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5.9/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 5.9/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. The Royal Family of Broadway remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
You should watch this if you have ever felt like your family is a bit too much. It is definitely for people who like old-fashioned theater talk and fast-moving dialogue.
If you hate movies that feel like they are stuck in one room, you will probably hate this. It is very 'stagey' and doesn't try to hide it at all.
I watched this on a Tuesday night when I was feeling kind of tired, and it actually woke me up because of how loud everyone is. It is a bit of a relic, but a loud one.
The whole movie is about the Cavendishes, who are basically the Barrymores but with the names changed to avoid a lawsuit. They live in this giant apartment that looks like a museum for people who love themselves too much.
Fanny is the grandma and she is played by Henrietta Crosman. She is great because she just refuses to get sick or stop acting, even when she clearly should sit down for a minute.
Then there is Julie, played by Ina Claire. She is the one actually holding the family together and making money, but she looks like she wants to scream every five seconds.
The plot is kind of thin, honestly. Julie wants to maybe marry a guy who owns a mine in South America and quit the stage.
Her daughter Gwen is also thinking about quitting to marry a 'normal' guy. But the movie doesn't really care about the romance as much as the drama of the family.
Okay, the real reason to watch this is Fredric March. He plays Tony, the brother who is a big Hollywood star and is currently running away from a girl he promised to marry.
He is doing a John Barrymore impression that is so over-the-top it becomes its own thing. The way he moves is just... weirdly athletic?
There is a scene where he comes home and he is just vibrating with energy. He runs up these stairs like he is trying to win an Olympic medal.
He throws his coat, he shouts at the servants, and he acts out a fencing match all by himself. It is a lot to take in.
I think he might have been trying to make the back row of a theater hear him, even though this is a movie. It is exhausting but you can't really look away.
It reminded me a bit of the energy in The Gate Crasher but way more theatrical and intense. 🎭
The sound quality is a little rough because it was 1930. You can hear the 'hiss' of the early talkie technology, which makes the shouting even more piercing.
There is a moment where Tony is talking about a director and he makes this face that looks like a gargoyle. I had to rewind it just to make sure I saw it right.
The costumes are also wild. Julie wears these dresses that look like they weigh about fifty pounds.
And the hats! Everyone is wearing these giant hats that must have made it impossible to see the person sitting behind them in a theater.
I kept wondering how they didn't knock over all the vases in that crowded apartment. There is so much stuff everywhere.
The movie really wants you to believe that being an actor is a noble, crazy calling that you can't escape. It is a bit melodramatic about it.
When the 'normal' guys show up to marry the Cavendish women, they look so boring. You almost want the women to stay in their crazy house because at least it isn't dull.
It’s not quite as weirdly sentimental as The Hope Chest, but it has that same feeling of people being stuck in their social roles. They just can't help themselves.
There is a scene near the end where Fanny talks about the 'glory' of the theater. It feels like the movie is trying to convince the audience that actors are special, but mostly they just seem like they need a nap.
There is this tiny dog that shows up in a few scenes. Nobody really pays attention to it, but it looks very confused by all the yelling.
I spent about five minutes just watching the dog in the background while the actors were having a big emotional moment. The dog is the only one in the room acting like a normal person.
Also, the way they talk about 'Hollywood' as this terrible, dirty place is funny. Especially since they are in a movie while saying it.
The writing is sharp, though. You can tell Herman J. Mankiewicz worked on the script because the jokes are mean in a clever way.
It’s not as outdoorsy or fresh as something like The Flash of the Forest. It feels very indoors, very dusty, and very expensive.
The ending is kind of sad but also feels like a foregone conclusion. You know these people are never going to live 'normal' lives.
It stops pretty abruptly. One minute they are talking, the next it’s just over.
I think they ran out of things to shout about. Or maybe the actors just got tired of running up those stairs.
It’s a weird movie because it’s a comedy that feels like it might turn into a tragedy at any second. But it never quite does.
Anyway, if you want to see what theater people were like a hundred years ago, this is probably the best record of it. It’s messy and loud and kind of annoying, just like a real family.
I don't think I'll watch it again soon, but I'm glad I saw Fredric March do that staircase run. It was truly something else.
IMDb —
1916
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