Merrily We Go to Hell
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Merrily We Go to Hell
Plot
If only Merrily We Go To Hell was as interesting as its title! To escape an arranged marriage, heiress Joan Prentice (Sylvia Sidney) elopes with reporter Jerry Corbett (Fredric March). Unfortunately, Corbett is not only irresponsible, but also an abusive drunkard. To make matters worse, predatory Claire Hempstead (Adrienne Ames) has set her mind on stealing Corbett away from the hapless Joan. Finally fed up with her besotted mate, Joan walks out on him, only to discover that she's pregnant. The prospect of impending fatherhood causes Corbett to shape up and "dry out" in a hurry, but one still has doubts whether he'll be able to keep his promise never to touch another drop of liquor. Cary Grant has a tiny role as a stage actor in this unsettling blend of romance, drinking jokes, and Victorian melodrama. ~ Hal Erickson, RoviReview
An uneven but fairly entertaining blend of comedy and domestic melodrama, Merrily We Go to Hell was perhaps more engaging to 1932 audiences than it is to modern ones. Director Dorothy Arzner makes a very game attempt to reconcile the warring styles of the screenplay, but there's only so much she can do to make the pieces fit naturally. She's also rather more successful in mining the comic aspects of the story than the drama, perhaps because the comic sections have a bit more interest to them. Arzner puts a nice little bite into these sequences, a twist here and a pinch there that help to enliven the proceedings. She tries to do the same with the melodrama, but the material doesn't respond as readily. Edwin Justus Mayer's screenplay does contain a decent amount of good dialogue, but many of the plot points will strike modern viewers as tired, while others will come across as somewhat offensive. Fortunately, Merrily has Fredric March and Sylvia Sidney on hand to essay the main roles. Both bring their appealing screen personas to the parts, and they give their parts much more depth than Mayer did. There's also the joy of a young Cary Grant in a tiny role, and a supporting cast that is diverting. ~ Craig Butler, RoviCast
- Sylvia Sidney - Joan Prentice
- Fredric March - Jerry Corbett
- Adrianne Allen - Claire Hempstead
Credit
Dorothy Arzner - Director, Jane Loring - Editor, Dave Abel - Cinematographer, Edwin Justus Mayer - Screenwriter, Cleo Lucas - Book Author| Merrill's Marauders (1962 Film), Merrill Osmond: Back in Black (2003 Film) | |
| Merrily We Live (1938 Film), Merrily We Roll Along: The Early Days of the Automobile (1961 Film) |
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Merrily We Go to Hell
| Merrily We Go to Hell | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Directed by | Dorothy Arzner |
| Starring | Fredric March Sylvia Sidney Richard "Skeets" Gallagher Cary Grant |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
| Running time | 88 minutes |
| Country | United States |
Merrily We Go to Hell is a 1932 Pre-Code film starring Academy Award winning actor Fredric March and Sylvia Sidney. The film was directed by Dorothy Arzner. The film's title is an example of the sensationalistic titles that were common in the Pre-Code era.[1] Many newspapers refused to publicize the film because of its racy title.[2] March plays a man undone by alcoholism.[3] The title is a line his character says while making a toast.[4]
March plays an adulterous husband and Sylvia his wife, who, when she discovers his adultery, cheats on him with Cary Grant.[4] The film received a mixed review from The New York Times upon its release.[5]
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Plot
Jerry Corbett (Fredric March), a Chicago reporter and self styled playwright, meets heiress Joan Prentice (Sylvia Sydney) at a party and they begin dating. Even though Jerry's economic prospects are dim and he is an alcoholic, he proposes to Joan. She agrees to marry him, against her father's objections. Even when Jerry becomes inebriated at their engagement party, Joan stands by him. Jerry writes some plays which are rejected, and fights the urge to drink. He manages to sell a play and they go to New York to see it produced. The star of the production is Jerry's former girlfriend Claire, and on the premiere night he gets drunk, and mistakes Joan for Claire. Still, Joan stands by him. When Joan catches Jerry trying to go to Claire's one night she kicks him out. The following day she tells him that they will have a "modern marriage" and that she intends to have affairs herself.
When Jerry is next seen he is making a "Merrily we go to hell" toast with Claire. In turn Joan and her date toast to the "holy state of matrimony–single lives, twin beds and triple bromides in the morning." Joan becomes pregnant, and finds out she is in poor health. She tries to tell Jerry, but he is busy with Claire, so she moves on. Jerry quickly realizes that he loved her all along. He sobers up, returns to Chicago, and works as a reporter again, but Joan's father keeps them apart. Jerry discovers Joan's pregnancy from a gossip columnist and goes to the hospital to be with her. He has to force his way into her room, and discovers his wife near death. The baby is dead. Movingly, a repentant Jerry pledges his love to her in a heartfelt plea.
Cast
Sylvia Sidney ... Joan Prentice
Fredric March ... Jerry Corbett
Adrianne Allen ... Claire Hempstead
Richard "Skeets" Gallagher ... Buck
George Irving ... Mr. Prentice
Esther Howard ... Vi
Florence Britton ... Charlcie
Charles Coleman ... Richard Damery
Cary Grant ... Charlie Baxter
Kent Taylor ... Greg Boleslavsky
Reception
Mordaunt Hall, film critic for The New York Times, gave the film a mixed review upon its release.[5] Hall believed the film was wildly funny in stretches, and described the acting by the two leads as "excellent", but Hall felt the scenes where March played intoxicated went nowhere, and that the script was lacking.[5] However, despite similar reviews, which often noted that it had been directed by a woman, the film was one of the more financially successful films that year.[6]
Notes
- ^ Doherty. pg. 103
- ^ Doherty. p. 108
- ^ Merrily We Go To Hell, Times Daily, July 8, 1932, accessed October 11, 2010.
- ^ a b Merrily We Go to Hell, tcm.com, accessed October 12, 2010.
- ^ a b c Hall, Mordaunt. Merrily We Go to Hell (1932) - "I, Jerry, Take Thee, Joan.", The New York Times, June 11, 1932, accessed October 12, 2010.
- ^ Mayne, p. 59
References
- Doherty, Thomas Patrick (1999). Pre-Code Hollywood: Sex, Immorality, and Insurrection in American Cinema 1930-1934. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 0-231-11094-4. http://books.google.com/books?id=-cW3DtxYrsgC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false.
- Mayne, Judith (1994). Directed by Dorothy Arzner. Indiana University Press. ISBN 0-253-20896-3. http://books.google.com/books?id=Y1xSHLHGh7MC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false.
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