Synopsis
WILLIAM HAINES IN A PICTURE THAT LIFTS THE LID ON THE DOINGS OF THE GAY, GIDDY YOUNGER SOCIETY CROWD
A cocky, arrogant young playboy is expelled from his American polo team shortly before the big match with England.
The Smart Set
Cast
Director
Producer
Writers
Editor
Cinematography
Set Decoration
Genre
Releases by Date
Premiere
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USANR
New York City
Theatrical
24 Mar 1928
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USA
Releases by Country
USA
04 Mar 1928
- PremiereNR New York City
24 Mar 1928
- Theatrical
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William Haines is being obnoxious again! His same old formula. If you've seen one, you've seen 'em all. And worse, the Polo angle wasn't exactly one of the better backdrops to his loud romancing. But if you love what he does, you'll enjoy The Smart Set (1928) too. If not, you'll struggle to feel any sympathy for his cause.
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William Haines plays another of his famous (at the time) obnoxious leading man roles. He was a top MGM star in the late 20s and into the30s, but amazingly, he is more tolerable in his silent starring roles. He's good looking and fit and fits the bill as a leading man, but when the talkies started, his annoying character type crawls under your skin more with his vocal irritation besides his character being unfunny and a fly buzzing around the leading lady that you want to swat. This annoyance had nothing to do with his voice, which is perfectly fine, but it just added insult to injury with his physical schtick. Nevertheless, he was a big star at the time…
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William Haines’ character is such an insufferable jerk for most of this picture that the inevitable changing of his ways isn’t enough to really put us on his side. He gives a decent performance, though, in an otherwise unremarkable entry.
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This is a tricky one. It follows the arrogant asshole-to-lovable hero storyline, and his transition is very much not earned. There is a scene where a woman willingly leaves a party with him and then he tries to tie up her hands so he can take advantage of her. And he never does anything to earn a triumphant comeback, but he sure gets one. It’s as though they wrote a first and third act, but fully skipped over the entire middle of the story. The most deeply horrifying part though is when the movie finally introduces a couple very minor black characters, only to portray them as offensive stereotypes.
But on the other hand, it’s mostly very fun and very…