NOTES: Keighley told me he was the "dialogue director" on this film. Also see "Films in Review" October 1974.
COMMENT: Although the Foreword is careful to point out that this film isn't going to take sides between the planters and the peckerwoods, it is pretty clear which side the scriptwriters favor. Certainly the planters do get a few arguments in, but Berton Churchill who plays his characteristic role of blustering double-dealing is hardly an ideal spokesman.
Still, leaving aside the question of the rights and wrongs on either side - which is now only of historical interest anyway - the film has an engrossing story which is just as exciting to-day as when it was first presented back in 1932. If anything the film is much less dated than the usual plantation drama thanks to the skilled direction of Michael Curtiz which concentrates on a crisp and realistic handling and the script's development of character and its avoidance of some of the more usual melodramatic clichés.
Two aspects I like are the genuine affection that obviously exists between father and daughter, never overtly stated but plain from their bearing and attitude towards each other, and the fact that Bette Davis receives no more than a climactic snub for her "sin" - actually none of the participants are punished for their crimes. Yes, this realistic script is a far cry from the tinselly, if idealistically "moral" reversions of normal human behavior that Hollywood was to turn out under the repressive hand of the Motion Picture Production Code. Curtiz's realistic handling is hampered in the early stages by the use of obvious stock shots and process backgrounds. Fortunately, this practice ceases quite early on. Curtiz directs the whole film in short, brisk takes (superlatively edited by George Amy).
Barney McGill's exquisite photography also ranks as a major asset not only for his broodingly atmospheric night scenes and the sparkle and whiteness of the plantation house episodes, but for the wonders he has done with Bette Davis. Davis certainly looks most attractive in this made-to-order part of the rich and spoilt daughter. She acts with appealing vivacity too, making the most of such lines as "I'd like to kiss you, but I've just washed my hair!" Co-star Richard Barthelmess is inclined to over-do the facial expressions indicating indecision and is not too believable as a poor sharecropper (he is too well-groomed and speaks too well), but I like him. He has a personality that is exactly right for this kind of role. The rest of the cast is most capable.
COMMENT: Although the Foreword is careful to point out that this film isn't going to take sides between the planters and the peckerwoods, it is pretty clear which side the scriptwriters favor. Certainly the planters do get a few arguments in, but Berton Churchill who plays his characteristic role of blustering double-dealing is hardly an ideal spokesman.
Still, leaving aside the question of the rights and wrongs on either side - which is now only of historical interest anyway - the film has an engrossing story which is just as exciting to-day as when it was first presented back in 1932. If anything the film is much less dated than the usual plantation drama thanks to the skilled direction of Michael Curtiz which concentrates on a crisp and realistic handling and the script's development of character and its avoidance of some of the more usual melodramatic clichés.
Two aspects I like are the genuine affection that obviously exists between father and daughter, never overtly stated but plain from their bearing and attitude towards each other, and the fact that Bette Davis receives no more than a climactic snub for her "sin" - actually none of the participants are punished for their crimes. Yes, this realistic script is a far cry from the tinselly, if idealistically "moral" reversions of normal human behavior that Hollywood was to turn out under the repressive hand of the Motion Picture Production Code. Curtiz's realistic handling is hampered in the early stages by the use of obvious stock shots and process backgrounds. Fortunately, this practice ceases quite early on. Curtiz directs the whole film in short, brisk takes (superlatively edited by George Amy).
Barney McGill's exquisite photography also ranks as a major asset not only for his broodingly atmospheric night scenes and the sparkle and whiteness of the plantation house episodes, but for the wonders he has done with Bette Davis. Davis certainly looks most attractive in this made-to-order part of the rich and spoilt daughter. She acts with appealing vivacity too, making the most of such lines as "I'd like to kiss you, but I've just washed my hair!" Co-star Richard Barthelmess is inclined to over-do the facial expressions indicating indecision and is not too believable as a poor sharecropper (he is too well-groomed and speaks too well), but I like him. He has a personality that is exactly right for this kind of role. The rest of the cast is most capable.