FOR THE DEFENSE (1930)

William Powell is a defense lawyer known for getting his (mostly shady) clients found not guilty in court. The city fathers have a meeting at which Powell's tarnished reputation is discussed. There's nothing they can do but hope that one day, Powell will go too far, do something illegal, and be disbarred. For his part, Powell seems a bit tortured by his morality or lack thereof—he excuses being drunk after hours by saying, "If I didn't stay tight, how long do you think I'd last in this racket?" Meanwhile, Powell's mistress (Kay Francis) has been hoping for marriage, but when he says he's not the marrying kind, she considers accepting a proposal from a playboy boyfriend (Scott Kolk). One night, Francis is driving a drunken Kolk home when he starts pawing at her; she loses control of the car and hits and kills a pedestrian. Kolk tells her to leave and he takes the blame, winding up charged with manslaughter. Francis begs Powell to take the case and he does, but then discovers that a ring of hers was found at the scene in Kolk's car and figures out the truth. Addled by drink and desperation, and to save both Kolk and Francis (who is considering coming clean in the courtroom), Powell bribes a juror in order to get a hung jury. But the prosecutor finds out about it and soon Powell himself is on trial.

This pre-Code film lets at least one character off the moral hook at the end, and is fairly casual in depicting the sexual behavior of the characters. Otherwise, it's an average crime melodrama from the 1930s school of stories about shady lawyers who get a comeuppance or find redemption (or both). Powell plays a bit against type in terms of his morality, but his traditional personality (chipper, witty, likable despite his faults) is on full display and makes this rather thin drama worth watching. He even gets a drunk scene in which his usually well-kempt hair is mussed up, maybe the only time in movies when that happens to Powell. Despite the presence of other actors, this is basically a two-person show and Kary Francis (pictured with Powell) holds up her half of things nicely. However, the two cannot stop the movie from dragging a bit in the last reel when it becomes a slog of conversation scenes. Scott Kolk as the playboy lover hasn't much to do, and neither does anyone else. OK on balance. [TCM]