Taraparain Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.

Adeel Hail Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

Patience Watson One of those movie experiences that is so good it makes you realize you've been grading everything else on a curve.

Skyler Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

loganalaxanian I enjoyed this movie for a few reasons. I think Barbara Stanwyck played her character perfectly and I like how pre code this movie was considering how it was before the Hays code. I also liked how you really get to see how life was as a women in the 30s compared to today.

aghauptman This is an entertaining, albeit repetitive, script flip on behaviors clearly acceptable among men at the time. I appreciated that Lilly Powers was going after what she wanted in the world and was willing to use men as much as the men wanted to use her. Good for her. And I appreciate the progressiveness of Stanwyck's character looking out for and not leaving behind Chico. I think it's fare to say that Chico was probably paid more than the average "help" to afford such furs as she's seen wearing. Or at least I'd like to think so! Stanwyck's plays the part wonderfully. I liked the visible attempt of fitting in in higher class jobs and society - when she corrects herself on the phone when she slips and says "ain't" and turns it into "isn't." You can tell she sort of loses sight of herself in the facades she puts on for all of these men she uses and manipulates. And predictable finds the one who truly warms her heart. This movie shows/alludes to sex very boldly as it's pre Hayes code - it feels quite brazen at times. But I suppose that's the point. At times I felt sorry for Powers because her bold plans for upward advancement definitely alienated her from her female peers who clearly had disdain for her behind her back. Overall it's a well made movie with a stunning leading woman.

richspenc Babyface (Barbara Stanwyk) resides in tough mining town, Scranton, PA. She's getting tired of the mining roughnecks coming to Barbara/Barbara's dad's speakeasy every night, getting drunk and making a lot of noise and trouble, and and harassing Barbara whenever they want to. Back in the 1930s, there weren't the same laws as today and technically it wasn't illegal to grope a woman without her OK, although it was considered terrible manners. It definitely was illegal just like today to get violent with and/or rape a woman back then, thank God. The more gentlemenly type of men back then refrained from the awful manners of groping, but in Scranton, or at least in Barbara's dad's speakeasy, the gentlemen were not the types that came in there. They were tough miners, and the mining jobs were very hard, physically brutal and backbreaking labor, very dirty, unsafe (safety procedures in the mines were less advanced back then and deaths on the job were not too uncommon), and they were long hours. The mining required men with high levels of strength, which some of them we saw in the speakeasy definitely looked like they had. They had some very uncouth, neanderthal attitudes and had no manners or respect for others. Barbara's dad's attitude and behavior was the worst of them all, and Barbara yells those exact words into her dad's face during a heated quarrel. There was also verbal racist hostility going on towards Milda, Barbara's dad's black maid. There was one decent man there who gave Barbara some good advice on how to take advantage of being a pretty young woman. That advice is taken (after a sudden tragic accident with Barbara's dad when a boiler explodes) and that is when the film changes its tune. After Barbara's dad is killed, she hops on to a freight train with Milda. She carries out her newly given advice on a railway worker who tries to throw her off the train until Barbara suggests to him to see if they can "work out another arrangement".Barbara takes herself to new levels when she arrives in New York. In need of employment, she continues to use her advice to get in the front door, and then to, bit by bit, climb herself up the company ladder from mailroom to secretary to a higher up office desk worker to a supervisor's assistant and finally to the company owner's assistant. This is the oldest film I've seen which plays with the (then risky) idea of a woman sleeping her way to the top, and it was considered shocking and unacceptable to many 1930s film audiences, from what I've read. Films like these were the reason the Hays code went into effect. I've read other people's reviews on how much they love pre code films, and how much better they think they are than the "saccharine, sicky sweet, squeaky clean" post code films of Golden Age Hollywood. But those are words of people today talking. The higher percentage of audiences in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s preferred post code. Many of them found the pre code material distasteful, even disgraceful. That's why the Catholic legion of decency succeeded in getting Hollywood to enforce the code. Do you think any such group would ever have any power over Hollywood today? Of course not, they wouldn't have a prayer. The percentage of people who love post code Hollywood over precode has gotten significantly smaller over the decades. Times have changed to say the least. People today usually see no big deal, and often really like movies with sex scenes and sexual humor all over the place. I've lost count on how many people I've talked to who love the "American pie", the " Van Wilder" movies, and all the violent movies like the "Saw" and "Final destination" movies. Even pre code films are lame by today's standards. There's no doubt many more movies today with nymphos in them than back in pre code Hollywood. In "Baby face", Barbara wasn't even so much a nympho, she was just using sex to get promoted at her company. I also noticed how Barbara turned all cold shoulder on the guy she used to get to her present office position when she was ready to use the next guy to advance herself to the next level. I noticed in one scene when Barbara gave the cold shoulder to one of her ex uses, he was wondering why and one of the other office girls told him "don't you know when you've been turned down? Babyface is moving out of your league". Anyway, this is a pretty good and pretty interesting film.

Mark M Now I am not one that is easily offended or grossed out or whatever but this is a pretty suggestive film. all in all this film is a far example of how women where perceived in the early 1900's. as the trailer for the film will tell you it focuses on a woman using her charm and good looks, among other things, to get her way in the big apple. the main point of this movie seems to be a character study on her personality. you can see her justify all her choices whether good or bad. i would not be one to say the main character is the villain of the story but i am certainly not saying she's a victim of hero. though i was never alive in the era this film was released it seems that this is really a movie of its time. definitely a must watch.