Lady for a Day (1933)

Frank Capra’s “Lady for a Day”

Thematic Elements:  

In 1933, the Great Depression was still taking its toll on America. Many people were on hard times and found it difficult to get by. Capra, known for his depression-era comedies, created Lady for a Day with these difficulties in mind. It tells the story of a woman and the people around her just trying to get by in any way they can who all bound together for a common cause. 

The story focuses on Apple Annie, a street vendor who sells apples. Annie lives in relative poverty and sells apples on the street to get by, she drinks heavily, and her appearance is undesirable to the common person. Years ago, Annie sent her daughter Louise to be raised in a Spanish convent because she could not afford to take care of her and hoped that she could have a better life without having an impoverished mother. However, because of the guilt and embarrassment of her status, Annie has been corresponding with Louise telling her that she is a society matron named Mrs. E. Worthington Manville living at the Hotel Marberry. However, this charade is under threat of unraveling when Louise writes back to Annie informing her that she is coming to visit with her new fiancé, the Baron Carlos and his father, Count Romero. The poverty and low status that Annie has found herself in life shames her, not only because she could not provide for her daughter, but also because she cannot stand the thought of her daughter thinking less of her. 

A racketeer gangster named Dave the Dude is a frequent patron of Annie, as he believes that her apples bring him good luck. When Annie’s street friends ask Dave to help Annie out with her situation, he arranges for Annie to stay in a lavish residence that belongs to a friend of his. His nightclub owner girlfriend, Missouri, helps Annie’s appearance go from haggard street vendor to high class lady. He also arranges a pool hustler to be her second husband, Judge Manville. All the characters are affected by the difficulties of living during the depression. They all perform nefarious deeds to get by. However, they still find the humanity and sense of community to help Annie out. 

The plan was in danger due to an investigation into this mysterious Mrs. Manville; however, everyone was able to pull the strings to orchestrate this pretense for Louise. This film by Capra oozes with sympathy for the down-trodden and pokes fun at the bougie nature of the upper class. However, its main point is to illustrate the need for togetherness and community in the face of uncertain times. In the end, Annie’s friends were what she ended up needing for this stunt, not an overflow of money. This theme will become a major point for Capra’s career, with films like You Can’t Take it With You and It’s a Wonderful Life; all demonstrating the value of friends and community over material wealth and prosperity. 

Camerawork:

Opening Shot: Capra opens on an accordion player playing in a busy New York street. Both the hustle and bustle of the street and the raggedy appearance of the street walkers set the foundation for the theme of the story – that of a society in poverty. This opening instance sets the stakes that are meant to be overcome, not by gaining material wealth, but by dressing the part with the help of these street people and gangsters alike. This opening shot not only sets a time and place, but also sets up a societal situation.

Tracking Shot: As Annie walks briskly through the hotel lobby for fear of losing her letter from Louse, the camera moves with her as Capra operates a tracking shot. This tracking shot is meant to instill the viewer with the same sense of urgency that Annie feels. Annie has lost her contact with the hotel postman who lost his job due to helping her. The stakes are incredibly high for Annie as losing this letter could mean losing contact with her daughter altogether, as the charade of living in the hotel could end. The camera matches this anxiety as walking briskly parallel to her. The motion of the camera matching the motion of the characters creates a parallel empathy that the viewer can understand. 

Whip Pan: Throughout his career, Capra will continue to utilize his whip pans to great effect. The whip pan can be used in various situations. In instance in this film in which this is used is the scene in which we are introduced to Judge Blake (later Manville). We first say a pool player telling Judge Blake that he shouldn’t have started the pool game, whip panning to Judge Blake looking very astute and comfortable, whip pan to the guys watching the game. The action of the characters and the added whip pan creates a rapid understanding of what is happening: Judge Blake is a hustler. The whip pan between these characters creates this immediate understanding of the context, as it utilizes it’s own immediacy to create a connection between these characters that instill context. The arrogance of the first man gets immediately connected to the cool, confident, and mysterious nature of Judge Blake, which then gets immediately connected to bystanders laughing and nodding pointing to the pool player with mockery. These connections create exposition in themselves, connecting ideas and characters together providing dialogue-less context.

Best Shot: 

The best shot is the last shot of the film in which all the characters are waving off Louise and her new family as she leaves again for Spain. The characters are all still wearing their affluent attire as they wave standing behind a picket fence. We as the viewer understand that they are wearing mere costumes alien to themselves. The picket fence seems to evoke the idea of America, as well as visual showing that these characters are still trapped by this barrier. Together, the image paints a visual of a society merely playing dress up and putting on a show, pretending to be something they are not as a way of getting by in the decaying American system, waving to those with more affluence and well-being.