Search - The Moth on DVD

Entertaining pre-code thriller

Byron Kolln | the corner where Broadway meets Hollywood | 01/14/2010

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Firstly, no, this isn't some wiggy 1930's horror movie about a giant moth terrorising a big city. 1934's THE MOTH (aka "Seeing It Through") casts former burlesque dancer and silent movie star Sally O'Neil in one of her final leading roles as a shamed heiress who runs into even more trouble with a pair of jewel thieves.

Disgraced and disinherited after she's photographed dancing in her underfrillies at a big New York society party, heiress Diana Wyman (O'Neil) decides to run away to the relative anominity of New Orleans at the height of the mardi gras season. During the rail trip, Diana befriends Marie (Rae Daggett), a dancer who moonlights as notorious jewel burglar "The Moth", all the while being tailed by one of the employees of her guardian...

Entertaining piece of nonsense. Petite, saucer-eyed Sally O'Neil is charming in the lead, though sadly, a combination of the transition to talkies and severe bouts of stage fright prematurely ended her screen career. Paul Page, Wilfred Lucas, Fred Kelsey and Nina Guilbert co-star.

Buying vintage movies from Alpha (particularly 1930s titles) is a real pot-luck affair. On one hand, they have released near-pristine prints for such titles as "The Most Dangerous Game" and "Millie"; but on the other side of the spectrum, there's a lot of fuzzy, interlaced stuff as well ("Gigolettes of Paris" springs to mind). The print of THE MOTH comes from a worn-out VHS copy with lots of tracking issues. The sound is clearly audible though, and the film can still be heartily enjoyed.

Three and-a-half stars for the movie, two stars for the DVD."