Vanity Fair (1932)

Becky Sharp is a devious young beauty obsessed with the trappings of high society. And there is no shortage of immoral men to shower her with the finer things in return for her favors - her best friend's brother, her best friend's husband, her employer and employer's son, to name a few. As she glides coldly from affair to affair, she leaves a wake of shattered friendships and devastated hearts. Unable to see the growing lines in her face or the deepening circles under her eyes which mirror her inner corruption, Becky lives life by her own bankrupt set of standards that threaten to destroy her.

Produced in 1932, this adaptation of William Makepeace Thackeray's biting 19th century literary masterpiece was the first sound version after four silent Vanity Fair productions. Two years after her dark portrayal of Becky Sharp, Hollywood beauty Myrna Loy appeared in her most famous and beloved role - that of witty sophisticate, Nora Charles, in The Thin Man, opposite William Powell. By 1936, her popularity was such that she was named "Queen of the Movies" in a nationwide poll.

• drama