"Ladies Should Listen" is one of a slew of comedies that Paramount Pictures cranked out with Cary Grant in his early years. Most didn't have very much of a plot, and this is one of those. It's only slightly better than "Kiss and Make-Up." The comedy is much better, especially with dialog between Grant and Edward Everett Horton. Frances Drake's role adds a touch of fun to the film.

Drake plays a residential telephone operator, Anna Mirelle. Grant is Julian De Lussac and Horton is Paul Vernet. The plot is disjointed and doesn't explain well how Julian gets engaged to Susie Flamberg (played by Nydia Westman). Grant is in the middle of a love quadrangle in this film.

One of the funniest scenes is Julian's fake suicide and the follow-up. Another is Susie's tripping over luggage into Julian's arms. Their expressions and respective reactions are quite funny. This film also has a crime element. After watching the film, I realized that the title might have alluded to the spread of gossip and news via telephone operators who listen in on phone calls.

Here are some samples of funny dialog. Julian, "Did you ever try to go through a telephone directory, page by page?" Paul, "No, but I'm reading 'Anthony Adverse.'" (The rambling 1933 historical adventure novel by Hervey Allen).

Anna, "And she said that Marguerite Cintos (played by Rosita Moreno) was a DD." Julian, "Doctor of Divinity?" Anna, "No – definitely dangerous."

Julian, "Wait a minute. How will I know when you get to 10?" Ramon Cintos (played by Rafael Storm),"You'll be dead."

Julian, "Cigarette!" Paul, "Offering or asking?" Julian, "Either or both." Paul, "Well, in that case, no thank you." Julian, "You're very welcome." Paul, "Not at all." Julian, "Suppose we resume our silence where we left off?" Paul, "Why not?"

Julian, "Your approach was wrong. You treated her with respect." Paul, "Why, of course!" Julian, "Yes, that's the trouble. You treat respectable women one way and the other kind another. Reverse your procedure and see what happens. Your popularity will surprise you." Paul, "Even with a girl like Susie?" Julian, "Please! You're speaking of my future wife."

This is my third attempt to write this review. For some reason, my index card keeps falling to the floor. Maybe the ghost of director Frank Tuttle is not impressed by my line suggesting that he was concentrating more on showing the set to advantage than his actors. All the same, I'm sure he must agree with me that Cary Grant is a bit wooden at times and that he's also inclined to indulge in too many double takes. Now, whose fault is that? It's certainly not Grant's fault, it's Tuttle's. Years later, Grant had enough clout to play a role the way he wanted to play it, but in 1934 he had little choice but to follow the director's suggestions. The movie itself starts rather poorly – no doubt to cater for latecomers, as it runs only 62 minutes and could hardly be booked as a main attraction. It's a pre-interval movie. In other words, it's the movie that many patrons came late for. Anyway, once the movie gets to Grant's apartment and the original stage play takes over, it does improve immensely. Good camera-work by Henry Sharp also helps.

Directed by Frank Tuttle (A Cry In the Night) and starring Cary Grant, this romantic comedy is all about switchboard operator Anna Mirelle (Frances Drake, Les Misérables) who falls in love with Grant's character of Julian De Lussac, a man she has only met over the phone. To win him over, she'll have to break him up with his current love, Marguerite (Rosita Moreno, The House of a Thousand Candles),which is actually a good thing, as she's already married to Ramon Cintos (Rafael Corio) and the two of them are about to swindle him out of a nitrate mine.

Meanwhile, Julian's best friend Paul Vernet (Edward Everett Horton, the narrator of Fractured Fairy Tales) is growing mad at him because he's lost the eye of millionaire heiress Susie Flamberg ( Nydia Westman, who was in two Bulldog Drummond movies).

If this feels like a stage play, that's because it was based on one by Alfred Savoir and Guy Bolton. The screenplay was by Claude Binyon and Frank Butler.