For the Defense

A pre-Code crime drama from Paramount, directed by John Cromwell. William Powell plays William Foster, a slick criminal defense lawyer who specializes in getting crooks acquitted. He is in love with Irene Manners, played by Kay Francis, a dancer who is also seeing Jack Defoe on the side. When Irene kills a pedestrian while driving Jack's car, Jack takes the blame, and Foster ends up defending him, only to discover that a ring he gave Irene is at the crime scene. The film is a showcase for Powell's effortless sophistication and Francis's cool glamour, a pairing Paramount would reuse the same year in *Ladies of Leisure*. Published in 1930, the film entered the public domain in the United States on January 1, 2026.