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Cult Review
Archivist John
Senior Editor
If you have about an hour to kill and like watching old silent movies where people make very intense faces at each other, this is worth a look. It’s for people who enjoy social satires or those weirdly specific dramas about the upper class being miserable.
If you hate reading title cards or can't stand the sight of a man in a tuxedo looking constipated for ninety minutes, you will probably hate this. It’s a bit of a slow burn, honestly.
The main guy is Dr. Röhn. He is a divorce lawyer who has seen everything and basically thinks love is just a lie people tell to get a better settlement.
He’s kind of a jerk, but in a way that feels relatable if you’ve ever had a bad week at work. He treats his clients like they are just annoying problems to be solved with a stamp and a signature.
There is this one shot of him in his office where he looks at a pile of divorce papers and just sighs. It’s the most human thing I’ve seen in a movie from 1928.
You can tell he thinks he’s smarter than everyone else in the room. Then, of course, he meets a woman and his whole "marriage is a trap" logic goes right out the window.
It’s funny how fast he flips. One minute he’s lecturing people on why bourgeois life is a nightmare, and the next he’s staring at her like a puppy.
The actress playing the love interest has these huge, expressive eyes that do most of the heavy lifting. I forgot her name for a second, but I think it's Vivian Gibson or maybe Arlette Marchal? One of them.
Anyway, the movie gets a bit messy once the rivals show up. There’s a guy who looks like he spends way too much money on hair oil.
He keeps hanging around and you just want Dr. Röhn to punch him, but they are too polite for that. They just stand around in fancy rooms and look stressed.
I noticed the sets are actually really cool. The furniture looks like it would be incredibly uncomfortable to sit on, all sharp angles and velvet.
It reminds me a little bit of the vibe in Don't Tell Everything, where everyone is keeping secrets for no reason. People in the twenties really loved making their own lives harder than they needed to be.
There is a scene at a party where the lighting is a bit weird. It looks like they only had one lamp and everyone had to stand right under it to be seen.
I liked the way the director handled the "existential struggle" stuff. It’s not as heavy as it sounds in the plot summary.
It’s mostly just people being stubborn. Dr. Röhn doesn't want to admit he was wrong about marriage being a disaster.
There’s a moment where he’s talking to his friend and he looks like he’s about to cry but then he just lights a cigarette instead. Very 1920s of him. 🚬
The pacing is a bit wonky in the middle. It feels like they had to stretch it out to make it a full feature.
Some of the title cards stay on screen for about five seconds too long. I found myself reading them three times before the movie actually moved on.
It’s not quite as intense as something like The Cheat, but it has its moments. It’s more of a "thinking person's" rom-com if that makes sense?
I actually laughed at one of the court scenes. The way the judge looks at the bickering couple is basically how I look at my cat when he's screaming for food.
It’s not a masterpiece, and some of the acting is a bit much. Like, we get it, you're sad, you don't need to clutch your chest that hard.
But for a movie about a cynical lawyer, it’s surprisingly sweet at the end. Even if the journey there is a bit dusty and full of people in top hats.
If you're bored on a Sunday, give it a go. Just don't expect it to change your life or anything.
One last thing—the fashion is incredible. I want every single coat shown in the first twenty minutes. 👗
IMDb —
1927
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