Popular juvenile actor William Haines, a Roaring ‘Twenties icon in his day (racoon coat and all), something of a gay icon later on (mostly for opting out of the Hollywood game), found stardom and his largely unchanging character arc in this film. Well-liked and envied, he’s the good-natured cut-up whose behavior soon tips into obnoxious, self-centered overkill, finally going too far even for his pals and the special girl he figures he’s entitled to. Hitting bottom, he’ll suddenly do the right thing (a big win, a sacrifice, a brave action), avoiding disgrace by inches in the last reel, proving he’s a ‘right guy’ when the chips are down. Here, the formula is at its freshest; so too our star at 26 as the new kid at Harvard. His bravado screws up the rowing team, but he’ll be back next year to lead the drive at the Yale/Harvard football classic, even letting his rival take the ball in. What a guy! Though BROWN can’t touch the two films surrounding it: the formula at its very best under George W. Hill’s direction in GO TELL THE MARINES/’27 with Lon Chaney; and, even better if sadly unavailable, as the boy who left his home town to make good only to come back for the girl he left behind in John Stahl’s superb MEMORY LANE/’26, with striking work from Eleanor Boardman & Conrad Nagel. But there’s a wild card unique to BROWN, a gently touching relationship with nerdy roommate Jack Pickford. Modern day viewers find gay subtext in the friendship, but it’s more one-way hero worship, even when Haines rubs liniment on his sick roomie’s chest. What the pairing really offers is a rare early sympathetic note to Haines’ abrasive character, giving him extra leeway on the selfish behavior that can be such a turnoff in his other films. Action & psychology neatly handled by workhorse M-G-M megger Jack Conway.
DOUBLE-BILL/LINK: More on Haines, here: https://maksquibs.blogspot.com/2013/03/navy-blues-1929-are-you-listening-1932.html
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