THE DEVIL AND MISS JONES (1941) *** No wonder they thought Hollywood was full of communists. The very suggestion that stout-hearted rugged-individualist capitalists might have more, personally, in common with the brave unionists than the petty self-serving middle managers (you know the type) that served as a buffer! Good heavens, what might it do to social structure? It reminds me a recent poll where participants were read the preamble of the United States constitution, and a near plurality identified it as a communist document. I don't think that the girl next door was ever, typically, like, looked-like or was as cool as Jean Arthur, but she's inspired casting. They make their big points, but they keep it proletarian, aesthetically, good fun on Coney Island and all that. The fairytale ending may be courtesy of the heads of the studio, but it makes two even more important points: (1) that the proletariat was willing to the point of desperation to sell-out, low, and (2) even the most moral of "owners" weren't generally inclined to offer any big deals or changes. They missed presentation of a powerful scene where much of what the union would have wanted, was the same crap that Charles Coburn found objectionable.
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