{"id":25529,"date":"2012-04-26T09:56:58","date_gmt":"2012-04-26T16:56:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=25529"},"modified":"2020-12-12T10:58:06","modified_gmt":"2020-12-12T17:58:06","slug":"finishing-school-1934","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=25529","title":{"rendered":"Finishing School (1934)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;The aim of our school &#8212; and we like to believe the achievement &#8212; is to prepare young ladies to meet graciously all social demands.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Poster-224x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"224\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-25530\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Poster-224x300.jpg 224w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Poster-95x128.jpg 95w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Poster.jpg 292w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 224px) 100vw, 224px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nThe daughter (Frances Dee) of a wealthy socialite (Billie Burke) is sent to a finishing school, where she rooms with an outspoken heiress (Ginger Rogers) who introduces her to the high life. Soon she meets a medical intern (Bruce Cabot) moonlighting as a waiter, and falls in love &#8212; much to the consternation of her disapproving headmistress (Beulah Bondi).\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Beulah Bondi Films<\/li>\n<li>Boarding School<\/li>\n<li>Cross-Class Romance<\/li>\n<li>Frances Dee Films<\/li>\n<li>Ginger Rogers Films<\/li>\n<li>Morality Police<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Finishing School<\/em> is perhaps best known for providing Ginger Rogers with her final supporting role before she achieved leading-lady fame with Fred Astaire in <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=28706\"><em>The Gay Divorcee<\/em> (1934)<\/a> &#8212; but it remains a noteworthy, historically interesting little film in its own right. Released just before the Hays Code became more strictly enforced, it dares to present the story of a young socialite who embarks upon a romance with an upstanding young doctor-in-training, and&#8230; <\/p>\n<p><strong>(sorry for mild spoilers)<\/strong> <\/p>\n<p>&#8230; isn&#8217;t necessarily made to pay for her &#8220;sins&#8221;. What&#8217;s most fascinating about <em>Finishing School<\/em> is the way it daringly portrays the utter hypocrisy behind upper-class mores, which hold that as long as one isn&#8217;t &#8220;caught&#8221;, one can get away with just about anything; the goal is to avoid detection and public shame. One particularly well-handled scene shows Bondi glimpsing Dee arriving home after an outing with Mac, and hesitating as she clearly wishes she could pretend not to have seen what she just saw. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Bondi-1.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Bondi-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-57337\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Bondi-1.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Bondi-1-300x225.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Bondi-1-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Bondi-1-360x270.png 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Dee&#8217;s sin isn&#8217;t carousing; it&#8217;s falling in love with a lower-class man and daring to present it openly. <\/p>\n<p>Dee does a fine, sensitive job in the leading role:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Dee-2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Dee-2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-57339\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Dee-2.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Dee-2-300x225.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Dee-2-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Dee-2-360x270.png 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#8230; and Cabot stands out as refreshingly natural in what appears at first to be a nominal supporting role (he&#8217;s first glimpsed wandering around a hotel room picking up after the partying socialites), but turns into a major romantic lead; one can easily see why Dee would fall for someone like him. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Love.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Love.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-57338\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Love.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Love-300x225.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Love-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Love-360x270.png 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Rogers, meanwhile, is perfectly cast as Dee&#8217;s wisecracking roomie, and other young starlets &#8212; including Anne Shirley &#8212; do a fine job portraying young heiresses of various stripes. Interestingly, <em>Finishing School<\/em> was co-directed by a woman (Wanda Tuchock) &#8212; something so unusual at the time that it most definitely stands out when watching the opening credits. (Unfortunately, it seems she only directed one other short film; the rest of her Hollywood career was spent on screenwriting.) <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Frances Dee as Virginia<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Dee.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Dee.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-25533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Dee.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Dee-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Dee-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Bruce Cabot as Mac<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Chabot.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Chabot.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-25536\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Chabot.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Chabot-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Chabot-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Ginger Rogers as Pony<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Rogers.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Rogers.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-25534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Rogers.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Rogers-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Finishing-School-Rogers-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, as a fine example of a pre-Code drama unhampered by moral restrictions. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Good Show<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0025117\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1934\/04\/30\/archives\/girl-students.html\">NY Times Original Review (spoiler alert)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dvdtalk.com\/reviews\/48821\/finishing-school\/\">DVD Talk Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/3231\/finishing-school#articles-reviews?articleId=290005\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;The aim of our school &#8212; and we like to believe the achievement &#8212; is to prepare young ladies to meet graciously all social demands.&#8221; Synopsis: The daughter (Frances Dee) of a wealthy socialite (Billie Burke) is sent to a finishing school, where she rooms with an outspoken heiress (Ginger Rogers) who introduces her to the high life. Soon she meets a medical intern (Bruce Cabot) moonlighting as a waiter, and falls in love &#8212; much to the consternation of&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=25529\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25529","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25529","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=25529"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25529\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57341,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25529\/revisions\/57341"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=25529"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=25529"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=25529"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}