Faulkner dismissed his novel Sanctuary as a "pot-boiler", although he liked the character of Temple Drake well enough to bring her back in a later novel (Requiem for a Nun). Both novels have greater complexity and moral ambiguity than the screenplay for The Story of Temple Drake could possibly capture in 70 minutes of film. The movie lacks Faulkner's depiction of how rich and poor don't have equal access to justice, but does portray how those who enjoy an elevated social standing aren't always more virtuous than those they look down upon. The elaborate film sets illustrate this when Temple crosses the divide between the elegant party scene and the bootleggers' foreboding farmhouse. In the novel, the lawyer Benbow (whose first name is Horace) is less enamored of Temple and much more concerned with defending his client Lee Goodwin (and Goodwin's companion Ruby Lemarr) from prejudices both legal and social. In the film, Ruby briefly alludes to prostituting herself in order to get Lee out of prison.SPOILER: The sudden ending of the film is the opposite of what happens in the book. Suffice it to say that in Sanctuary, Temple is untroubled by conscience and unswayed by Benbow. The bad guy gets away, and the good guy doesn't. It's my favorite of Faulkner's early novels.Miriam Hopkins does well portraying the two sides of Temple Drake (with a stronger Southern accent than anyone else in the film). Florence Eldridge convincingly conveys her contempt for Temple. Jack La Rue shoots daggers with his depthless eyes, but the screenplay can't possibly capture the complexity of Trigger's character, known as Popeye in Faulkner's underrated novel.

Temple Drake is a flamboyant flirt who likes to lead men on, and then say " NO " ! She is the grand-daughter of a prominent judge, so this kind of behavior is scandalous, for the times. An attorney in her grandfather's court is in love with her, and she says she's been in love with him since childhood, but she loves the life of a Party Girl more.One night she leaves a party with a drunk guy who drives too fast and crashes the car. They are found by Trigger, a lowlife bootlegger, which is the least of his crimes...he is also a rapist and murderer, as Temple will soon find out. She and the drunk driver are invited into a house, with a motley group of Trigger's cohorts. The Drunk Driver is happy to accept the invitation, as he wants another drink...but Temple insists she'll wait outside, as she senses trouble. Eventually, she is forced inside, as it starts to thunderstorm, as it does in all those creepy old Boris Karloff movies.Temple is witness to repulsive deeds by this Trigger, including the murder of a young boy who was trying to help Temple. He arranges for an innocent man to go on trial for the murder, and the trial attorney is the one in love with Temple.Temple is afraid to take the witness stand, because the scandal of her being involved with these criminals would be too hard on her Grandfather.....can the attorney who loves her convince her to take the stand, free an innocent man and get the true heinous criminal off the streets ?? Will she do it ? ! Buy the DVD and see !

Story of Temple Drake, The (1933) *** (out of 4) Notorious pre-code tells the story of Temple Drake (Miriam Hopkins), a Southern Belle who uses her beauty to turn men on only to quickly throw water on them. To Temple turning men on is just a joke but when a date takes her to a dangerous bar, she's quickly held hostage by a bootlegger named Trigger (Jack LaRue) who will stop at nothing to feed his lust. THE STORY OF TEMPLE DRAKE was highly controversial when it was first released and in large part it was one of the main reasons that the Hayes Office would have to finally stand up and keep on eye out for the "products" being released by Hollywood. Seen today the film is certainly less shocking but there's no doubt that the subject matter is still rather touchy and especially the "wannabe" bad girl who finally gets broken down when sexually, physically and mentally abused by an evil man. I think the best thing going for the film is the performance by Hopkins who was clearly born to play this role. Even though the film runs a very short 70-minutes and a lot of the material from the William Faulkner novel has been left out, the character of Temple Drake still goes through quite a bit of developments. Hopkins nails all of them and I really loved the early scenes where she was just playing the men to get them worked up so that she could just dump them and then move onto the next. These scenes with the actress are perfectly done but she also handles the later moments when she's terrified of what's going to happen to her and then of course at the end when she's broken down. I was also impressed with LaRue who gets to shine even if the screenplay doesn't do too much justice to him. William Gargan plays the lawyer who also just happens to be in love with Drake and he too is pretty good. Flrence Eldridge really stands out in her role and those with a quick eye can spot John Carradine in the courtroom. The pre-code elements are somewhat strong with a rape and several sexual moments with Hopkins either stripping down or showing off her legs. The most notorious scene happens when she strips down to her bra and panties only to have one of the thugs rip off a coat that she's wearing and the viewer gets even more of a glimpse of her. At 70-minutes the film moves extremely fast and there's no question that film buffs will want to search this one out.

