Marriage melodrama, with Nancy Carroll and George Murphy.
You might call this film an early psychological study about jealousy, or the doubt and suspicion in a relationship, which leads to wrongheaded presumptions and conclusions. The film examines jealousy as a perverse nearsightedness that leads one always to assume the worst about one's mate. Jealousy is a notable film in that the male protagonist is able to foresee in stark terms the outcome he can expect if he continues to trust no one but himself. Because of woman's place in society at the time, I wonder if many films before Jealousy had depicted as harsh the consequences for a man caught up in domestic strife caused solely by jealousy.
It is easy to see that expectations (along with insecurity) are the cause of the jealousy problem between Mr. and Mrs. O'Roarke. What is expected of the wife of a jealous spouse, that she will lose all interest in other people, or have nothing more to do with a person of the opposite sex whom her spouse has mistakenly found threatening? These expectations lead the person trying to deal with the jealous spouse to lie because there are certain things her spouse simply cannot be told. He frequently misinterprets the innocent. These expectations are unspoken to the person who is supposed to modify her conduct to please the spouse. The jealous spouse himself may not even be sure what he expects. Since she doesn't know which particular act will be misjudged and lead to an emotional outburst, we watch the wife cover up innocent acts, because her husband could not see them outside the prism of jealousy.
Why do we have such expectations of those we 'love'? Is love a type of ownership? When does the most cherished person become an object? What do people we love owe us?
The strength of this film is that it does not accept the notion that rabid jealousy is something a person is entitled to simply because one is 'in love'. In this film, jealousy is a weakness that one must fight, or one may wind up giving one's life for its indulgence.
All the actors do a fine job, and the film is rather fast-paced.
I wish more film goers were aware of Nancy Carroll, in the way they are about another early 30's Paramount star, the wonderful Carole Lombard. Pretty Ms. Carroll always comes off as warm hearted and classy. I've made an effort to see as many of her films as I can find. I recommend her in 1930's The Devil's Holiday, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award.
You might call this film an early psychological study about jealousy, or the doubt and suspicion in a relationship, which leads to wrongheaded presumptions and conclusions. The film examines jealousy as a perverse nearsightedness that leads one always to assume the worst about one's mate. Jealousy is a notable film in that the male protagonist is able to foresee in stark terms the outcome he can expect if he continues to trust no one but himself. Because of woman's place in society at the time, I wonder if many films before Jealousy had depicted as harsh the consequences for a man caught up in domestic strife caused solely by jealousy.
It is easy to see that expectations (along with insecurity) are the cause of the jealousy problem between Mr. and Mrs. O'Roarke. What is expected of the wife of a jealous spouse, that she will lose all interest in other people, or have nothing more to do with a person of the opposite sex whom her spouse has mistakenly found threatening? These expectations lead the person trying to deal with the jealous spouse to lie because there are certain things her spouse simply cannot be told. He frequently misinterprets the innocent. These expectations are unspoken to the person who is supposed to modify her conduct to please the spouse. The jealous spouse himself may not even be sure what he expects. Since she doesn't know which particular act will be misjudged and lead to an emotional outburst, we watch the wife cover up innocent acts, because her husband could not see them outside the prism of jealousy.
Why do we have such expectations of those we 'love'? Is love a type of ownership? When does the most cherished person become an object? What do people we love owe us?
The strength of this film is that it does not accept the notion that rabid jealousy is something a person is entitled to simply because one is 'in love'. In this film, jealousy is a weakness that one must fight, or one may wind up giving one's life for its indulgence.
All the actors do a fine job, and the film is rather fast-paced.
I wish more film goers were aware of Nancy Carroll, in the way they are about another early 30's Paramount star, the wonderful Carole Lombard. Pretty Ms. Carroll always comes off as warm hearted and classy. I've made an effort to see as many of her films as I can find. I recommend her in 1930's The Devil's Holiday, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award.