CLARK GABLE: TALL, DARK AND HANDSOME
D: Susan F. Walker (1996) ¢ ¢ ¢
Even in an era of legendary leading men, Clark Gable stood out. Nobody else could match his cocksure bravado and easy, swaggering charm. Cooper, Tracy, Stewart and Fonda all had a sensitive side that Gable was probably wise not to attempt. Cagney and Bogart had a psychotic side that Gable (usually) lacked. Powell and Grant were more sophisticated, and Flynn could match Gable's rakishness, but they all seemed light on their feet. (Flynn was the perfect Robin Hood. Now try to picture Gable in tights. See?) Gable's characters were unrepentant sinners, brash and world-wise and full of themselves. If they reformed at all, it wasn't till the last reel, often the last minute. If Gable seems dated now, it's partly because there was never anybody else like him. He was the guy who could get any woman he wanted, love her as long as he wanted, maybe knock her around a little and then drop her cold, leaving her wanting more. Because Gable, to steal his most famous line, didn't give a damn. Which is all just a long-winded lead-up to saying that this is a documentary about Clark Gable, no better or worse than most other movie-star documentaries, worth tuning in for the film clips, at least. Then you might want to check out "The Misfits", or "It Happened One Night", or "Red Dust". Hollywood wouldn't be Hollywood without Clark Gable.
