Living on Velvet

Kay Francis gets down with her bad self (and Warren William) in Living on Velvet

Frank Borzage's Living on Velvet, from 1935, is an entertaining mish-mash: part aviation flick, part love triangle and all Borzage in its dedication to the travails of romantic love. George Brent stars as a flyboy recovering from the trauma of accidentally killing his Ma, Pa and Sis in a plane crash. He wanders the world trying to forget, but things change when he attends a swank gathering at his best bud's (Warren William) penthouse. There he meets Williams' girlfriend, Kay Francis. Sparks fly and soon he and Francis are living on velvet.

The first half of the flick is prime Borzage. The plane crash is well handled, reminiscent of History is Made at Night in its balancing of suspenseful action and character vignettes. The penthouse party is illustrated with graceful pans: Borzage fully at home within the milieu. Brent and Francis share a charming coffee house scene with a counterman, the omnipresent Edgar Kennedy, eager to ditch the late night lovebirds.

Once the twosome are hitched and domestic problems arise, Living on Velvet loses momentum. Nobody wants to see the glamorous Miss Francis reduced to domestic drudgery. Virtually forgotten today, Francis is perfect for romantic fare like this and gets to strut her stuff in some magnificent Orry Kelly outfits. My knees were certainly knocking at the backless number she wore. Borzage was a sensitive director of actors and could even breathe warmth into a cold technician like Helen Hayes. Warren William and George Brent give enjoyable performances here. The stiff Brent is unusually animated. Living on Velvet is slight fare lifted above the ordinary by the Borzage touch.