The Devil to Pay

Lovable rogue Willie Hale (Ronald Colman) has frittered away another fortune in British East Africa, so he auctions off his belongings and returns to England. While Lord Leland (Frederick Kerr), Willie’s father, fumes about Willie’s latest failure, Willie buys a dog with his last pounds and rekindles a romance with saucy actress Mary Crayle (Myrna Loy). Finally returning to the home estate, Willie wins over his father yet again and makes the acquaintance of nouveau riche linoleum heiress Dorothy Hope (Loretta Young). Engaged to a Russian nobleman, Dorothy is besotted by Willie’s freewheeling ways and soon gives up everything for a life of poverty with Willie. But there’s one condition: Willie must never see Mary again. Much like its protagonist, played with customary wit and grace by Ronald Colman, this light and airy character romance has charms that are as winning now as when they were freshly minted.