A political machine backs a dimwitted candidate for governor. Starring Warren William, Bette Davis, Guy Kibbee, Vivienne Osborne, and Frank McHugh. Written by Joseph Jackson and Wilson Mizner. Story by Melville Crossman (Darryl F. Zanuck). Directed by Alfred E. Green. Produced by First National Pictures. Distributed by Warner Bros.

For this picture that seems to mock American politics, I’d encourage you to ignore the mindless, knee-jerk desire to use phrases like “as relevant today as it was back then” and “more timely than ever” when describing this film, for the truth of the matter is, there has always been corruption and buffoonery in government. Just because you may be more aware of it today than you were yesterday, doesn’t mean that you couldn’t have said that The Dark Horse was “more timely than ever” five years ago, 25 years ago, or 75 years ago. The evergreen nature of this political satire forever makes it feel relevant… even if, accordingly, it lacks the bite that makes some of this genre’s finest features so memorable. To wit, several months ago we highlighted — as a Pre-Code Essential — a relatively terrible film called Gabriel Over The White House. It, too, was a satire born from the Great Depression, but it was absurd, ham-fisted and intellectually hyperbolic… In other words, it’s a classic, because that type of boldness only could have happened in that specific cultural moment, which bred such political anxiety, and it couldn’t have been released by Hollywood even just a year later… In contrast, The Dark Horse is less era-unique. Oh, sure, it’s as much of its time as any work is “of its time” — scheduled intentionally just before a big election year where the incumbent political figures (like Hoover) were considered cruel jokes. But the readiness with which you can compare the events of the film to things you’ll see five years from now, 25 years from now, and 75 years from now is part of why it’s notable, but not an Essential — it’s really not saying much about the world in 1932.

Forming this hierarchy of Pre-Codian value is important, for the film’s limited acuity — this kind of lampoon was familiar, even in 1932 — is often used to decry the work within its own individualized context. But I actually think this is a better written film than Gabriel Over The White House. I’ll be plainer: many reviews of this work note a pivot in The Dark Horse‘s narrative trajectory, recognizing that the first half feels like a political satire about a crooked machine backing a dumb candidate, while the second devolves into a romantic farce involving the campaign manager and his alimony-seeking ex-wife, who goes to work for the opposition party. Those critics are right — the midpoint occurs precisely when Vivienne Osborne strides onto the scene, and the film’s focus is redirected. Yet they’re wrong about the juxtaposition of two seemingly disparate ideas. You see, to believe that the film goes from satire to farce is to believe that its thesis is, like Gabriel‘s, political — that the send-up of foolish, corrupt politicians is the main thrust. But it’s not… It’s a star vehicle for Warren William that crafts for him a love triangle with Bette Davis on one end and Vivienne Osborne on the other. He isn’t introduced until well into the script’s first act, but he’s actually the picture’s raison d’être, and so when the narrative’s attention turns to his romantic life, that’s when The Dark Horse truly starts.