A Free Soul (1931)

Synopsis: Lionel Barrymore shines as Stephen Ashe, a brilliant alcoholic lawyer who successfully defends dashing gangster Ace Wilfong (Clark Gable) on a murder charge only to find that his headstrong... Lionel Barrymore shines as Stephen Ashe, a brilliant alcoholic lawyer who successfully defends dashing gangster Ace Wilfong (Clark Gable) on a murder charge only to find that his headstrong daughter, Jan (Norma Shearer), has fallen in love with his client. Jan, a fun-loving socialite seeking freedom from her blue-blood upbring, is only too eager to dump her aristocratic boyfriend (Leslie Howard) for the no-good gangster. She runs away from her childhood home to become Ace's mistress, embarking on a series of seedy adventures in New York's underbelly. Desperate to save his daughter's tainted reputation, Stephen finds her and makes her a deal: He'll stop drinking if she'll stop seeing Ace. She agrees to the arrangement but begins to see the criminal again after her father goes back to the bottle, leading to a thrilling conclusion that might just tear them apart forever. Barrymore gives a remarkable Oscar-winning performance culminating in a legendary courtroom scene that is powerful and deeply moving. The story was remade as THE GIRL WHO HAS EVERYTHING in 1953 with Elizabeth Taylor. [More]

Starring: Norma Shearer, Lionel Barrymore, Clark Gable, Leslie Howard

Starring: Norma Shearer, Lionel Barrymore, Clark Gable, Leslie Howard, James Gleason, Lucy Beaumont, Claire Whitney, Frank Sheridan, E. Alyn Warren, George Irving

Director: Clarence Brown

Director: Clarence Brown
Composer: William Axt

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