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"Of Human Bondage," 1934 American Drama, Directed by John Cromwell, Starring Bette Davis and Leslie Howard


DIShGo

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"Of Human Bondage" is widely regarded as the film that made Bette Davis a star. Because I have been watching the FX series "Feud: Bette and Joan," and the finale of that miniseries is tonight, I wanted to see a young Ms. Davis portray the crass Mildred Rogers.

I cannot say that I liked this film very much, but I am glad I saw it.  If you have Amazon Prime, you can stream it online without any additional charges. To borrow one of Davis' lines from the movie, "I don't mind" it, but I wouldn't go out of my way to recommend it, either. However, if you are at all interested in film history or Bette Davis, you should watch this movie.

"Of Human Bondage," is W. Somerset Maugham's story of the club-footed Philip Carey, a would-be artist and a wanna-be doctor who falls in love with the vulgar little waitress, Mildred Rogers, played by Davis. The film is based on the 1915 novel of same name, which the Modern Library ranked No. 66 on its list of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century.

Mildred is one of the most unlikable characters I have seen on film. Carey is played by Leslie Howard, a popular actor in the 1930s, best known for his role as Ashley Wilkes in "Gone with the Wind." Carey is an uncharismatic and weak-willed leading man, who time and time again comes back for more abuse from the psychopathic Mildred.

The bondage of which the film speaks is the way humans become attached to one another, even when that love is unrequited. A central theme is that in a romantic relationship, one person is doing most of the loving the while the other is simply reaping the benefits of being beloved.

This is a topic that could have made for an interesting psychological drama, but the film falls short. The movie is slow paced and dated. Davis' acting makes the film, and often feels ahead of its time, but her performance is marred by her uneven cockney accent. I don't mind slow moving, melodramatic films. One review I read said the film is dull and slow because it was made in the early stages of "talkies," and the pacing is more like a silent movie. I am not sure I buy into this. Some of the best films I have seen were slow-paced, romantic and silent, including 1919's "Broken Blossoms," and "The Lodger," from 1927. What elevates these films above "Of Human Bondage" is the chemistry between the actors and the likability of the characters they portray.

Still, I am happy I saw "Of Human Bondage" and witnessed Davis' bold, brash performance as cruel and manipulative Mildred. She did not receive an Academy Award nomination for her performance. So many people thought she deserved not only to be nominated but to win, they wrote in her name for Best Actress. As a result, despite not officially being on the ballot, Davis came in third.

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On 4/23/2017 at 8:13 PM, DIShGo said:

Still, I am happy I saw "Of Human Bondage" and witnessed Davis' bold, brash performance as cruel and manipulative Mildred. She did not receive an Academy Award nomination for her performance. So many people thought she deserved not only to be nominated but to win, they wrote in her name for Best Actress. As a result, despite not officially being on the ballot, Davis came in third.

Are you sure this is pre-code? The Hays Code took effect - albeit not for all films (refer to "The Thin Man") - in 1930, became strictly enforced in 1934, and the film begins with this panel (which is why I ask):

Screenshot 2017-04-25 at 12.14.00 PM.png

 

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3 hours ago, DonRocks said:

Are you sure this is pre-code? The Hays Code took effect - albeit not for all films (refer to "The Thin Man") - in 1930, became strictly enforced in 1934, and the film begins with this panel (which is why I ask):

Screenshot 2017-04-25 at 12.14.00 PM.png

I originally included pre-code in my title for this post because "Of Human Bondage" is frequently referred to as that. The film seems to fall into a gray area. According to an article I read, the film was released on June 28, 1934, and the Hays code became strictly enforced on July 1, 1934. However, the movie didn't go into wide release until July 20th, so it was subject to the newly enforced code after all. The print held by the Library of Congress (used for the Blu-Ray release) shows the Code certificate at the start, which you posted above.

I don't want to give too much of the film away for those who haven't seen it yet, but I can see elements of pre-code and post-code in this movie.

***SPOILERS FOLLOW***

For example, paintings of nude French models are shown and discussed, and premarital sex and an out-of-wedlock birth occur, which implies pre-code. References to prostitution, however, stated outright in the book, are vaguely hinted at in the film, and a case of syphilis is changed to tuberculosis, which is more in line with post-code standards.

