Ladies They Talk About is a 1933 pre-code film that stars screen icon Barbara Stanwyck. This film can also be described an early woman in prison film. In this movie, the imprisoned women were actually guilty, as opposed to films where women were being falsely accused of committing a crime and going to jail to do time, which was more common.
In this picture, Barbara Stanwyck plays Nan Taylor, a good looking lady who is part of group of bank robbers, including Don (Lyle Talbot, Plan Nine from Outer Space) who are arrested and sent to San Quentin State Prison. Radio star David Slade (Preston Foster, Doctor X) who is in love with Nan wants her to reform. Another gang member that she is part of Lefty Simons (Harold Huber, Charlie Chan on Broadway) informs Nan that fellow gangster Don is also in jail and begins to plan a strategy to get the imprisoned men to escape via the women’s section of the prison. Don winds up getting shot and killed, and Nan believes it’s all Slade’s fault, that he found out about the escape attempt and ratted on her. This of course is not true. Nan also gets into trouble with ‘Sister’ Susie (Dorothy Burgess, Hold Your Man) who has animosity toward Nan, plays a key role in the finale when Nan is finally trying to leave the jail.
Ladies They Talk About is another solid early Barbara Stanwyck film, as she hands in another lively performance as Nan Taylor, a bad girl who doesn’t seem interested in reforming. In the odd climax, Nan still blames David Slade of having her fellow robbers arrested and killed, gets ultra-mad at him, yells and screams at him, and shoots him in the arm. Nan then realizes that she does love him, and Slade seems to have no issue being shot by the woman he loves and just chewed him out!
Warner Archive debuts Ladies They Talk About on Blu-ray and it’s another stellar release from them. Black levels are rich, shadow details look superb, the grey scale is balanced, with no signs of any print damages. The boost in contrast results in having the movie look that much clearer with shots of the actors and scenery looking the best ever. The film looks polished without any artificial enhancements. Another winner from Warner Archive in the picture quality department!
The English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 also sounds crisp and clear throughout. Dialogue is easy to understand, which is important since this movie is a talkie without much in the way of action sounds. The music by the uncredited Cliff Hess comes in the strongest with Barbara Stanwyck’s yelling in the finale coming in a close second. No hissing or drop-offs were detected. English subtitles are offered.
Warner provides a pair of extras for this release. A vintage black and white cartoon, I like Mountain Music and a theatrical trailer. I suppose it’s better than nothing at all. The image quality for the cartoon is also excellent!
Barbara Stanwyck once again shines in this film as her star continued to rise during this era. She was an amazing actress, and this wonderful film showcases her great acting ability. The audio and video quality for this release from Warner Archive are top-notch as always. Highly recommended!
Ladies They Talk About
Directors- Howard Bretherton and William Keighley
Cast- Barbara Stanwyck, Preston Foster, Lyle Talbot
Country of Origin- US
Distributor – Warner Archive / Warner Home Video
Number of Discs – 1
Reviewed by – David Steigman
Date –11/12/21