The Barretts of Wimpole Street is based on the 1930 play of the same name. It stars the excellent Norma Shearer as Elizabeth Barrett, the invalid poet who falls in love with the even more famous poet of the time, Robert Browning (Frederic March), after they have been corresponding with one another by mail.
If you're looking for a detailed analysis of the poetry of these prominent 19th century poets, you will not find it here. Snippets of verses are uttered during the proceedings, but "The Barretts" is chiefly an Oedipal drama (more specifically one that illustrates The Electra Complex).
It's Elizabeth's father, Edward, a dour curmudgeon, who's invested his time in ensuring that his daughter remain a hopeless invalid (she spends all her time ensconced in bed, never even getting up to join the rest of the family for a meal). Edward is played by the iconic thespian, Charles Laughton, who delights in playing the obsessed, villainous parent and hams up the part for the maximum benefit of us, the bemused audience.
When Browning suddenly makes an appearance live and in person at the Barrett residence, Elizabeth's demeanor suddenly transforms into what might be termed as "life affirming." Before you know it, she lifts herself out of bed and is walking about!. Frederic March captures Browning's joie de vivre perfectly, casting his optimistic countenance toward his beloved Elizabeth, eventually convincing her to flee the accursed house where her father has been intimidating and even terrorizing her and her siblings since childhood.
The drama comes down to will she or won't she? That is, does Elizabeth have enough gumption to stand up to her father and make a run for it? Meanwhile the wily father will do anything to ensure that his daughter never escapes his clutches by announcing that he has sold the house in London and plans to move everyone to an isolated residence in the suburbs.
The film I believe was "pre-code" and Laughton suggests (through some over-the-top machinations) that Edward Barrett had incestuous feelings toward his daughter (in the climactic scene, he's all over her and one step away from committing an act of molestation!).
There is also a subplot here involving Elizabeth's sister Henrietta, who is smitten with a man (a young Army officer) and attempts to overcome her father's debilitating resistance.
Good melodramas usually have good villains, and Laughton keeps the narrative afloat through his over-the-top performance. You can't get more villainous than when the father threatens to take the family dog to a vet and have it euthanized, as an of vengeance, against the daughter who has left the father's home, and eloped).
But it's also Shearer's performance as Elizabeth that made this film successful at the box office as well as a darling among the critics. Elizabeth fits in perfectly with Shearer's image as an independent woman of her time (Shearer was one of the few actresses in Hollywood to make the difficult transition from silent screen star to the "talkies").
The Barretts of Wimpole Street is often slow-moving as it was originally a stage play. Despite being released in 1934, due to the excellent performances, the film doesn't feel as dated as some of the creakier melodramas of that era.
On a side note, for those interested in hearing Browning recite his poetry (and end up flubbing his lines), one can listen (on Youtube) to the first recording of a celebrity made on an early Edison wax cylinder, in 1889, one month before the noted poet passed away!
If you're looking for a detailed analysis of the poetry of these prominent 19th century poets, you will not find it here. Snippets of verses are uttered during the proceedings, but "The Barretts" is chiefly an Oedipal drama (more specifically one that illustrates The Electra Complex).
It's Elizabeth's father, Edward, a dour curmudgeon, who's invested his time in ensuring that his daughter remain a hopeless invalid (she spends all her time ensconced in bed, never even getting up to join the rest of the family for a meal). Edward is played by the iconic thespian, Charles Laughton, who delights in playing the obsessed, villainous parent and hams up the part for the maximum benefit of us, the bemused audience.
When Browning suddenly makes an appearance live and in person at the Barrett residence, Elizabeth's demeanor suddenly transforms into what might be termed as "life affirming." Before you know it, she lifts herself out of bed and is walking about!. Frederic March captures Browning's joie de vivre perfectly, casting his optimistic countenance toward his beloved Elizabeth, eventually convincing her to flee the accursed house where her father has been intimidating and even terrorizing her and her siblings since childhood.
The drama comes down to will she or won't she? That is, does Elizabeth have enough gumption to stand up to her father and make a run for it? Meanwhile the wily father will do anything to ensure that his daughter never escapes his clutches by announcing that he has sold the house in London and plans to move everyone to an isolated residence in the suburbs.
The film I believe was "pre-code" and Laughton suggests (through some over-the-top machinations) that Edward Barrett had incestuous feelings toward his daughter (in the climactic scene, he's all over her and one step away from committing an act of molestation!).
There is also a subplot here involving Elizabeth's sister Henrietta, who is smitten with a man (a young Army officer) and attempts to overcome her father's debilitating resistance.
Good melodramas usually have good villains, and Laughton keeps the narrative afloat through his over-the-top performance. You can't get more villainous than when the father threatens to take the family dog to a vet and have it euthanized, as an of vengeance, against the daughter who has left the father's home, and eloped).
But it's also Shearer's performance as Elizabeth that made this film successful at the box office as well as a darling among the critics. Elizabeth fits in perfectly with Shearer's image as an independent woman of her time (Shearer was one of the few actresses in Hollywood to make the difficult transition from silent screen star to the "talkies").
The Barretts of Wimpole Street is often slow-moving as it was originally a stage play. Despite being released in 1934, due to the excellent performances, the film doesn't feel as dated as some of the creakier melodramas of that era.
On a side note, for those interested in hearing Browning recite his poetry (and end up flubbing his lines), one can listen (on Youtube) to the first recording of a celebrity made on an early Edison wax cylinder, in 1889, one month before the noted poet passed away!