Devotion

No one suffers more in movie after movie than Ann Harding. The suffering is gloriously acute, intense and wonderfully relentless.

Robert Milton directed all of eleven films, and this was somewhere in the middle. Ann Harding stars as the prim and proper governess, who is only taking the job to be near Mr. Trent, a successful lawyer. Trent is played by Leslie Howard, who is slow to catch on, even when he is introduced to "the governess" out of costume, and without her wig. Harrington is played by Robert Williams, who would die quite soon, after making "Platinum Blond" with Jean Harlow. It's all well done, but moves quite slowly. There are complications, of course, and nothing is easy. Enjoyable enough, but so predictable. Harding was nominated for her part in Holiday; Howard was nominated for TWO oscars. and the awesome Alison Skipworth is in here as Mrs. Coggins... she had worked with W.C. Fields in FOUR films! great cast!

This was one stuffy romance. As a lesson in manners and properness, this movie was great, as a love story it was terrible.

Shirley (Ann Harding), the daughter of aristocrats, posed as a "nursery governess" (nanny) in order to work. She wanted to work to be her own woman, for the adventure--you know the cockeypoop rich people say when they're bored. Truthfully, she was doing it for Trent (Leslie Howard), a man she fancied. I guess this was the only way she could get close to him and make him fall in love.

It worked. It was clumsy, awkward, unromantic, and British, but it worked.

Their love was dealt a blow when Trent's estranged wife came home. Before Trent could even tell Shirley that he had an estranged wife, or before he could say that she just appeared again after four years, Shirley was gone. It was the standard romcom split over miscommunication/misunderstanding/misleading.

The whole thing was so stiff and proper it was hard to like. I have a hard time with romances in any case, so an unromantic unfunny romantic comedy certainly had no shot with me.

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What a bore. Every bit the "creaky early talkie", DEVOTION (1931) is stagey and the soundtrack is full of dead air and awkward silences. The story concerns "wallflower" Ann Harding disguising herself as a middle-aged governess in order to get closer to Leslie Howard (whom she secretly loves).

The movie is a chore to sit through. I've never really been a fan of Ann Harding, and she looks ridiculous in her old lady disguise. Seen nowadays, the movie is so preposterous and overdone as to be unintentionally funny. Harding's whole plan comes off as really creepy to a modern audience.

And why is Harding, a daughter in a fairly well-off family, doing chores with the servants while her parents and sisters entertain guests in the parlor? Is she the black sheep of the family? Is it a Cinderella situation?

The movie's not a total loss, however.

Robert Williams's naturalistic acting practically jumps off the screen, in contrast to the rest of the cast. Williams's bright future in Hollywood was cut short when he died shortly after this film's release in 1931. He had a natural way of delivering his lines that really stands out in DEVOTION, even though he only has a few scenes. If nothing else, this film gives viewers a rare chance to see Williams at work.

I have always thought that it was a shame that Leslie Howard is remembered today (if at all) for one of his weakest roles, that of Ashley Wilkes in GONE WITH THE WIND. He was so much better than that! An actor, director, playwright, you name it, he did it all. He was also a helpful mentor to other actors such as Humphrey Bogart (they became such close friends that Bogart named his daughter "Leslie") and William Gargan (who named his son Leslie Howard Gargan). In DEVOTION, Leslie Howard is a lawyer who is loved by Ann Harding from afar. Yes, the plot plays out a little like a Mills and Boon novel, but in such a charming manner that the viewer can just sit back and enjoy!

Will true love conquer all?