Watching Marriage in Name Only (1923) - A messy silent drama

If you are looking for something to put on while you fold laundry, this isn't it. You actually have to read the cards to know why everyone is so mad.

Is it worth watching today? Only if you have a soft spot for grainy German films where the actors move like they’ve had way too much coffee.

Historians will probably dig it. People who want explosions or fast talking will absolutely hate it. 🎬

The whole plot is basically a business deal disguised as a wedding. It reminds me a bit of the vibe in A Girl from the Reeperbahn, though maybe a little less gritty.

Robert Thiem is the lead here. He spends a lot of time looking out of windows like he’s waiting for a delivery that is three hours late.

He has this mustache that is so perfectly groomed it actually becomes distracting. I spent at least five minutes wondering how much wax was involved.

Then there is Evelyn Holt. She is great at looking tragic without making it feel like a joke.

There is a scene in a dining room where no one is talking—obviously, it’s a silent movie—but you can feel the silence being awkward. It’s one of the best moments.

The way they pass the salt shaker is more dramatic than most action movies today. I'm not even kidding.

The lighting is pretty hit or miss. In some shots, the shadows make the actors look like they are part of the wallpaper.

I noticed a weird smudge on the lens during one of the garden scenes. It stays there for like three minutes.

It’s kind of funny how Hans Mierendorff enters every room like he’s about to announce he won the lottery. He has a lot of energy.

Maybe too much energy for a movie about a sad marriage. 🤷‍♂️

The costumes are the real stars, honestly. The hats are huge.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Marriage in Name Only (1930) through its definitive frames.

I wonder how the actresses kept their necks straight with those giant things on their heads. It looks exhausting.

If you’ve seen Samson und Delila, you know how these old productions love their scale. This one is smaller, but the rooms still feel like museums.

One thing that bothered me was the pacing in the second act. It feels like they forgot to film a scene and just used an extra-long title card to explain what happened.

It’s a bit of a shortcut. I wanted to see the argument, not just read that it happened.

The film gets better once the characters stop being so polite. There is a confrontation near the end that actually made me lean forward.

Valerie Boothby has a look in her eyes that says she knows exactly how messy this situation is. She’s probably the smartest person in the script.

I also kept thinking about The Great Shadow while watching this. Not because they are the same, but because they both have that heavy atmosphere.

It’s the kind of movie that feels like a long Sunday afternoon. It’s not exactly exciting, but it stays with you for a bit.

The ending is... well, it’s an ending. It happens very fast.

You get the feeling the director was ready to go home. Or they ran out of light.

I didn't hate it, but I don't think I'll watch it again next week. It’s a one-and-done kind of deal.

If you like old-school drama and don't mind the flicker of the film, give it a go. Just bring your own music because the score on the version I saw was kind of annoying. 🎹

Random stuff I noticed:

• The wallpaper in the main office is hideous.
• Robert Thiem drinks tea very aggressively.
• The dog in the background of the park scene looks very happy to be there.
• There is a lot of finger-pointing. Like, a lot.

It’s definitely better than some other stuff from that year, like Air Tight. At least this one has a heart, even if it’s a bit of a cold one.

Final thought: If you like seeing how people used to act before they were allowed to speak on screen, this is a decent study. 📽️