pre-Code
Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorshi ...
drama film directed by
John M. Stahl
John Malcolm Stahl (January 21, 1886 – January 12, 1950) was an American film director and producer.
Life and work
He was born Jacob Morris Strelitsky in Baku (Azerbaijan) to a Russian Jewish family. When he was a child, his family le ...
and starring
Irene Dunne
Irene Dunne (born Irene Marie Dunn; December 20, 1898 – September 4, 1990) was an American actress who appeared in films during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She is best known for her comedic roles, though she performed in films of other gen ...
Fannie Hurst
Fannie Hurst (October 18, 1889 – February 23, 1968) was an American novelist and short-story writer whose works were highly popular during the post-World War I era. Her work combined sentimental, romantic themes with social issues of the d ...
, it tells the story of a woman who spends her life as the secret mistress of a wealthy married man. The devotion and love of the woman to the married man determines that she will be the “back streets” of him in the whole life; a story of a love that was not destined. This was the first of three film versions of Hurst's novel; remakes were released in
1941
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January–August – 10,072 men, women and children with mental and physical disabilities are asphyxiated with carbon monoxide in a gas chamber, at Hadamar Eu ...
and
1961
Events January
* January 3
** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba ( Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015).
** Aero Flight 311 ...
.
Plot
In early 1900s
Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
, young and beautiful Ray Schmidt (Irene Dunne) works in her father's shop by day and stays out late drinking beer and dancing with various men by night, although her stepmother disapproves. Ray dates for fun, mostly going out with traveling salesmen passing through town, and neither she nor her dates are interested in any permanent attachment. An exception is Kurt Shendler, who owns a bicycle shop near Mr. Schmidt's shop and aspires to get into the automobile business. Kurt is in love with Ray and asks her to marry him, but she refuses because while she likes Kurt, she doesn't return his romantic feelings.
While visiting the train station with Kurt, Ray meets Walter Saxel (John Boles) and the two fall for each other at first sight. Walter soon confesses to Ray that he is actually engaged to another woman in town, Corinne, who comes from a wealthy background and whose mother is friends with his own mother. Nevertheless, he has fallen in love with Ray, and asks her to meet him at a local band concert that he will be attending with his mother. Walter hopes to introduce Ray to his mother and perhaps get her approval of the relationship. On the day of the concert, Ray is late arriving because her younger half-sister Freda is suicidal over her boyfriend, Hugo, leaving town. Freda begs Ray to go after Hugo and stop him, threatening to throw herself out a window if Ray does not help. By the time Ray has dealt with Freda's situation and gotten to the concert, it is over, and Ray cannot find Walter or his mother in the departing crowds. Walter, thinking she stood him up, writes her an angry letter and marries Corinne.
Several years later, Walter, now a rising young financier on
Wall Street
Wall Street is an eight-block-long street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs between Broadway in the west to South Street and the East River in the east. The term "Wall Street" has become a metonym for t ...
, runs into Ray who is single and working in New York City. The two renew their acquaintance and realize they still love each other, although Walter is still married and has two children. Walter sets Ray up in an inexpensive apartment and gets her to give up her job so she will be free to see him when he has time. However, his work, family and social commitments sometimes keep him away for long periods of time, causing Ray to feel lonely and isolated. After Walter takes an extended trip to Europe with his wife, leaving Ray alone with insufficient money to live on, she breaks up with him and accepts a proposal from Kurt, who has become a rich automobile manufacturer. Walter goes to Cincinnati to convince her not to marry Kurt and they resume their previous relationship.
Years pass, and Walter has become a wealthy and prominent financier. When he travels he now brings Ray along, although they must keep their relationship hidden and avoid being seen in public together, meaning Ray spends much of her time alone. Ray is the target of gossip and is hated by Walter's adult children, who regard Ray as a gold digger. Walter's son Dick tells Ray to get out of his family's life, but his father Walter walks in on the conversation and tells his son to be more understanding or at least to mind his own business. That night, Walter suffers a massive
stroke
A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...
and dies shortly thereafter. Just before Walter dies, he asks Dick to telephone Ray's number and hears her voice over the phone one last time. Dick, who now understands his father's feelings for Ray, goes to see her and offers to continue to support her. He finds her distraught over Walter's death and also learns that his father had been paying her only a very small amount per month, thus proving that she stayed in the relationship for love, not money. After Dick leaves, Ray dies looking at Walter's picture.
The filmography and production style
''Back Street'' tells the story of Ray Schmidt in a direct fashion, reflecting the very simple perspective of a woman of her kind in the 1930s. The screenplay writers,
Gladys Lehman
Gladys Lehman (born Gladys Collins) was a prolific American screenwriter who had a long career in Hollywood.
Biography
Lehman was born in Gates, Oregon, to James Collins and Lois Gates. She was the eldest of the couple's four children, and ...
and
Fannie Hurst
Fannie Hurst (October 18, 1889 – February 23, 1968) was an American novelist and short-story writer whose works were highly popular during the post-World War I era. Her work combined sentimental, romantic themes with social issues of the d ...
, wrote the story in straightforward chronological order. Director
John M. Stahl
John Malcolm Stahl (January 21, 1886 – January 12, 1950) was an American film director and producer.
Life and work
He was born Jacob Morris Strelitsky in Baku (Azerbaijan) to a Russian Jewish family. When he was a child, his family le ...
had a clear, easily comprehensible directing style, making sure that scenes lasted a long time and including mainly far-shots and relatively few close-up scenes. These techniques increase the effect of objectivity in the film and places its emphasis on the tragic aspects of the story itself rather than on its emotional effect on the characters. In certain shots of the film, Stahl only uses a steady camera set up, and in others he allows major movement of the camera.
