Dodsworth (1936)

101 min
Directed by William Wyler

A retired auto manufacturer and his wife take a long-planned European vacation only to find that they want very different things from life.

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12:1

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acoltismypassport

A great tale of a hypergamous trollop. Fantastically well done, and highly enjoyable.

9 years ago

dpka

Good job Sam, it took a long time but you find your way out.

7 years ago

William Wyler's 1936 adaptation of Sinclair Lewis' Dodsworth is a rather adult story of what happens when a married couple reaches the point where they are retired and their kids are all grown up, but I'm not sure it's an entirely balanced one. The author seems to side with Mr. Dodsworth, painting the Mrs. as a vain society snob, selfishly cruel in a way that makes it hard for me to fathom why all the men fall at her feet. Mr. Dodsworth's faults contribute to the marriage's decay, but seem benign in comparison. Or at least, more subtle. He's a bit dull, entirely unafraid of domesticity, all of which is a turn-off for a wife afraid to grow older. Had Mrs. Dodsworth been less of a jerk, Wyler might have gotten away with making her a tragic figure, and I think the audience might have come out of it more fairly divided (according to each person's experience). But she's clearly the villain, and deserves her lumps, and that perhaps robs the piece of that extra layer of emotional complexity it otherwise seems to be driving at.

5 years ago