CrawlerChunky In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

Bluebell Alcock Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

Guillelmina The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

misswestergaard Man of the World (1931) suffers from dreary pacing and uncertain tone.If this were a B- picture starring unknowns, I'd say it had a lot to recommend it—A lovingly rendered fake Paris, a bittersweet romance, charismatic actors... but for a Powell-Lombard picture, it's a disappointing slog. The primary issue is pacing. Editing is sluggish —static medium shot after static medium shot—and the dialogue really drags. In a film about romance between con-artists, and socialites, you'd expect witty dialogue to come fast and furiously, but in Man ofThe World, actors deliver their lines at a solemn and stately pace, so what should be an exciting whirl of romance and scandal becomes weirdly glum.Further, there's not nearly enough time spent on the courtship between Lombard and Powell. Sure, he seems suave and sophisticated, while she seems pleasant and attractive, but they don't share much screen time. And when they do, there's no electricity. They don't bandy or bicker,they just fall into a pleasant little romance because the script tells them to.Weirdly, far more time is given over to the unhappy relationship between Powell and ex-lover Wynne Gibson (a stiff, unappealing performer). Despite the movie's premise—an adventurous socialite falls for a charming blackmailer—this isn't really a Lubitsch-style romantic comedy. It's not nearly fun enough. So I guess it's a failed drama? I did like the story itself, particularly the unexpected ending (which I won't reveal). This is one from the vaults that deserves remaking morethan reverence.

tavm Having ordered Disc 1 of The Carole Lombard Collection from Netflix, I just watched the first of two films on it-Man of the World. She plays the young niece of a rich uncle in Paris who's trying to avoid a scandal. William Powell is a former reporter who actually is the blackmailer but doesn't let anyone know about that. That changes when he meets Ms. Lombard and her fiancée. I'll stop there and just say that while some dialogue exchanges are interesting, the pacing was lethargic to the point of me recognizing when the backgrounds were film projections whenever things threaten to get dull. I guess the fact that this was an early talkie had something to do with that. Still, it was interesting enough so on that note, Man of the World is worth a look if you're interested in this sort of thing.

bkoganbing About the only thing that this pre-Code drama is significant for is that William Powell and Carole Lombard met on the set of Man Of The World and were married shortly thereafter. They did another film while both were at Paramount, Ladies Man and then were divorced with Powell leaving Paramount for Warner Brothers and a short stint there. Neither of these films is anything close to that third film they did, My Man Godfrey.Powell along with Wynne Gibson and George Chandler has a nice little racket going in Paris. A former reporter he prints a newspaper if you can call it that of gossip distributed among visiting Americans. But for a consideration he'll make sure the item never gets printed. We have a political blogger in my area who actually does the same thing, so this racket I know well.But problems ensue when he actually falls for visiting American tourist Carole Lombard who is a niece of Guy Kibbee whom Powell has already put the bite on. Bill Powell was at a crossroads in his career, during the silent era he mostly played villains, that clipped mustache of his was guarantor of those kind of parts. Here he is a rat, but a rat with a conscience. How that plays out you have to watch the film for.Powell and Lombard are good, but Wynne Gibson as a woman who knows the score in life gets all the acting kudos in Man Of The World. She should have done a film called Women Of The World.Man Of The World is not a classic like My Man Godfrey, but Powell and Lombard do have good chemistry. Of course they had better chemistry once they were divorced.

MartinHafer This film stars William Powell and Carole Lombard--who were briefly married shortly after this film was made. Powell plays a very sophisticated and clever thief who blackmails Americans who visit Paris. Supposedly Americans run wild in France and give Powell and his partners a lot of material. The film begins with Powell "helping" a gullible, rich American (Guy Kibbee)--saying he knows of a man who publishes a scandal sheet who is going to blackmail Kibbee. Powell "generously" agrees to arrange to pay off the blackmailer--who is Powell himself. Then, after fleecing Kibbee, he sets his sights on his niece (Lombard). The problem is that over time, Powell finds he's fallen for the lady and cannot bring himself to hurt her. When he tells her the truth, his life is turned upside down.While the plot is hard to believe, because Powell was such a wonderful actor it's easy to suspend disbelief and enjoy the movie. As for Lombard, she's just fine but isn't given as much of a part. While a good actress, the role could have been played by practically any young leading lady of the day.As far as the ending goes, this will no doubt alienate many viewers. While you'd assume there'd be some wonderfully magical happy ending, this film dares to go with realism--and in the end, everyone loses. An odd choice but at least it avoids the clichéd conclusion. I liked it but realize it's still a rather minor film--one that is very watchable but not much more.