The Great Man's Lady (1942)

A 100 year old woman (Barbara Stanwyck) reflects on her life from her beginnings as a young Philadelphia socialite to pioneer woman to boarding house owner to gambling fancy woman. But mostly it's about her relationship with a beloved and respected statesman (Joel McCrea), who we find out via her history wasn't always so well intentioned. It's a juicy, wonderful part for Stanwyck (her aging make up is superb!) and she really sinks her teeth into it. But the film itself is lacking. Considering how overlong most films are, it seems odd to complain about a film being too short but at 90 minutes, it seems large blocks of the story are left out. The story itself has the making of an Edna Ferber like epic (or at least a television mini series) but the movie seems like highlights from a longer, more complete film. Thus, the underrated Brian Donlevy as the lovestruck gambler who hangs around waiting for Stanwyck to see the light gets the short end of the stick. One wants to see more of the complexities of his and Stanwyck's relationship. The director, William Wellman, gets unaccountably treacly toward the end. The film's last 15 minutes are pretty hard to digest. Worth seeing for Stanwyck's work and Wellman completists. With K.T. Stevens, Lloyd Corrigan, Mary Treen and Charles Lane.