The Scoundrel
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| The Scoundrel | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Ben Hecht Charles MacArthur |
| Written by | Ben Hecht Charles MacArthur |
| Starring | Noel Coward Julie Haydon |
| Release date(s) | 1935 |
| Running time | 76 min. |
| Country | U.S.A. |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
The Scoundrel is a 1935 drama film directed by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur. It was Noel Coward's film debut, aside from a bit role in a silent film.
[edit] Plot
Coward plays a publisher who (it appears) wished to ruin the life of every person he comes in contact with. Every sentence he says is like a poisoned dart aimed for the greatest damage, and delivered in cold lifeless tones. He is under no illusion regarding his own personality, remarking to his staff at large large that he has found the perfect woman- one as empty as he is: "I must marry her......it would be like two empty paper bags belaboring one another". He finally manages to completely destroy the career and life of an aspiring young author and his girlfriend- who curses him with the hope that he will die friendless. Shortly afterwards he is killed when his plane crashes into the ocean- one of his staff hearing the news remarks "Now I know there ISa God!". Faced with the prospect of damnation he is allowed to go back to earth to find one person who will mourn for him- which person turns out to be the young woman who cursed him.
The Scoundrel won the 1935 Oscar for Best Original Story by writing team Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur. It is an early role for Lionel Stander (his first year in pictures) and is a rare film role for columnist Alexander Woollcott typecast as an acid tongued writer.
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