Another Language

These non politically correct movies are the most enjoyable. Although his comedy is best, Robert Monty's drama skills are put to good use in this romantic drama. Snobby family versus down-to-earth daughter in law is predictable but it still works.

ANOTHER LANGUAGE is the story of a marriage that suffers because the husband (ROBERT MONTGOMERY) is a self-centered snob ruled by a family that views its mother (LOUISE CLOSSER HALE) as the matriarch of the family who must be paid attention at all costs and smothers Montgomery with motherly affection. I loved the line spoken by HENRY TRAVERS, who tells her at a crucial moment, "Shut up, ma and don't faint. He's not looking."

HELEN HAYES gives one of her more natural performances on film. Very often she was prone to stage acting techniques, but here her manner is subdued and never overplayed. Montgomery is excellent and makes the man a weakling the viewer can never really warm up to until the final moments when he stands by her side.

Rose Franken was an expert at telling stories about family relationships, as she did with "Claudia" and the sequel "Claudia and David". Here she paints a vivid portrait of unpleasant family relationships.

In strong supporting roles, MARGARET HAMILTON and JOHN BEAL repeat their stage roles effectively.

Anyone interested in family relationships will surely enjoy this movie about a manipulative matriarch, Louise Closser Hale, who is not averse to fake fainting spells to get her way with her four sons and their wives. The acting is first-rate by a stellar cast, five of whom (John Beal, Hal K. Dawson, Irene Cattell, Maidel Turner and Margaret Hamilton) were in the original Broadway production which opened 25 April 1932, and who reprised their roles. This was also the film debut of Beal, Hamilton and Cattell (the only film she ever made). But kudos go to the magnificent Helen Hayes as the new addition to the family who stands up to Hale, John Beal, as her sensitive nephew who falls in love with her, and Robert Montgomery playing Hayes' husband, still under the control of his mother. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. Stick with it until the end; the last 20 minutes are as riveting as any drama can be.

A young couple who've eloped (Robert Montgomery and Helen Hayes) return to New York and begin spending time with his family - his parents, two brothers and their wives, and his nephew. It slowly turns into a nightmare for her, because the mother is manipulative of her son, the sisters-in-law mix in cutting remarks with their pleasantries, and one of the brothers-in-law is an immature bore (one of the things he does is surprise women by running his hand along their back and making a slide whistle sound).

Her marriage begins to deteriorate because her husband sides with his family in their assessment that she's "high hatting" them. While it's true that she's more worldly and refined, she doesn't look down her nose at them at all, and in reality suffers from their barbs at the weekly get togethers. Enter the nephew (John Beal), who is also a bit of an outcast in the family, because he's interested in things like architecture and travel. He soon develops feelings for his aunt that go beyond normal affection, but despite her own unhappiness, she reminds him of how inappropriate it is.

You might divine that this is a pre-Code film because it deals with the incestual love a nephew has for his aunt, which, even if it isn't by blood, is obviously a taboo subject, or maybe because of a scene with a female model in the background of a sculpting class draped with thin sheer fabric. Despite how salacious it sounds (or how production stills show the model from the side, close-up and almost entirely nude), it feels pre-Code mostly because of how honest it is. There is such a realistic portrayal of the family's passive aggressiveness here that it's very frustrating and claustrophobic, and the script has a tight, very modern feel to it, particularly in the ensemble scenes.

I love Margaret Hamilton in this as one of the sister-in-laws, and Helen Hayes is as radiant as ever. Louise Closser Hale is great as the mother too, even if the character is irritating, and it's notable that it was her last film, as she would die at 60 two days before the film was released. It zips along at 77 minutes, never lagging, and while I wish it had ended a little differently, it made for a satisfying watch.

Rose Franken, now forgotten, was an estimable playwright of the first half of the 20th century, one of the very few women to reliably write Broadway hits. This is one such hit, a 1932 drama faithfully filmed with much of the original cast, with dialog neatly refashioned by two of MGM's best screenwriters, Herman Mankiewicz and Donald Ogden Stewart. Franken wrote particularly well about family dynamics, and that's pretty much all this is, the story of young marrieds threatened by the groom's unquestioning domination by a catty, conservative family, most especially his horror of a mother, well played by Louise Closser Hale. He's not an especially likable hero, often petty, self-centered, and domineering toward his wife, and Montgomery isn't afraid to emphasize his less attractive traits. So Helen Hayes is left to suffer quietly, trying to maintain her composure as his relatives mercilessly nitpick at her, and crushed every time she attempts to fight back. Hayes is, as usual, sexless, but she effectively catches this woman's desperation, and she partners well with John Beal, quite touching as the nephew who falls in love with her. (What happens to him? After his final exit, I expected to hear an offstage gunshot.) It's economical, swift storytelling, with a bunch of good character actors in support, and their portrayals, thanks largely to the writing, are well-rounded-- nobody's totally awful, except Louise Closser Hale's grasping mama.