KnotMissPriceless Why so much hype?

Lucybespro It is a performances centric movie

Pacionsbo Absolutely Fantastic

Frances Chung Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

l_rawjalaurence THE TOAST OF NEW YORK is very much a period-piece, with Dudley Nichols's and John Twist's screenplay providing delightful one- liners for a top-notch trio of comic talents - Edward Arnold, Cary Grant, and Jack Oakie, supported ably by Frances Farmer and bolstered by memorable cameos from stalwarts of the Hal Roach era such as Billy Gilbert.The story is a straightforward one about three conpeople who manage to make fools out of high financiers like Daniel Drew (Donald Meek), and Cornelius Vanderbilt (Clarence Kolb) in the era immediately following the American Civil War. We have to admire the tricksters' sheer chutzpah, especially that of Jim Fisk (Arnold), whose brazen courage and indomitable spirit carry him through a series of scrapes towards financial and material success. Grant's Nick Boyd is a little more cautious, but shows a unique facility in speaking different accents, notably an RP form of British English with distinct echoes of Noel Coward.Halfway through the film the tone changes abruptly, as Fisk achieves so much success that he begins to reveal megalomaniac tendencies strongly reminiscent of Donald Trump. He wants to corner the entire gold reserve of the United States, and is is prepared to go to any lengths to achieve his aim. By doing so he loses the support of Nick, as well as that of his erstwhile fiancée Josie Mansfield (Farmer).The historical moral of the film becomes painfully evident, as director Rowland V. Lee evokes the mood of the Wall Street Crash (that took place only eight years previously to the film's release), which was caused by similar reckless speculations. If Fisk were to achieve his aim, it would ruin the majority of respectable Americans. Needless to say prudence reigns with the intervention of the government, which releases unlimited gold to put Fisk out of business, with a levelheadedness clearly designed to evoke F. D. Roosevelt's New Deal policies. Speculators are out; the common good must prevail. Fisk passes away having acknowledged his follies.THE TOAST OF NEW YORK is clearly intended as an ironic title, referring to the ways in which big business can so easily get out of hand if not effectively policed. That point of view is still as important today as it was nearly eighty years ago on the film's first release.

blanche-2 It's rare to see the iconic Cary Grant get second billing, but in 1937, he did, under Edward Arnold in "The Toast of New York." This is the purported story of financial schemer Jim Fisk (Arnold), who, in the 1800s, tried to corner the gold market, oversold stock to his railroad company, and fled to New Jersey, continuing to print convertible bonds where no one could get him. The film takes a lot of liberties with the truth but it leaves no doubt that Fisk was a real character, beautifully portrayed by the talented, energetic Arnold. Grant plays his co-conspirator who also loves Fisk's discovery, Josie Mansfield (Frances Farmer). Fisk is madly in love with her and wants to make her a big star.I have to say the movie dragged for me, and I didn't find it particularly interesting. The point of interest in it today, I guess, would be the presence of Frances Farmer, whose fascinating story was made into "Frances" starring Jessica Lange (and wow, the resemblance is incredible). Farmer was very beautiful with a deep voice that didn't really match her looks. The fact that her life story made her better known than her film career ever could have shouldn't be confused with acting ability, which wasn't that great on film. She was probably much more effective on stage. She doesn't register much here -in fact, the only ones who do are Arnold and Donald Meek. Handsome Grant doesn't have much to do - seen today, that's disconcerting. Viewers are used to him being the whole show.Overall, a disappointment, though Arnold was a strong actor who usually did supporting roles. This is a rare lead for him, and he's more than up to the task.

bkoganbing If Jim Fisk were alive and operating today, he'd be on television and would run that well known introvert Donald Trump right off the tube with bad ratings. It's how that colorful fellow operated, never did anything in a small way.Though the film has taken a great deal of liberty with the facts as has been pointed out by other reviewers, the essence of the man has been quite accurately captured by Edward Arnold. Also the characters of Uncle Dan'l Drew and Cornelius Vanderbilt are finely etched by Donald Meek and Clarence Kolb respectively.It's quite true that Fisk got the start of his fortune by running contraband cotton out of the South, taking advantage of the fact that the one crop Confederacy couldn't export its crop because of the Union blockade. I'm sure that things were pretty hairy for Fisk as well as for his fictional partners Cary Grant and Jack Oakie.Josie Mansfield as played by Frances Farmer was certainly not the first or last entertainer to take advantage of the attentions of a wealthy man. That was certainly demonstrated more accurately in Love Me or Leave Me by Doris Day as Ruth Etting. She was not as nice as Farmer and the script made her.Frances Farmer in her memoirs said that while the film was not the type of material she was looking to do, she did enjoy working with Cary Grant who was to her as he appears on screen.Though his efforts to control the gold market got him his most notoriety, they were not responsible for Fisk's demise. In fact the film's most glaring factual error was the omission of Fisk's partner in that enterprise, Jay Gould.By the way Gould was in personal habits the exact opposite of Fisk. He was a rather sober, responsible family man who had no real vices of any kind other than greed. The second big factual error was in that in the gold cornering scheme Fisk and Gould sought to gain influence in the Grant White House through hooking Ulysses Grant's brother-in-law, Abel R. Corbin in the move. That part did not work.Nevertheless Edward Arnold in the title role gives a grand portrayal of a most colorful character from The Gilded Age.

jmk56 Toast of New York was the Heaven's Gate and/or Cleopatra of its day, a film which almost sank its studio, RKO. RKO invested well over $1 million (a huge sum in 1937) into this film and it shows in every frame--incredible sets and costumes and the kind of polish you don't see anymore. The film was beset with pre-production problems, going through several announced stars (Spencer Tracy, Ginger Rogers, etc.) before settling on Farmer, Grant and Arnold. Writer Dudley Nichols was fired and re-hired as the production began shooting. The film, despite its pedigree, was greeted with decidedly mixed reviews and had lukewarm boxoffice response. Uneven in tone and historically inaccurate, it still is grand entertainment in the late 30s manner, with high drama and low comedy interspersed with about equal measure, and excellent performances by Farmer, Arnold and Oakie. Only Cary Grant seems somewhat ill at ease in a role quite different from his usual screen persona. The press materials on Toast are almost as lavish as the film itself, capitalizing on Farmer's recent success in "Come and Get It." The song Farmer sings, "The First Time I Saw You," was a chart hit for Bunny Berigan (who also charted with the theme from another Farmer film, "Ebb Tide") in 1937.