''The Letter'' is an American

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 ...

dramatic film directed by

Jean de Limur Jean de Limur (13 November 1887, Vouhé, Charente-Maritime – 5 June 1976, Paris) was a French film director, actor and screenwriter. His works include '' La Garçonne'' (1936) and '' The Letter'' (1929). A French army officer and a designer, h ...

and released by

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

. It was the first full-sound feature shot at

Astoria Studios The Kaufman Astoria Studios is a film studio located in the Astoria section of the New York City borough of Queens. The studio was constructed for Famous Players-Lasky in 1920, since it was close to Manhattan's Broadway theater district. The p ...

, Queens, New York City. A silent version of the film was also released. The film stars stage actress

Jeanne Eagels Jeanne Eagels (born Eugenia Eagles; June 26, 1890 – October 3, 1929) was an American stage and film actress. A former Ziegfeld Girl, Eagels went on to greater fame on Broadway and in the emerging medium of sound films. She was posthumously no ...

in her final role and

O.P. Heggie Oliver Peters Heggie ( Otto Peters Heggie; 17 September 1877 – 7 February 1936), billed as O. P. Heggie, was an Australian film and theatre actor best known for portraying the hermit who befriends the Monster in the film ''Bride of Frankenstei ...

. The film was adapted by

Garrett Fort Garrett Elsden Fort (June 5 1990 – October 26 1945) was an American short story writer, playwright, and Hollywood screenwriter. He is mostly known for his connections with 1930s horror films, with film historian Gary Don Rhodes describing hi ...

from the 1927 play '' The Letter'' by

W. Somerset Maugham William Somerset Maugham ( ; 25 January 1874 – 16 December 1965) was an English writer, known for his plays, novels and short stories. Born in Paris, where he spent his first ten years, Maugham was schooled in England and went to a German un ...

. It tells the story of a jealous married woman who kills her lover and is brought to trial.

Plot

Bored and lonely living on her husband's rubber plantation, Leslie Crosbie takes a lover, Geoffrey Hammond, but he eventually tires of her and takes a Chinese mistress, Li-Ti. When Leslie learns of Geoffrey's new mistress, she insists on seeing him while her husband is away and tries to rekindle his love. However, Geoffrey is not moved and informs Leslie that he prefers Li-Ti. Leslie becomes enraged and shoots Geoffrey repeatedly. At the murder trial, Leslie perjures herself on the stand, claiming that she had little to do with Hammond and that she shot him when he tried to rape her. Meanwhile, Li-Ti's emissary provides Joyce, Leslie's attorney, with a copy of a letter in which Leslie begged Hammond to visit her. Li-Ti is ready to sell it for $10,000, provided Leslie makes the exchange. On Joyce's advice, Leslie agrees. Li-Ti humiliates her but eventually accepts the money. Leslie is found not guilty. Joyce presents his bill to Leslie's husband Robert, who demands to know why the expenses total $10,000. Joyce relates the story of Li-Ti's blackmail and gives Robert the damning letter. Robert confronts Leslie and forces her to admit everything. Leslie proclaims that she still loves the man whom she had killed. As punishment, Robert keeps her on the plantation even though he no longer has any money.

Cast

as Leslie Crosbie *

Reginald Owen John Reginald Owen (5 August 1887 – 5 November 1972) was a British actor. He was known for his many roles in British and American films and television programs. Career The son of Joseph and Frances Owen, Reginald Owen studied at Sir Herbert ...

as Robert Crosbie *

Herbert Marshall Herbert Brough Falcon Marshall (23 May 1890 – 22 January 1966) was an English stage, screen and radio actor who starred in many popular and well-regarded Hollywood films in the 1930s and 1940s. After a successful theatrical career in the Uni ...

as Geoffrey Hammond *

Irene Browne Irene Browne (29 June 1896 – 24 July 1965) was an English stage and film actress and singer who appeared in plays and musicals including ''No, No, Nanette''. Later in her career, she became particularly associated with the works of Noël Coward ...

as Mrs. Joyce *

as Mr. Joyce * Lady Tsen Mei as Li-Ti *Tamaki Yoshiwara as Ong Chi Seng

Preservation status

''The Letter'' was long out of circulation. In June 2011, a restored edition of the film was released on home video by Warner Bros. as part of its

Warner Archive Collection The Warner Archive Collection is a home video division for releasing classic and cult films from Warner Bros.' library. It started as a manufactured-on-demand (MOD) DVD series by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on March 23, 2009, with the inte ...

as a made-on-demand DVD.

Awards and nominations

Jeanne Eagels, who died just months after the film was completed, was posthumously nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Actress The Academy Award for Best Actress is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading role in a film released that year. ...

. She was the first performer to be nominated by the Academy after her death, although all nominations at the

2nd Academy Awards The 2nd Academy Awards, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) on April 3, 1930, at an awards banquet in the Cocoanut Grove of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, honored the best films released between August 1, ...

were unofficial, and she was listed among several actresses "under consideration" by a board of judges. ''The Letter'' was included in the Top Ten Films list of 1929 by the

National Board of Review The National Board of Review of Motion Pictures is a non-profit organization of New York City area film enthusiasts. Its awards, which are announced in early December, are considered an early harbinger of the film awards season that culminat ...

Remake

, who plays Leslie's lover in the film, also appears as her husband in William Wyler's 1940 Warner Bros. remake.

Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress with a career spanning more than 50 years and 100 acting credits. She was noted for playing unsympathetic, sardonic characters, and was famous for her pe ...

received an

Oscar nomination The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

for the role of Leslie Crosbie in the 1940 version.

References

External links

*
online streamed copy of ''The Letter''''The Letter''
All Movie.com
''The Letter''
at Virtual History
lobby card to ''The Letter''Notes on ''The Letter''
at Toronto Film Society, includes reprints of 1929 reviews {{DEFAULTSORT:Letter, The 1929 films 1929 crime drama films 1929 romantic drama films Adultery in films American crime drama films American romantic drama films American silent feature films American black-and-white films American courtroom films 1920s English-language films American films based on plays Films based on works by W. Somerset Maugham Films directed by Jean de Limur American multilingual films Transitional sound films Films shot at Astoria Studios 1920s multilingual films Films with screenplays by Garrett Fort Films about murder 1920s American films Silent romantic drama films Silent American drama films