''The Warrior's Husband'' is a 1933 American

pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was an era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry that occurred between the widespread adoption of sound in film in the late 1920s and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship gui ...

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

directed by

Walter Lang Walter Lang (August 10, 1896 – February 7, 1972) was an American film director. Early life Walter Lang was born in Tennessee. As a young man he went to New York City where he found clerical work at a film production company. The business p ...

and starring

Elissa Landi Elissa Landi (born Elisabeth Marie Christine von Kühnelt; December 6, 1904 – October 21, 1948) was an Austrian-American actress born in Venice, who was popular as a performer in Hollywood, California, Hollywood films of the 1920s and 19 ...

David Manners David Joseph Manners (born Rauff de Ryther Duan Acklom; April 30, 1900 – December 23, 1998) was a Canadian-American actor who played John Harker in Tod Browning's 1931 horror classic ''Dracula'', which starred Bela Lugosi in the title role.Pa ...

, and

Ernest Truex Ernest Truex (September 19, 1889 – June 26, 1973) was an American actor of stage, film, and television. Career Truex was born in Kansas City, Missouri. He learned acting at an early age after his father, a doctor, treated actor Edwin Melvin, w ...

. It tells the story of the Amazons, who ruled over men thanks to the sacred girdle of

Diana Diana most commonly refers to: * Diana (name), given name (including a list of people with the name) * Diana (mythology), ancient Roman goddess of the hunt and wild animals; later associated with the Moon * Diana, Princess of Wales (1961–1997), ...

, and

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...

who came to steal it. The film is based on a 1932 Broadway production of Julian Thompson's 1924 play that starred

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress whose Katharine Hepburn on screen and stage, career as a Golden Age of Hollywood, Hollywood leading lady spanned six decades. She was known for her headstrong ...

in the lead role.

Plot

Pontus Pontus or Pontos may refer to: * Short Latin name for the Pontus Euxinus, the Greek name for the Black Sea (aka the Euxine sea) * Pontus (mythology), a sea god in Greek mythology * Pontus (region), on the southern coast of the Black Sea, in modern ...

, the land of the

Amazons The Amazons (Ancient Greek: ', singular '; in Latin ', ') were a people in Greek mythology, portrayed in a number of ancient epic poems and legends, such as the Labours of Hercules, Labours of Heracles, the ''Argonautica'' and the ''Iliad''. ...

, the gender roles and natures are completely reversed. Women are the strong sex, thanks to the sacred girdle of the goddess

(Roman names are used). It is in the care of queen

Hippolyta In Greek mythology, Hippolyta, or Hippolyte (; ''Hippolytē''), was a daughter of Ares and Otrera,Hyginus, ''Fabulae'', 30 queen of the Amazons, and a sister of Antiope and Melanippe. She wore her father Ares' ''zoster'', the Greek word foun ...

and her sister Antiope, the commander of the female armed forces. The men stay at home and take care of the children. Only Sapiens, the new husband of queen Hippolyta, advocates men's rights. Just like the relationships are reversed, so too are the Greeks for the Amazons a legendary race that probably doesn't exist, instead of the other way around. This is about to change when two Greeks come to court to announce that

needs to get the girdle of Diana to complete his twelve labours. In reality, Hercules may not be much of a threat, but his friend Theseus certainly is. Meanwhile, Sapiens, using his male wiles, is secretly trying to wreck the Amazon's defense from within. Eventually he manages to capture Hercules, and let him escape with the girdle. Without it, the Amazons lose the battle and the gender dynamic shifts to roles matching the social mores of the 1930s.

Main cast

as Antiope *

as Theseus *

as Sapiens *

Marjorie Rambeau Marjorie Burnet Rambeau (July 15, 1889 – July 6, 1970) was an American film and stage actress. She began her stage career at age 12, and appeared in several silent films before debuting in her first sound film, '' Her Man'' (1930). She was t ...

as Hippolyta *

Tiny Sandford Stanley J. "Tiny" Sandford (February 26, 1894October 29, 1961) was an American actor who is best remembered for his roles in Laurel and Hardy and Charlie Chaplin films. His tall, burly physique usually led him to be cast as a comic heavy, and ...

as Hercules *

Helen Ware Helen Ware ( Remer; October 15, 1877 – January 25, 1939) was an American stage and film actress. Early years Born to the architect John August Remer and Elinor Maria (née Ware), Ware adopted her mother's maiden name as her professional ...

as Pomposia *

Lionel Belmore Lionel Belmore (12 May 1867 – 30 January 1953) was an English character actor and director on stage for more than a quarter of a century. Life and career Onstage, Belmore appeared with Wilson Barrett, Sir Henry Irving, William Faversham, Lil ...

as Homer *

Maude Eburne Maude Eburne (born Maud Eburne Riggs, November 10, 1875 – October 15, 1960) was a Canadian character actress of stage and screen, known for playing eccentric roles. Early years Eburne was born the daughter of John and Mary Riggs, in Bron ...

as Buria

Production of Broadway play

The Broadway play of the year before is considered one of the breakthrough roles of

. It was a revival of a 1924 play by Julian F. Thompson (the play would re-appear in 1942 as a musical adaptation ''

By Jupiter ''By Jupiter'' is a musical with a book by Lorenz Hart and Richard Rodgers, music by Rodgers, and lyrics by Hart. The musical is based on the play '' The Warrior's Husband'' by Julian F. Thompson, set in the land of the Amazons. ''By Jupiter'' pr ...

''). The film version was made with an entirely different cast and music.

Preservation status

The film has not been issued on home video or shown on television, although

George Eastman House The George Eastman Museum, also referred to as George Eastman House and the International Museum of Photography and Film, is a photography museum in Rochester, New York. Opened to the public in 1949, is the oldest museum dedicated to photography ...

and the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...

have copies.

References

External links