Sadie Thompson

I had only seen Gloria Swanson in her more mature role in Sunset Boulevard and not in her heyday. She is gorgeous downright hot and very convincing as Sadie Thompson. The version of the W. Somerset Maugham story is superior to the better know Joan Crawford version Rain. Lionel Barrymore does a fantastic job as the self serving preacher. Raoul Walsh the well know director appears here as the serviceman who is in love with Sadie.

In this film, Swanson shows that she was one of those personalities who almost literally jumped from the screen. This is the first of two excellent film versions of Rain; the other being that of Joan Crawford.The fact that Swanson was somewhat older then Crawford adds to the greater impact of her performance, in my opinion. She offers us a world-weary prostitute who may or may not be looking to settle down; yet who still has fire in her veins. She does an outstanding job in conveying the emotions of Sadie both when she is sensuous and flirtatious at the beginning of the film; and when she undergoes a temporary change of character. Those of us who have seen Sunset Boulevard half-a-dozen times can easily see the anticipation of her bravura performance as Norma Desmond here, in Sadie Thompson. Her films after Sadie were trifles in which she had little opportunity to display any depth of character. Film history sentimentalists had to be gratified by her re-emergence in Sunset Boulevard, even though many might regard her performance there as somewhat overdone. All other components of this film are as admirable as other comments claim. However, I will put in a plug for Walter Huston in Rain, especially the brief close-up when you can see his judgmental attitude toward Sadie turn into lust. Lionel Barrymore is very good, but seems to me to be somewhat more remote from the character. The completion of the final scenes with stills and occasional bits of film are not a great barrier to enjoyment of this classic.

Sadie Thompson (1928) : Brief Review -

Raoul Walsh's zealous attempt to discover new proportions of human redemption powered by Gloria Swanson's Amazing performance. Walsh was a known name after he made the Magnum Opus 'The Thief Of Bagdad' (1924), before making this film. So it was unlikely to expect another gigantic adventure from him with a female-led film. Sadie Thompson has some issues in the climax, which might have been controversial for that time, but today when I look at the film, I understand his zealousness. Especially in the character played by Lionel Barrymore. It's a Gloria Swanson-led film alright but this character keeps tangling you. One just can't say whether he is a villain or a good soul. The same goes with Sadie's character too. You know she is a prostitute yet you want to see her get reformed. However, one must realise that it's not that easy. You just can't reform yourself just after you have decided, there's a process to test your ability. Sadie Thompson is a well made film in that sense. The way it shows that process and the desperate nature of all three leading actors, but the film gets a little messy and confusing at the end. There could be some valid reasons for that, philosophical or religious ones, but I don't want to get into such conversations. Sadie Thompson tells the story of a "fallen woman" who comes to Pago Pago to start a new life, but encounters a zealous missionary who wants to force her back to her former life. Her love story isn't formed well, too rushed I mean, but okay. The performances of all three leading actors makes it a must watch. Whatever remakes and adaptations are available out there, are not worthy enough. So prefer this first copy. It's no match to Raoul Walsh's best works like 'The Thief Of Bagdad' and 'White Heat', but as good as his 'High Sierra', and better than 'The Roaring Twenties'.

RATING - 7/10*

By - #samthebestest.

For those who would pigeonhole Raoul Walsh as an "action master" or "man's director", this small-focus drama with a female protagonist might seem at odds with his image. In fact, while he was a versatile director who could turn out a rousing action scene, it was the drama – particularly in the relationships between individuals – that was Walsh's greatest strength. Sadie Thompson in fact shows us his mastery of the technique in its purest form.

Walsh himself made the adaptation from the play "Rain", not as easy a task as it sounds – a play has to convey action through dialogue, while a silent film does the exact opposite. Sadie Thompson begins with a series of autograph mottos from each character, a rather clumsy way to introduce character. This is immediately followed however with a particularly smooth bit of film-making. We are given a point-of-view shot, as Swanson looks down at the group of soldiers on the shore, then we cut back to her, and the camera pulls back as she descends the gang plank. A few shots later the camera is dollying forward, following Swanson and the soldiers hovering around her. In this handful of shots we are subtly informed of Miss Thompson's profession, but also with those attention-grabbing point-of-view shots and camera movements we, the audience, are placed into the position of the characters. Walsh has drawn us into the story at this crucial establishing moment.

Considering it only really revolves around two developing relationships – that between Sadie and Tim, and that between Sadie and Davidson – the main part of the film is like a tour-de-force of different ways to shoot interaction between two people. The scenes between Swanson and Walsh are given the customary tenderness of a regular romance, with some delicate shot compositions that give it a natural, harmonious feel. The relationship between Swanson and Barrymore in contrast is full of intensity – lots of cuts, faces framed in stark close-up. What is particularly neat, is that all of the major dialogue scenes begin with a fair few title cards – getting the unavoidable wordy bits out of the way first – but then the dialogue fizzles out and the interaction continues with just the images, back and forth.

Of course, the effectiveness of the drama would be lost without great acting and, yes, this probably is Swanson's finest performance prior to Sunset Boulevard. I think Swanson was at her best when she was really allowed to let go, and put all her energy into a character, and to say she does that here would be an understatement. Lionel Barrymore is fine as the archetypal repressed Christian, a little hammy perhaps but then, he is a Barrymore. And Walsh himself absolutely acts his socks off, actually turning in the deepest performance of the picture, and the fact that his acting days were soon to be cut short is one of several tragedies regarding his career.

Speaking of tragedies, looming over Sadie Thompson is the unfortunate loss of the final reel, which has since been semi-reconstructed with stills and titles. While what we see today suffers from a very noticeable lack of a climax, the dramatic build up comes close to perfection. Considering its small scale and lack of action, Sadie Thompson was apparently a massive popular success. In his autobiography Raoul Walsh quotes several letters he apparently received from prostitutes of various nationalities which, while they may well have been fabricated or exaggerated slightly, are probably accurate at least in tone. By contrast the 1932 talkie version was a flop, despite an equally great cast, testament to Walsh's talent as a director of powerful cinematic drama.

This was the first version of the W. Somerset Maugham novel "Rain," which was remade in 1932 by the original title and again in 1953 as "Miss Sadie Thompson." Gloria Swanson is amazing in the title role as a prostitute who becomes stranded on the remote Island of Pago Pago. She flirts with a soldier (Raoul Walsh, who was the director), then seduces a respected preacher played by Lionel Barrymore. This certainly can be called one of the "pre-code" films of the 1920s/1930s, before the Hays Code was in effect. For many years the final scenes were lost, so now the restored versions use still photos and new title cards to complete the picture.