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On 4/25/2017 at 3:43 PM, DIShGo said:

I originally included pre-code in my title for this post because "Of Human Bondage" is frequently referred to as that. The film seems to fall into a gray area. According to an article I read, the film was released on June 28, 1934, and the Hays code became strictly enforced on July 1, 1934. However, the movie didn't go into wide release until July 20th, so it was subject to the newly enforced code after all. The print held by the Library of Congress (used for the Blu-Ray release) shows the Code certificate at the start, which you posted above.

I don't want to give too much of the film away for those who haven't seen it yet, but I can see elements of pre-code and post-code in this movie.

This is very interesting (to a small subset of people), and should have its own thread.

I'm 30-minutes into the film, and ...

*** SPOILER ALERT ***

... yes, I saw those paintings you mentioned early on. My question is this: After Mildred Rodgers (Bette Davis) gets married, Philip Carey (Leslie Howard) is canoodling with another woman, who looks a *lot* like Bette Davis - I just now reached this scene, and I'm wondering if this is by chance, or if there's some sort of transference going on here.

Related question: Is it Donald Trump's "fault" that he's President, or is it the people's fault who voted for him? Think about this long and hard - there are many, many Donald Trumps - maybe not with a billion dollars, but with the same ambitions.

To show the age of the films we're discussing, Emil Miller (Alan Hale), the man who wed Mildred Rodgers, died 67 years ago. This also shows just how new of an art form Film is - and we won't even go into Television, which was just getting its roots when Emil Miller passed away - if we were discussing Painting from 1950, it would be thought of as modern.

Philip's line to Norah (Kay Johnson) summarizes all I've seen thus far: "Usually, there is one who loves, and one who is loved." That describes the terrible human condition known as "having a crush on someone"; it does *not* describe "love," although romantics would love to have you believe that it does; it doesn't. (*)

Love, true love, is so much messier, and harder-to-define, than this primal impulse.

You know what really hurts? When the medical attendants come in, and confirm that Mildred is dead - one of them says, "This is what you call the Irony of Fate" ... and then Mildred - the great Bette Davis ... blinks - watch her left eye. And, the bonds have been broken.

This is a beautiful film. I fear you've implied it's a "niche" movie because the bar-of-quality in this forum has been set so high, but there is absolutely nothing short of "very, very good" in the 1934 version of "Of Human Bondage" (there were two more filmed later). And yes, it's very important if you're tracking the career of Bette Davis, but even if you aren't, it's a really good - if very old - film.

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On 4/25/2017 at 4:12 PM, DonRocks said:

*** SPOILER ALERT ***.

Philip's line to Norah (Kay Johnson) summarizes all I've seen thus far: "Usually, there is one who loves, and one who is loved." That describes the terrible human condition known as "having a crush on someone"; it does *not* describe "love," although romantics would love to have you believe that it does; it doesn't. (*)

Love, true love, is so much messier, and harder-to-define, than this primal impulse.This is a beautiful film. I fear you've implied it's a "niche" movie because the bar-of-quality in this forum has been set so high, but there is absolutely nothing short of "very, very good" in the 1934 version of "Of Human Bondage" (there were two more filmed later). And yes, it's very important if you're tracking the career of Bette Davis, but even if you aren't, it's a really good - if very old - film.

I agree with your conclusion that Norah oversimplifies the concept of love and is, in fact, describing infatuation.

As I have thought more about this film, and my assessment of it, I believe I was too dismissive. If Mildred was a little less awful and if Philip displayed a little more backbone, I might have been more emotionally invested in the outcome of their romance. But she was horrid and he was such a doormat. That was the hurdle I had trouble getting over.

On 4/25/2017 at 4:12 PM, DonRocks said:

To show the age of the films we're discussing, Emil Miller (Alan Hale), the man who wed Mildred Rodgers, died 67 years ago. This also shows just how new of an art form Film is - and we won't even go into Television, which was just getting its roots when Emil Miller passed away - if we were discussing Painting from 1950, it would be thought of as modern.

This is a fascinating way to look at this. The film really doesn't feel that dated when you think about it this way.

***SPOILERS FOLLOW***

By the way, no one ever wed Mildred Rogers. She told Philip she was marrying Emil when in fact, she was merely sleeping with him. The wedding of Emil and Mildred depicted on film took place only in Philip's imagination. Emil was married to someone else and tossed the pregnant Mildred back out onto the streets when he was finished with her. 

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