Central in this film is the Faust theme, in which the main character sells his soul to the devil. Sometimes the compensation is knowledge (Goethe), sometimes it is youth (1926, Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau) and in this film it is wealth.
After the deal the capital of the main character rises, but his personality becomes worse. In the past he had to pay very high interest rates on his loans and now he becomes an usurer himself. His personality is negatively affected by the femme fatale for whom he had left his wife. This femme fatale is played by Simone Simon who played similar roles in "La bête humaine" (1938, Jean Renoir) and "Cat people" (1942, Jacques Tourneur). The negative influence of the femme fatale reminded me of "Sunrise" (1927, Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau). In "Sunrise" the opposition between the "pure" countryside and the "sinful" city is very explicit. In "All that money can buy" it is more implicit, but there is little doubt that the living on a small farm is represented as simple, honest and just.
The weak spot of the film is the happy end. Just as in "Red river" (1948, Howard Hawks) it is very artificial and forced (although in "Red river" the part of the film before the weak ending is better). My appreciation of the ending may however be negatively influenced by a lack of knowledge about American history. Some of the characters in the ending are historical figures. Daniel Webster (1782 - 1852) (beside "All that money can buy" an alternative title of this film is "The devil and Daniel Webster") was an American politician. John Hawthorne (1641 - 1717) was a judge involved in the Salem witch trials.
After the deal the capital of the main character rises, but his personality becomes worse. In the past he had to pay very high interest rates on his loans and now he becomes an usurer himself. His personality is negatively affected by the femme fatale for whom he had left his wife. This femme fatale is played by Simone Simon who played similar roles in "La bête humaine" (1938, Jean Renoir) and "Cat people" (1942, Jacques Tourneur). The negative influence of the femme fatale reminded me of "Sunrise" (1927, Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau). In "Sunrise" the opposition between the "pure" countryside and the "sinful" city is very explicit. In "All that money can buy" it is more implicit, but there is little doubt that the living on a small farm is represented as simple, honest and just.
The weak spot of the film is the happy end. Just as in "Red river" (1948, Howard Hawks) it is very artificial and forced (although in "Red river" the part of the film before the weak ending is better). My appreciation of the ending may however be negatively influenced by a lack of knowledge about American history. Some of the characters in the ending are historical figures. Daniel Webster (1782 - 1852) (beside "All that money can buy" an alternative title of this film is "The devil and Daniel Webster") was an American politician. John Hawthorne (1641 - 1717) was a judge involved in the Salem witch trials.