DbcultAccessing Vault...
6.5/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 6.5/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. A Bill of Divorcement remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
Is this movie worth your time today? Yes, but mostly if you want to see a legendary star being born right in front of your eyes.
People who love classic, high-intensity family dramas will eat this up. But if you can't stand old-fashioned plays where people shout their feelings at the ceiling, you will probably hate it. 😬
The setup is pretty wild. John Barrymore plays Hilary, a man who has been in an asylum for fifteen years.
He escapes on Christmas Day and just... shows up at home. The problem is his wife, played by Billie Burke, has finally gotten a divorce and is literally about to marry someone else.
It is based on a stage play, and boy, you can really tell. Almost the whole movie happens in one living room with giant windows.
When Barrymore first appears, his eyes are incredibly wide. He looks like he has had about twelve cups of black coffee and no sleep.
It is a very loud performance. He grabs his old pipe and starts weeping, and you don't know whether to feel sorry for him or run away.
But the real reason anyone still talks about this movie is Katharine Hepburn. This was her very first film, and she is just electric. ⚡
She plays Sydney, Hilary's daughter. She has this crazy, sharp energy and speaks like she is trying to bite her words in half.
Compared to the older acting styles in films like The Primitive Lover, Hepburn feels totally modern. She doesn't feel like she's acting; she feels like a real, slightly annoying teenager.
There is a great bit where she sits on the floor and just stares at the fire. The camera lingers on her face for a long time, and you can tell director George Cukor knew he had found someone special.
Some parts of the movie have aged pretty terribly, though. The way they talk about mental illness as a "hereditary curse" is super outdated and kind of uncomfortable now.
They treat it like some spooky monster hiding in the family tree. It makes the final act feel a bit silly, even though everyone is crying their eyes out.
Also, the fiancé character, Gray, has the most useless mustache in cinema history. He just stands by the fireplace looking polite while his wedding plans get totally ruined.
At one point, a small dog wanders into the frame. It looks completely lost, like it realized it was in the wrong movie and slowly backs away. 🐕
The whole thing wraps up so fast it makes your head spin. One minute everyone is screaming, and the next, Hepburn is making a big sacrifice and the music swells.
It is definitely not a perfect movie. But for a seventy-minute melodrama from 1932, it holds your attention way better than you would think.
IMDb 7.4
1930
Community
Log in to comment.
