Even with the top cast this film had, it's hard to imagine audiences going to see such a downer and weak comedy romance film in the heart of the Great Depression. But, "Forsaking All Others" is a good depiction of someone living a hedonistic life, and completely self-centered and self-absorbed. Robert Montgomery does that role quite well, as Dillon Todd.
If anything, people in the Depression-era audiences might have loathed the character or not otherwise been entertained by this movie. My guess is that the cast of more than half a dozen big names and several more favorite supporting actors was the appeal to draw audiences to this film. Data that tends to support this notion is that Clark Gable was in three of the top five movies for the year at the box office; and, Joan Crawford and Claudette Colbert each were in two of the top five. And all of those other films had much better stories than this one.
Furthermore, no two to five movies dominated the box office in 1934 as has been typical almost every year of cinema history. The top of the box office charts that year was "Bright Eyes" with Shirley Temple, at $5.8 million. "Cleopatra" with Colbert was second at $5.5 million. Third in box office for 1934 was the great comedy, "It Happened One Night," with Colbert and Gable, and which was the biggest Academy Award winner at five Oscars. "Forsaking All Others" was fourth for the year in box office at $4.0 million. The next 10 films had more than $3.3 million in ticket sales. And, the spread between the top 25 films in ticket sales for 1934 ($5.8 million for "Bright Eyes" and $2.9 million for "She Loves Me Not") was less than the box office sales of each of all the remaining movies made that year - more than 150 more films.
Montgomery's good performance of a self-absorbed cad is about all that can be said about this otherwise piece of melodrama. It has some snippets of witty dialog, but that's all there is for comedy. It's also billed as a love triangle, but a true triangle has the males competing for the female, which doesn't happen here. Joan Crawford is the object of Todd's "love" from childhood, as Mary Clay. But, so is Frances Drake an object to Todd as Connie Barnes who met him in his last six-month stay in Paris. One might see this as sort of a convoluted love triangle - where the male pines for both women. But, it's hard to believe that Mary didn't know Dill better, since they were friends from childhood. And where was her women's wisdom, insight and intuition in not having even an inkling that her other childhood chum, Jeff Williams, was in love with her?
Clark Gable provides a little interest as a true gentleman and friend. But the roles of Billie Burke, Rosalind Russell, Charles Butterworth and others don't do anything either to lift this film from its morass of melodrama. The final insult to the viewer's intelligence is the ending. Mary- who had loved Dill with all her heart just three months before and was stood up at the altar, still professed to love him, and plans a tryst with the ne'er-do-well Dill. So, now adultery isn't beneath her either, though no one can doubt that Dill's ready to betray his wife whenever he has a whim to do so. But then, learning from Shep (Butterworth) that it was Jeff who had sent the corn flowers for her aborted wedding with Dill, Mary realizes that she's madly in love with Jeff. It's hokey overload.
And, of course, during the depression, audiences wouldn't wonder where all of these characters got the money to live as they did. No one appears to be earning a living.
The plot and screenplay should have been an insult to Gable and Crawford at least, and even Billie Burke. Hollywood's output of films during the heart of the Great Depression slowed some, and that's when many of the Poverty Row studios finally closed their doors. Although this film made money, mostly due to its top cast, it didn't fare better than the rest of the top two dozen films, most of which had considerably smaller budgets. Nor was it one of nearly two dozen feature films to even receive a nomination in the Academy Awards for the year.
Here are most of the humorous lines from the film.
Shep, "What is that smell, fresh air?" Jeff Williams, "Yeah, and don't breathe too much of it - it's liable to collapse your lungs."
Mary Clay, "Wood chopping! That's what does the trick. The greatest exercise in the world." Jeff Williams, chuckling, "Yeah." Mary Clay, "Oh, you don't believe me huh? Well feel." She raises her arm for Jeff to feel, he squeezes and she slaps his hand and pulls away. Aunt Paula, "People from miles around come to pick up wood. They think she's crazy."
Shep, "I have a nice home where I can press a button and get anything I want, and I could've stayed there. But, no, I drive 13 hours in the hot sun so I can peel potatoes."
Mary Clay, going through her mail with Jeff, "Gas bill, $35 - how'd that happen?" Jeff Williams, "Hmmm, any suicides in your house last month?" Mary, "Only three or four, but they wouldn't have used that much gas."
Mary Clay, "Jeff, has it ever occurred to you that this is none of your business?" Jeff Williams, "It's none of my business when I see a dog being whipped, but I'll stop it every time."
