How short is too short to be a great movie? In the 1930s, Hollywood had the formula of telling a complete story in just over an hour perfected to an art. Films from the early 1930s were very fast-paced because the technology of the early talking films didn’t allow for much movement of the camera. Even as cameras began to move, 1930s movies included little footage outside of the soundstage, little background music, and very little wasted time. That allowed them to pack a lot into a short runtime, which was useful with double or triple features.
“Three Loves Has Nancy” from 1938 is just such a film. It’s only an hour and ten minutes long, but it doesn’t seem that short. It technically is a romantic comedy, but it’s a lot more than just funny. This delightful story centers on a charming character with a lot of meaningful attributes.
This movie stars Janet Gaynor, Robert Cummings, and Franchot Tone in a love triangle, on which the plot primarily focuses. Actually, it’s a love square, as indicated by the title, since Nancy has three loves, but her third suitor remains unseen for most of the film. This was Miss Gaynor’s second-to-last film before she retired in 1939 to marry famous costumer Adrian. This was a rare MGM outing for the first Oscar-winning actress, since she usually worked for 20th Century Fox. The movie was directed by MGM regular Richard Thorpe.
The Story
Malcolm Niles (Montgomery) is a bestselling author and New York playboy. When his latest sweetheart, actress Vivian Herford (Claire Dodd), brings her obnoxious mother (Cora Witherspoon) along to a dinner date, Mal realizes she is trying to trap him into marriage. He asks his drunken publisher and best friend, Bob Hanson (Tone), who lives next door, to help him. Bob sets up a book signing tour, and Malcolm escapes to a rural part of the United States.In Birch Valley, a small Southern town, Mal meets a strong-minded young lady named Nancy Briggs (Gaynor), who attends his book signing with her mother (Emma Dunn). It’s Nancy’s wedding day, but her fiancé, George, doesn’t arrive from New York for the ceremony. With her grandfather’s (Charley Grapewin) blessing, she heads to the Big Apple in search of her childhood sweetheart. Meanwhile, Bob wires Mal that it’s safe for him to come home, since Vivian has left town. Nancy and Mal end up on the same train, and the spunky young woman unintentionally pesters the writer to no end, eventually making him miss the train at one of its stops.
All About Nancy
This movie is all about Nancy Briggs. I’m not surprised Malcolm Niles based the central character in a serial on his guest from Birch Valley. I can easily imagine an ongoing film series based on this character, as charmingly played by Janet Gaynor. She is one of the most well-rounded and possibility-filled characters I’ve seen in a movie in a while. Nancy has the usual attributes I love in roles played by Miss Gaynor, who is best known for “A Star is Born,” such as her winning smile, pixie-like voice, sincere delivery of dialogue, and perky disposition. In addition, she brings some unique qualities to this performance. For instance, she affects a very convincing Southern accent as Nancy, the homespun girl from an unnamed Southern state, although the actress was born in Philadelphia.
Nancy brings the simple morality of the country to the big city when she visits New York. She quickly makes up her mind that she doesn’t like cosmopolitan life. People are so unfriendly! Her neighborly attitude sometimes gets her into trouble, since she often smiles at strange men, who mistake her friendliness for flirting. She is an amazing cook, having been trained in the domestic arts, which the glamour girls of New York society don’t deem important. She’s so thoroughly accomplished in her kitchen talents that she won’t even buy butter. She churns it herself! She also knows how to balance a budget economically, so she quickly discovers that Malcolm’s butler, William (Reginald Owen), has been cheating him on grocery expenses. Mal is at first reluctant to be charmed by her delicious food, but Bob immediately appreciates her skills and her gracious hospitality so much that he decides to eat all his meals at home!
Nancy brings a strong dose of much-needed morality into the lives of the two New York bachelors. Before she eats a meal, she always bows her head to say grace. Seeing her do this makes Mal remember remorsefully that he has neglected the practice himself for years. At one point, she frankly confesses to Mal that she skipped saying grace for a whole day upon coming to New York! We later see her kneeling beside her bed, saying her evening prayers. She never preaches to the men or makes any religious statements, but the simple act of saying grace speaks volumes.
A Positive Influence
Nancy has a very positive influence on Mal and Bob. Whether they realize it or not, it’s her simple Christian morality as much as her fluffy pancakes which reforms them. The transformation is especially rapid in Bob. At the beginning of the film, he is a rich playboy who has a successful business but who has had so much money his whole life that he has no work ethic. Unlike Mal, who casually romances lots of girls, Bob is bitterly uninterested in romance and women in general. Instead of courting, he prefers to spend his time drinking. In fact, his drunkenness in most of the early scenes makes it clear that he’s an alcoholic. It’s not that Bob doesn’t like women. He is just disgusted with the shallow females in New York’s upper echelon. As soon as he meets Nancy, he realizes what he’s been trying to find: an old-fashioned girl who knows how to truly be feminine.Although Bob is farther gone at the beginning of the film, Mal tries to harden himself against the sweet emollience of Nancy’s nature. He likes the company of silly New York girls like Vivian, as long as they don’t get too serious. Nancy’s whole manner speaks of domestic life, which he is trying to avoid. However, he immediately feels protective toward the sweet young woman. She brings the best out in both friends by making them want to defend her, even against each other, like real men.
An interesting technique used in this film is the overdubbed narration of Mal’s thoughts. Since he is a writer, he narrates the story of his own life. This helps the film flow smoothly and quickly, since the director could easily reveal Mal’s inner conflicts and thoughts.
Add “Three Loves Has Nancy” to your watchlist for a delightful movie with a good message and a wonderful main character!
