Secrets (1933)

Director:

Frank Borzage

Writers:

Rudolph Besier (play)
May Edginton (play)

Release Date:

16 March 1933 (USA)

Genre:

Western

Plot:

Plot Keywords:

Based On Play

Cast

Mary Pickford	...	Mary Carlton / Mary Marlow
Leslie Howard	...	John Carlton
C. Aubrey Smith	...	Mr. William Marlowe
Blanche Friderici	...	Mrs. Martha Marlowe (as Blanche Frederici)
Doris Lloyd	...	Susan Channing
Herbert Evans	...	Lord Hurley
Ned Sparks	...	Sunshine
Allan Sears	...	Jake Houser
Mona Maris	...	Senora Lolita Martinez
Huntley Gordon	...	William Carlton as an Adult
Ethel Clayton	...	Audrey Carlton as an Adult
Bessie Barriscale	...	Susan Carlton as an Adult

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:Atp

Filming Locations:

United Artists Studios - 7200 Santa Monica Boulevard, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Mary Pickford Company

Trivia:

Marshall Neilan was the original director, but he was fired by producer Mary Pickford for showing up too drunk to work. He was replaced by Frank Borzage.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "The American Experience: Mary Pickford (#17.6)" (2005)

Mary shines in her final role!

SECRETS was the last movie Mary Pickford would appear in as an actress. In it she displays a much greater ease with the microphone than she did in her earlier talkies. Her performance is really quite superb, and should have paved the way for a long career as a character actress. She was 40 when she made this film, and it does stretch credulity a little to see her playing a virginal debutante in the early scenes - however, as the film goes on, and her character ages, she displays a tremendous range as an actress. And she's beautifully matched by Leslie Howard, who gives a very charming performance as her lover/husband.

Under the skilful direction of Frank Borzage, Mary is allowed many moments to do what a silent screen actor could do better than any other actor - express emotion without words. There is one scene, involving the death of a child, that is amongst the most moving scenes I have ever witnessed - and it is virtually a silent scene. All the emotion comes from Mary. All actors should watch this scene and learn what great screen acting is all about.

The screenplay is a little meandering, and peculiarly episodic. Based on a stage play, I get the impression that the film follows the three act play structure - First Act:light romantic comedy, Second Act:Western melodrama, Third Act:relationship drama - and finally an epilogue to tie-up all the loose ends. It's not an unentertaining structure, but it does seem a little odd. Through it all Pickford, Howard and Borzage stride with great skill, to create a memorable film, and a triumphant farewell to one of Hollywood's greatest stars.