Jennie Gerhardt: A Slog Through the Manners of the Past

Is it worth your time?

Honestly, it depends on how much you like watching people make mistakes in black and white. If you’re into the old-school studio melodrama where everyone acts like they’re holding their breath, you’ll find something to latch onto here. If you’re looking for a brisk pace or a protagonist who actually screams at someone for being a jerk, skip it. You will probably hate this if you get annoyed by characters who just take whatever misery is thrown at them.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Jennie Gerhardt (1933) through its definitive frames.

It’s not quite as punchy as The Luring Lights, but it’s got that same desperate energy bubbling underneath.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Jennie Gerhardt (1933) through its definitive frames.

Watching Jennie fade away

Sylvia Sidney is doing a lot of heavy lifting here. She spends a lot of the runtime just staring off into the middle distance, looking burdened by secrets. It’s a very specific kind of sad face that people don’t really do in movies anymore.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Jennie Gerhardt (1933) through its definitive frames.

The Senator character? A total classic mess. He’s all smiles and promises until reality hits, and then he just sort of folds. There’s a scene where he’s trying to explain his social standing to her, and the way he pauses—like he’s waiting for a round of applause that isn’t coming—is just plain uncomfortable to sit through. I think the editor might have fallen asleep during the transition, because the scene just... stops.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Jennie Gerhardt (1933) through its definitive frames.

It feels like it wants to be a big, sweeping statement on class, but it mostly just feels like a bad relationship that won't end. 🙄

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Jennie Gerhardt (1933) through its definitive frames.

Odd little details

• The hotel lobby set looks like it’s held together with tape and good intentions.
• Everyone wears their hats like they’re afraid they’ll blow away if they look down.
• The lighting in the bedroom scenes is strangely claustrophobic. It makes you feel like you’re trapped in the room with them, which I guess is the point, but still.

There’s a moment toward the middle where the film almost starts to feel like Trial Marriage, where you think, 'Oh, maybe they’ll actually talk this out.' And then they don’t. They just look at each other and walk into different rooms. It’s infuriating.

It’s not a masterpiece, and it doesn't try to be. It’s just a long, weary sigh of a movie. Sometimes that’s enough, I guess. If you need a palate cleanser after something loud, this might fit the bill. Just don’t expect to come away feeling lighter.