High Tension (1936 film)

High Tension

Movie poster
Directed by Allan Dwan
Produced by Sol M. Wurtzel
Written by Lou Breslow
Edward Eliscu
John Patrick
Starring Brian Donlevy
Glenda Farrell
Norman Foster
Cinematography Barney McGill
Edited by Louis R. Loeffler
Production
company
Release date
  • July 17, 1936 (1936-07-17)
Running time
 63 minutes
Country United States
Language English

High Tension is a 1936 American comedy-drama film directed by Allan Dwan and starring Brian Donlevy, Glenda Farrell, and Norman Foster. It was released by 20th Century Fox on July 17, 1936. The film was based on the story written by J. Robert Bren and Norman Houston.[1][2][3] Steve Reardon does not want to marry his girlfriend Edith McNeil, but he also does not want her to date anyone else.

Plot

Cable layer Steve Reardon (Brian Donlevy) is in a tank at the bottom of the ocean near Hawaii reading an adventure story written by his girlfriend Edith McNeil (Glenda Farrell). The story is based on Steve's life. Steve has repaired the cable that he was sent to fix, returns to San Francisco, gets a bonus, and two weeks vacation so that he can marry Edith. Steve and Edith have an argument. At a bar, he gets into a fight and meets Eddie Mitchell (Norman Foster).

One year later, Eddie has become an engineer and together with Steve they return to San Francisco. Steve has not seen Edith since their quarrel but he learns that her new series is about the boxing champion Terry Madden (Joe Sawyer). He gets into a fight with Terry, and Edith bails him out of jail. Steve and Edith agree to marry if their romance last more than 6 months. Steve goes to work for F. Willoughly Tuttle while Eddie takes a job in Honolulu. Steve tells Edith that he has agreed to stay in Honolulu for one year to help Eddie on a project; their engagement is ended.

In Honolulu, Steve flirts with Brenda Burke, Eddie's secretary. Steve sends to Edith a picture of himself with Brenda. Edith is furious and attempts to remove the ring from her finger. It will not budge so she goes to Steve directly. Meanwhile, Eddie warns Steve not to play with Brenda's feeling and Steve realizes that Eddie is in love with Brenda. Steve fails to show up for a 6 A.M blast and Eddie decides to go ahead with the blast without him. After Eddie dives into the coral, his air line is blocked. Steve arrives and rescues Eddie as Brenda and Edith watch. Later, after the rescue, a note arrives from Steve's boss saying that if he marries Edith, she can travel with him and get her stories.

Cast

Production

The original title for the story by J. Robert Bren and Norman Houston was "Here Comes Trouble", but 20th Century Fox used that title for another film which they released earlier in the same year. The working title of the movie was "Trouble Makers". The film includes the song "And That Woman Made a Monkey Out of Me" by Sidney Clare.[4]

Reception

The New York Times movie review said: "High Tension is a loud and funny comedy written almost entirely in the vernacular, which is well suited to Miss Glenda Farrell's aptitude for robust comedy. Here she is aided and abetted by Brian Donlevy, the man with the profile, who spends part of his time asking her to marry him and, paradoxically, running out on her after she consents. Apparently for good measure, the scenario writers toss in some melodramatic episodes. For instance, the interlude in which Mr. Donlevy descends to the floor of the Pacific to rescue Norman Foster, who becomes entangled in a movement of coral reef while mending the Honolulu—San Francisco cable. High Tension may be recommended to the not too finicky as better than average hot-weather screen fare."[5]

Home media

20th Century Fox released the film on DVD on December 16, 2014.

References

  1. ↑ "High Tension (1936)". British Film Institute. Retrieved 2015-10-03.
  2. ↑ "High Tension (1936)". All Movie. Retrieved 2015-10-03.
  3. ↑ "HIGH TENSION (1936)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2015-10-03.
  4. ↑ "High Tension". American Film Institute: Catalog of Feature Films. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
  5. ↑ "MOVIE REVIEW: At the Palace". The New York Times. July 11, 1936. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
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