot-heavy slog that occasionally forgets its own rules.

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

Vanity Street is the kind of movie that feels like it was filmed in a basement and aired on a rainy Tuesday. It’s got that weird, frantic energy where characters jump from “I love you” to “you’re under arrest” in the span of five minutes.

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

The Good, The Bad, and The Weird

The detective lead is basically a walking cliché, but he wears the hat well. There’s a scene early on where he’s wandering around the Follies stage, and the contrast between the shiny costumes and the dingy backstage corridors is actually pretty great. It feels authentic, or at least as authentic as a 1930s soundstage can get.

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

But man, the dialogue. Sometimes it hits, and other times it’s just people shouting exposition at each other while leaning against a brick wall. There’s one point where the main character is trying to prove his girl’s innocence, and he just stares at a wall for what feels like a solid minute. It’s awkward, but I kind of liked it? It felt like the actor was just as confused about the plot as I was.

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

• The lighting in the police station is unnecessarily dramatic.
• Someone is always smoking, even when they’re clearly not supposed to be.
• The "Follies" dance number goes on for about three minutes too long.
• The way the murder is 'solved' is a massive stretch, even by 30s standards.

Watching this reminded me a bit of the frantic energy in The Girl in the Checkered Coat, though with way less focus. It’s not trying to be a masterpiece, and that’s its saving grace. It’s just trying to get the story told before the reel runs out. 🚬

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

Is the lead actress great? Sure, she’s fine. She does the 'damsel in distress' thing, then the 'hardened showgirl' thing, then the 'falsely accused saint' thing. It’s a lot of hats to wear, and she keeps them all mostly straight. I kept waiting for her to break character, but she stayed in it, which is more than I can say for some of the background extras who clearly just wanted to go home.

If you’re a fan of old black-and-white crime stuff, you’ll find enough here to keep you happy. Just don't think about the plot holes too hard, or the whole thing might just crumble like a stale cookie.