We've seen throughout history what happens when someone rises from nowhere to become extremely successful, wealthy and powerful. Some people lose their soul as they increase their bank accounts, and to see this happened through the eyes of the bombastic Lee Tracy, it is quite unique because the first quarter of the film shows him as a 44 year old man struggling to make ends meet, and a sudden accident takes him back in time to show him what might have been. He goes from a budget conscious wife (Mae Clarke) to a pretentious philanderer (Peggy Shannon) who flaunts her shallowness in his face, but he doesn't care because he's too busy becoming more and more powerful.
This is one of the few opportunities to see beloved "Wizard of Oz" co-stars Clara Blandick and Charley Grapewin working in a film prior to tinkering with a broken incubator. Blandick plays Tracy's clinging mom, almost desperate to keep him at her apron strings, but overly concerned by the state of his mental health when he comes to the past from his dream world and plans a future of grandeur. Grapewin is the doctor she calls to check him out, and he is flabbergasted without real concern, although initially, Tracy's big plans (proven successful in reality) have him look as a fool by those who have known him all his life.
There's also Otto Kruger as Tracy's longtime friend and C. Henry Gordon as the wealthy and powerful businessman whom Tracy longs to emulate. this is a powerful drama from start to finish, a combination of classics like "Citizen Kane" and "It's a Wonderful Life" a decade or more older. It reminds me of several other films from this era (the late depression) such as "Silver Dollar" with Edward G. Robinson and "The World Changes" with Paul Muni about how success can not only change the person that comes to but the people who come after them. It's Tracy at his very best, and probably his greatest year on film.
This is one of the few opportunities to see beloved "Wizard of Oz" co-stars Clara Blandick and Charley Grapewin working in a film prior to tinkering with a broken incubator. Blandick plays Tracy's clinging mom, almost desperate to keep him at her apron strings, but overly concerned by the state of his mental health when he comes to the past from his dream world and plans a future of grandeur. Grapewin is the doctor she calls to check him out, and he is flabbergasted without real concern, although initially, Tracy's big plans (proven successful in reality) have him look as a fool by those who have known him all his life.
There's also Otto Kruger as Tracy's longtime friend and C. Henry Gordon as the wealthy and powerful businessman whom Tracy longs to emulate. this is a powerful drama from start to finish, a combination of classics like "Citizen Kane" and "It's a Wonderful Life" a decade or more older. It reminds me of several other films from this era (the late depression) such as "Silver Dollar" with Edward G. Robinson and "The World Changes" with Paul Muni about how success can not only change the person that comes to but the people who come after them. It's Tracy at his very best, and probably his greatest year on film.