Hold Your Man (35mm)

(Sam Wood, US 1933, 87 min., 35mm)

Clark Gable was already a huge star by the time he starred in Hold Your Man with frequent co-star Jean Harlow. The third of six collaborations, this pre-Code drama features Gable as con-man Eddie Hall who, while escaping from two policemen, busts into the apartment of Ruby Adams (Harlow) while she’s in the bath. Ruby, an experienced manipulator of men, sees promise in a relationship with Eddie, but he’s more interested in planning a robbery, leading to unforeseen consequences. Separated by bars, Eddie and Ruby must find a way to make their relationship work and break from the self-destructive patterns of their past.