"Good god, I can't publish this. We'd both be in jail." Wrote William Faulkner's publisher in 1929 after reading an early version of his fifth novel, Sanctuary. The Hays Office forbade any reference to the novel in advertising for the film. (In the opening credits of The Story of Temple Drake it only says, "From a novel by William Faulkner.")The challenge then was how to present it in an engaging if not entertaining movie without gutting the inherit drama of the story. By blending what they could show with what the audience was left to imagine it becomes a near horror film. Joseph Breen, would say it was "the vilest books, but that the film was tame in comparison to the novel."This steamy melodrama triggered church boycotts and stricter enforcement of the Hays production code. After only a few screenings, the film was quickly shelved by the Production Code Administration, never to be seen again…until now.A few collectors' 16mm prints have surfaced over the years, but a 35mm print hasn't been seen since the 1930s. So why did it take until now? The Museum Of Modern Art (MoMA) was approached by Turner Classic Movies (TCM) to work on a collaboration. This long sought-after title came up, and fortunately the MoMA holds the original elements and in excellent condition! This print of Temple Drake that we are screening is only a single generation away from the original camera negative, making this a true rediscovery that is not to be missed!The pivotal role of Temple Drake was entrusted to Miriam Hopkins, best known for Lubitsch's Trouble in Paradise & Design for Living. But Hopkins seizes the opportunity to extend herself as a performer, arguably her finest performance. The role itself is much more complex than many of the parts offered to women in studio films today. George Raft was suspended by Paramount for his refusal to appear as "Trigger" in this film. Paramount head Adolph Zukor's reasoning that Raft turned down the part not because he objected to the material, but because he wanted more money.I first read about it in books on films of the 1930s, later I heard about it in documentaries on Pre-Code Hollywood. When I finally saw this forbidden film it was no gem. Like many of you I first saw Temple on VHS made from a worn 16mm collectors print years ago. It ranked as one of the worst transfers I had ever seen, almost unwatchable. But there was something there, to the story and the characters that drew me into the fuzzy darkness on the screen. The raising of ideas, situations and life mysteries that I found fascinating. Kind of like Dr. Jekyll wanting to know more about Hyde (another great Pre-Code Miriam Hopkins film.) But this screening is of the MoMA "To Save and Project" film preservation program and is a recently printed 35mm print made from the original negative that played to rave reviews at last years TCM Film Festival.One of the most daring Pre-Code films ever produced, this audacious film has been credited with being a catalyst for the creation of the Roman Catholic Church's National Legion of Decency. It was banned in Pennsylvania and Ohio, and Joe Breen ordered the film to never be re-released again once the Production Code came into effect in June of 1934. For many classic film fans, 1933's "The Story of Temple Drake" has long been something of a holy grail. Based on William Faulkner's novel, "Sanctuary", the story of a young Southern débutante with a wild side created a huge scandal upon its original release. The film was quickly pulled from release and went largely unseen for decades. Until now. Showing in a new 35mm print struck from the original camera negative!Georgia native Miriam Hopkins portrayed Temple Drake, (she made this film between Lubitsch's TROUBLE IN PARADISE (1932) and DESIGN FOR LIVING (1933)) The gangster is played by pop-eyed Jack LaRue in another of his great Pre-Code sleaze-bag performances.(This is only part 1 of 2, Continued…)