The Cabin in the Cotton

For those who are looking for a thoughtful and socially relevant Hollywood film, Cabin In The Cotton is it. The movie is rather quaint, even compared to other films of its time, but that's part of its charm.

The subject matter is unusual, in that both the struggling sharecroppers, and the wealthy land owners are portrayed as flawed individuals. Bette Davis performance as Madge gave her an early career opportunity to impress critics. Unlike her future roles, though, it isn't large or challenging. There is enough there to allow her to be a vulnerable,spoiled, and sexy minx. She also has eccentric dialogue and a glamorous wardrobe. Richard Barthelmess, in the lead role, as well as the supporting players, give very authentic performances. The cinematography is striking,giving the film a realistic rural atmosphere. A powerful and intelligent scene near the end reminds us that, in any profession, the necessary relationship between labor and management will always be a difficult battle.

Corny Pre-Coder about a peckerwood (Richard Barthelmess) on a Southern plantation who is torn between the poor cotton pickers and the greedy plantation owner, all while falling for the owner's seductive daughter (Bette Davis). Davis is the whole show here, giving a fun performance that borders on camp. Even her straight lines seem humorous thanks to her risible Southern accent. The movie's most memorable scene is when Bette drawls "I'd like to kiss you but I just washed my hair" and runs away while a sexually frustrated Richard Barthelmess stares after her. Barthelmess is just short of terrible in this, doing all of his acting in close-ups of his constipated face. Berton Churchill, Erville Alderson, and Russell Simpson are all good in supporting roles.

It's a film that's hard to take seriously at times but, if you stick with it, there is a decent 'message movie' here, the kind Warner Bros. excelled at in the 1930s. The interesting thing about the movie's pro-labor rights message is that, while the plantation owner is a villain, so are the poor workers. They include a slimeball who forces Barthelmess' widowed mother into marrying him in an unsettling scene. Their leader's another piece of work, gleefully planning to blackmail Barthelmess into helping them. So no "white hats and black hats" here; just different shades of despicable. But it's not a movie you watch for the story as much as for the performance of a young and attractive Bette Davis. She's really a treat to watch. My favorite scene is when Bette invites Barthelmess up to her room to seduce him. It's both sexy and unintentionally funny. Which pretty much sums up Bette Davis in this movie and why you just have to see it for her.

Michael Curtiz was none too happy having Bette Davis thrusted upon him when he was directing October 1932 "The Cabin in the Cotton." Producer Darryl F. Zanuck saw some spunk in the young actress that the Hungarian director failed to see. Besides a lead in George Arliss' 1932 "The Man Who Played God," Davis' roles were minor playing mostly meek characters. Her part as Madge Norwood called for a head-strong, devious sexpot that the director felt demanded a more hardened, experienced actress.

"Are you kidding?" huffed Cortez to Zanuck when he was told Davis was going to be the lead in his film. "Who would want to go to bed with her?" Having no choice in the matter, the director expressed throughout the shoot his lack of confidence in her right to Davis' face. He described loudly so everyone could hear that she was a "lousy actress," and followed up under his breath that she was a "nothing, no good sexless son of a b" when filming her love scenes with actor Richard Barthelmess. Davis, though sensitive to his insults, let his comments slide off her. "Mr. Curtiz," said Davis years later, "was a monster as he was a great European moviemaker. He was not a performer's director. You had to be very strong with him. And he wasn't fun. Cruelest man I have ever known. But he knew how to shoot a film well." Hard to believe, but the two ended up making seven films together.

"The Cabin in the Cotton," focused on the confrontation between a plantation owner in the Deep South and his sharecroppers. The script was adapted from a 1931 Harry Kroll novel of the same name. Barthelmess stars as Marvin Blake, a sharecropper's son whose ambition is to get a school degree instead of remaining in the fields picking cotton all day. Davis is Madge, the plantation owner's daughter, a free spirit who sides with her father. To be fair, the book and the Warner Brothers' picture doesn't take sides; both are ripping each other off. The farmstead owners are more secretive and clever by cooking the books, while the sharecroppers are visibly stealing from the plantation owners.

In one sense, "The Cabin in the Cotton" is a transformative movie transitioning from Hollywood's silent era to sound films. Davis in later years talked frankly about one of silent movie's greatest actors, Richard Barthelmess, and his acting style. "He did absolutely nothing in the long shots, followed basic stage directions for medium shots, and reserved his talent for the close-ups," noted the actress. "In that way it was necessary to use his close-ups almost entirely." Meanwhile, Barthelmess, 37, said of the 24-year-old Davis, "There was a lot of passion in her, and it was impossible not to sense that. One got the sense of a lot of feeling dammed up in her, a lot of electricity that had not yet found its outlet. In a way it was rather disconcerting - yes, I admit it, frightening."

Modern film reviewer Stacia Jones wrote, "Bette Davis' Madge is one of the few reasons to watch this film. Highly sexual and confident, Madge smokes, parties, and when leaving the car of a rich boyfriend, breezily tells him, 'Better luck next time!' She's modern in both style and acting. Her appearance is in stark contrast to Barthelmess' aged silent movie star look."

Davis, quoting directly from Kroll's novel, said one of the more famous lines comedian impersonators of hers loved to mimic. Madge, leaving her father's store, says energetically in her Southern drawl to Marvin, who works there and whom she is attracted to, "I'ld like ta kiss ya, but I just washed my hair."

The problems of Capital and Labor are well explored in this tight little drama set amongst cotton tenant farmers and their landlords. Striking cinematography and excellent direction, from Michael Curtiz, combine with a first-rate and intelligent screenplay to create a memorable film. The two sides are well presented, both good and bad, and, although the solution for reconciliation is never really explained, the result opens up areas for debate that are still relevant today.

The performances from everyone are very fine - the supporting cast is an extraordinary group of unique faces and personalities. And then there is Bette Davis, in one of her first roles, looking sensational (platinum blonde) and being very naughty - an implied nude seduction is a highlight - as is that famous line. She eats poor Richard Barthelmess for breakfast, spits him out at lunch, and devours his remains for dinner. Barthelmess' performance is wonderful - he was one of the best actors of the silent era and here is strong in one of his rare talkies. He is so good that he almost makes you forget that he is far too old for the idealistic boy straight out of school that he is supposed to be playing. Great film - see it.

With all the emphasis on Bette Davis in this film, it is easy to overlook the musical interest. I counted four different musical groups, each assigned to a different "class". There was the marching band at the funeral (black used at a poor white event), the jug band (white, at the poor white party), the jazz band (black, at the rich white party), and the blues singer. This is a surprisingly rich array of styles.

Interestingly, only the blues singer (Clarence Muse) is credited.