The scenes are connected with straight fluency, having strong causal connections between each other. The cinematographer,
Karl Freund
Karl W. Freund, A.S.C. (January 16, 1890 – May 3, 1969) was an Austrian cinematography, cinematographer and film director best known for photographing ''Metropolis (1927 film), Metropolis'' (1927), ''Dracula (1931 English-language film), Dracul ...
, incorporated pictorial techniques, such as employment of a moving camera on set or changes in lighting, to make the message of the scene more apparent. Freund created the “
Unchained Camera
Unchained may refer to: Film and TV
* ''Unchained'' (film), a 1955 American prison film
* '' The Man Who Broke 1,000 Chains'' or ''Unchained'', a 1987 film
* "Unchained" (''Law & Order: Criminal Intent''), a 2005 episode of ''Law & Order: Crimi ...
”, which was revolutionary in its time. A new variety and range of shots were offered with this style of shooting. In ''Back Street'' there were few moments of movement in scenes, but when there was movement, the camera was shaky. This most likely occurred because the camera was unchained in Freund's technique.
The performances of the actors were restrained. The portrayals of Ray by Irene Dunne and Walter by John Boles are simple and untheatrical, offering a real-life feel. Unlike many films of this era, ''Back Street'' does not seem like a filmed stage play, but a
slice-of-life
Slice of life is a depiction of mundane experiences in art and entertainment. In theater, slice of life refers to naturalism, while in literary parlance it is a narrative technique in which a seemingly arbitrary sequence of events in a characte ...
that was relatable and revealing of the truth of many women's lives during the bleak period of the
Great Depression
The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
.
Cast
*
Irene Dunne
Irene Dunne (born Irene Marie Dunn; December 20, 1898 – September 4, 1990) was an American actress who appeared in films during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She is best known for her comedic roles, though she performed in films of other gen ...
George Meeker
George Meeker (March 5, 1904 – August 19, 1984) was an American character film and Broadway actor.
A graduate of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, Meeker made several films such as ''Crime, Inc.'' (1945) and ''A Thief in the Dark'' (1 ...
as Kurt Shendler
*
ZaSu Pitts
Zasu Pitts (; January 3, 1894 – June 7, 1963) was an American actress who starred in many silent dramas, including Erich von Stroheim's epic 1924 silent film ''Greed'', and comedies, transitioning successfully to mostly comedy films with the ...
as Mrs. Dole
*
June Clyde
June Clyde (born Ina Parton, December 2, 1909 – October 1, 1987) was an American actress, singer and dancer known for roles in such pre-Code films as ''A Strange Adventure'' (1932) and ''A Study in Scarlet'' (1933).
Early years
June Clyd ...
as Freda Schmidt
*
William Bakewell
William Bakewell (May 2, 1908 – April 15, 1993) was an American actor who achieved his greatest fame as one of the leading juvenile performers of the late 1920s and early 1930s.
Early years
Bakewell was a native of Los Angeles, where he at ...
as Richard "Dick" Saxel
* Arletta Duncan as Beth Saxel
*
Shirley Grey
Shirley Grey (born Agnes Zetterstrand; April 11, 1902 – August 12, 1981) was an American actress. She appeared in more than 40 films between 1930 and 1935.
Biography
Born in Naugatuck, Connecticut, Grey was the daughter of E. A Zetterstr ...
as Francine
*
Doris Lloyd
Hessy Doris Lloyd (3 July 1891 – 21 May 1968) was an English–American film and stage actress. She is perhaps best known for her roles in ''The Time Machine'' (1960) and ''The Sound of Music'' (1965). Lloyd appeared in two Academy Award w ...
as Corinne Saxel
*
Paul Weigel
Paul Weigel (18 February 1867 – 25 May 1951) was a German-American actor. He appeared in more than 110 films between 1916 and 1945.
Selected filmography
* '' Naked Hearts'' (1916) - Cecil's Father
* '' Each Pearl a Tear'' (1916) - Roger ...
as Adolph Schmidt
*
Jane Darwell
Jane Darwell (born Patti Woodard; October 15, 1879 – August 13, 1967) was an American actress of stage, film, and television. With appearances in more than 100 major movies spanning half a century, Darwell is perhaps best remembered for her p ...
as Mrs. Schmidt
*
James Donlan
James Donlan (July 23, 1888 – June 7, 1938) was an American actor. Born in San Francisco, California
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cul ...
as Phothero
*
Walter Catlett
Walter Leland Catlett (February 4, 1889 – November 14, 1960) was an American actor and comedian. He made a career of playing excitable, meddlesome, temperamental, and officious blowhards.
Career
Catlett was born on February 4, 1889, in S ...
as Bakeless
*
Robert McWade
Robert McWade (January 25, 1872 – January 19, 1938), was an American stage and film actor.
McWade was born in Buffalo, New York. He was the third actor named Robert McWade, after his father and grandfather.
In 1902, McWade debuted on stag ...
as Uncle Felix
*
Maude Turner Gordon
Maude Turner Gordon (November 10, 1868 – January 12, 1940) was an American actress who appeared in 81 films between 1914 and 1938.
Biography
Born in Franklin, Indiana, Gordon was the daughter of Alexander and Nancy Wright Turner. She wa ...