Shep, "If you ask me, you're not going to Spain. You're going to a lunatic asylum."
If anything, people in the Depression-era audiences might have loathed the character or not otherwise been entertained by this movie. My guess is that the cast of more than half a dozen big names and several more favorite supporting actors was the appeal to draw audiences to this film. Data that tends to support this notion is that Clark Gable was in three of the top five movies for the year at the box office; and, Joan Crawford and Claudette Colbert each were in two of the top five. And all of those other films had much better stories than this one.
Furthermore, no two to five movies dominated the box office in 1934 as has been typical almost every year of cinema history. The top of the box office charts that year was "Bright Eyes" with Shirley Temple, at $5.8 million. "Cleopatra" with Colbert was second at $5.5 million. Third in box office for 1934 was the great comedy, "It Happened One Night," with Colbert and Gable, and which was the biggest Academy Award winner at five Oscars. "Forsaking All Others" was fourth for the year in box office at $4.0 million. The next 10 films had more than $3.3 million in ticket sales. And, the spread between the top 25 films in ticket sales for 1934 ($5.8 million for "Bright Eyes" and $2.9 million for "She Loves Me Not") was less than the box office sales of each of all the remaining movies made that year - more than 150 more films.
Montgomery's good performance of a self-absorbed cad is about all that can be said about this otherwise piece of melodrama. It has some snippets of witty dialog, but that's all there is for comedy. It's also billed as a love triangle, but a true triangle has the males competing for the female, which doesn't happen here. Joan Crawford is the object of Todd's "love" from childhood, as Mary Clay. But, so is Frances Drake an object to Todd as Connie Barnes who met him in his last six-month stay in Paris. One might see this as sort of a convoluted love triangle - where the male pines for both women. But, it's hard to believe that Mary didn't know Dill better, since they were friends from childhood. And where was her women's wisdom, insight and intuition in not having even an inkling that her other childhood chum, Jeff Williams, was in love with her?
Clark Gable provides a little interest as a true gentleman and friend. But the roles of Billie Burke, Rosalind Russell, Charles Butterworth and others don't do anything either to lift this film from its morass of melodrama. The final insult to the viewer's intelligence is the ending. Mary- who had loved Dill with all her heart just three months before and was stood up at the altar, still professed to love him, and plans a tryst with the ne'er-do-well Dill. So, now adultery isn't beneath her either, though no one can doubt that Dill's ready to betray his wife whenever he has a whim to do so. But then, learning from Shep (Butterworth) that it was Jeff who had sent the corn flowers for her aborted wedding with Dill, Mary realizes that she's madly in love with Jeff. It's hokey overload.
And, of course, during the depression, audiences wouldn't wonder where all of these characters got the money to live as they did. No one appears to be earning a living.
The plot and screenplay should have been an insult to Gable and Crawford at least, and even Billie Burke. Hollywood's output of films during the heart of the Great Depression slowed some, and that's when many of the Poverty Row studios finally closed their doors. Although this film made money, mostly due to its top cast, it didn't fare better than the rest of the top two dozen films, most of which had considerably smaller budgets. Nor was it one of nearly two dozen feature films to even receive a nomination in the Academy Awards for the year.
Here are most of the humorous lines from the film.
Shep, "What is that smell, fresh air?" Jeff Williams, "Yeah, and don't breathe too much of it - it's liable to collapse your lungs."
Mary Clay, "Wood chopping! That's what does the trick. The greatest exercise in the world." Jeff Williams, chuckling, "Yeah." Mary Clay, "Oh, you don't believe me huh? Well feel." She raises her arm for Jeff to feel, he squeezes and she slaps his hand and pulls away. Aunt Paula, "People from miles around come to pick up wood. They think she's crazy."
Shep, "I have a nice home where I can press a button and get anything I want, and I could've stayed there. But, no, I drive 13 hours in the hot sun so I can peel potatoes."
Mary Clay, going through her mail with Jeff, "Gas bill, $35 - how'd that happen?" Jeff Williams, "Hmmm, any suicides in your house last month?" Mary, "Only three or four, but they wouldn't have used that much gas."
Mary Clay, "Jeff, has it ever occurred to you that this is none of your business?" Jeff Williams, "It's none of my business when I see a dog being whipped, but I'll stop it every time."
Shep, "If you ask me, you're not going to Spain. You're going to a lunatic asylum."