I loved this. How can a 1936 film be better than any new film this year? But it is.
From a novel by Eric Hatch called '1101 Park Avenue,'.
GREAT characters, really memorable, esp the obese father - he is great and VERY patient. Some madcap characters too, some Italian who eats so much but stays thin and who thinks he is an artist, 2 spoilt rich daughters.
Social commentary within this, however romanticised (so is Oliver Twist though).
I LOVED it.
Some bright young things are on a scavenger hunt among the homeless of New York. A ditzy socialite (Carole Lombard) explains this 'is like a treasure hunt, except... in a scavenger hunt you find something that nobody wants'. She attaches herself to 'forgotten man' Godfrey (William Powell) in the most cynical meet-cute in pictures.
He becomes the butler to her anarchic family. The father (Eugene Palette) earns big in the stock exchange, but his dependents spend it bigger; his idiot wife (Alice Faye) and her freeloading protege (Mischa Auer, who is hilarious). The girl has a dangerous sister (Gail Patrick), who has the potential for the kind of political extremism sweeping Europe.
The butler survives the family, and inevitably saves them, teaching them humility and (by implication) the value of Roosevelt's new deal. Powell is sensational; charming, with an underlying dignity which is never tarnished no matter how reduced his circumstances: 'The only difference between a derelict and a man is a job'.
It is a romantic comedy, and Powell and crazy Carole are adorable as a very odd couple. It is funny, and it is heartbreaking and it is also about the political dangers of the depression. It is a classic example of how skilled '30s screwball got at reflecting America back to itself.