A Woman Rebels (1936)

The story revolves around Pamela, as a woman in late-1800's England who has no intention of marriage and wishes to be her own person. After a great deal of difficulty in finding a job, she ... See full summary »

Director:

Mark Sandrich

Writers:

Anthony Veiller (screen play), Ernest Vajda (screen play),

Stars:

Katharine Hepburn, Herbert Marshall, Elizabeth Allan

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Katharine Hepburn	...	Pamela Thistlewaite
Herbert Marshall	...	Thomas Lane
Elizabeth Allan	...	Flora Anne Thistlewaite
Donald Crisp	...	Judge Byron Thistlewaite
Doris Dudley	...	Young Flora
David Manners	...	Lieutenant Alan Craig Freeland
Lucile Watson	...	Betty Bumble
Van Heflin	...	Lord Gerald Waring Gaythorne

Storyline

The story revolves around Pamela, as a woman in late-1800's England who has no intention of marriage and wishes to be her own person. After a great deal of difficulty in finding a job, she finally lands a position at a "woman's" magazine, which covered topics such as sewing and cooking. After the editor takes sick, she moves the magazine into discussing issues of gender equality, child labor, medical care, and finding a job. She then finds herself as the unexpected leader of a movement. After an unexpected event, she is also faced with raising a child without a father, which people at that time thought was scandalous.

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Plot Keywords:

magazine | england | tennis | motherhood | governess | 

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Taglines:

She's glorious ...As a Woman In Arms! ...He's Magnificent As the Man She Adores.

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Genres:

Drama | History | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

6 November 1936 (USA)

Also Known As:

Portrait of a Rebel

Company Credits

Production Co:

RKO Radio Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Victor System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film lost $222,000 at the box office and was Katharine Hepburn's 3rd flop in a row, contributing to exhibitors declaring her "box office poison".

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Quotes

Miss Piper, the Governess: As women, the first thing of importance is to be content to be inferior to men, inferior in mental power in the same proportion that she is in physical strength. A really sensible woman feels her dependence. She's conscious of her inferiority and therefore grateful for her thought.

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Soundtracks

"The Wedding March"
(1843) (uncredited)
from "A Midsummer Night's Dream, Op.61"
Written by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy
Played at Flora's and Alan's wedding

User Reviews

Entertaining, but not a relevant approach to feminism

Katharine Hepburn shines as always in this entertaining film that tries to focus on the raise of feminism in the last mid-century. The subject is interesting enough and so is the personality of the main character, played consistently by Miss Hepburn in a mixture of strength and frailty, but unfortunately this ends being a soapy melodrama. Extremely watchable, but could have been a more relevant approach to feminism.