Cavalcade (1933)

The triumphs and tragedies of two English families, the upper-crust Marryots and the working-class Bridges, from 1899 to 1933 are portrayed.

Director:

Frank Lloyd

Writers:

Reginald Berkeley (screen play), Sonya Levien (continuity)

Stars:

Diana Wynyard, Clive Brook, Una O'Connor

Won 3 Oscars. Another 1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Diana Wynyard	...	Jane Marryot
Clive Brook	...	Robert Marryot
Una O'Connor	...	Ellen Bridges
Herbert Mundin	...	Alfred Bridges
Beryl Mercer	...	Cook
Irene Browne	...	Margaret Harris
Tempe Pigott	...	Mrs. Snapper
Merle Tottenham	...	Annie
Frank Lawton	...	Joe Marryot
Ursula Jeans	...	Fanny Bridges
Margaret Lindsay	...	Edith Harris
John Warburton	...	Edward Marryot
Billy Bevan	...	George Grainger
Desmond Roberts	...	Ronnie James
Dickie Henderson	...	Master Edward (as Dick Henderson Jr.)

Storyline

A cavalcade of English life from New Year's Eve 1899 until 1933 seen through the eyes of well-to-do Londoners Jane and Robert Marryot. Amongst events touching their family are the Boer War, the death of Queen Victoria, the sinking of the Titanic and the Great War.

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Plot Keywords:

mother daughter relationship | dysfunctional marriage | manipulative mother | manipulative wife | homosexual subtext | 

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Taglines:

A love that suffered and rose triumphant above the crushing events of this modern age! The march of time measured by a mother's heart!

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Genres:

Drama | Romance | War

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 April 1933 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cabalgata

Filming Locations:

Fox Movietone City, Westwood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,180,280 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$7,630,000

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$17,440,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film prominently features the RMS Titanic and received a wide release on April 15, 1933, the 21st anniversary of the Titanic sinking.

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Goofs

The Titanic's port of registry was Liverpool, not Southampton.

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Quotes

Jane Marryot: There should never be any good reason for neglecting someone that you love.

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Alternate Versions

The Fox Movie Channel (FMC) broadcasts the British version of the film, which had fewer onscreen credits than the American version. (The last title card reads "Distributed by Fox Film Co. Ltd., 13 Berners St. London, W.") Omitted in the British version were credits for the assistant director, dialogue director, film editor and costumes. In addition, it specified that the film was based on Charles B. Cochran's Drury Lane production. The IMDb credits are based on the American version, as listed in the AFI Catalogue of Feature Films, 1931 - 1940, which they determined from the records of Twentieth Century-Fox legal department. The soundtrack may also have been different in these two versions. Performance data in the IMDb soundtrack listing, however, was compiled from the viewed British version.

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Connections

Referenced in The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)

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Soundtracks

Twentieth Century Blues
(1931) (uncredited)
Written by Noël Coward
Sung by Ursula Jeans

User Reviews

An odd bird of a film

I enjoyed this film, not so much as a piece of entertainment that still holds up today, but as a moment frozen both in time and geography. Unlike "42nd Street" and "Dinner at Eight" which are other films from 1933 that I think most Americans would find very accessible today, you might not care for Cavalcade if you don't know what to look for.

This film is totally British in its perspective and it is also very much in the anti-war spirit that pervaded movies between 1925 and 1935 as WWI came to be seen by nearly all its global participants as a pointless war and caused everyone to lose their taste for fighting another.

The British perspective that you have to realize is that the Marryotts are accustomed to being on top - both in the world as England had dominated the globe for centuries, and socially, as they were part of the aristocracy. That didn't mean that they were snobs - they were very friendly and compassionate with their servants. But the point is, they were accustomed to the relationship being their choice and under their control. Suddenly England appears to be on the decline on the world stage and the servants they were so kind to are coming up in the world on their own and don't need their permission to enter society. Downstairs is coming upstairs, like it or not.

Downstairs is personified in this film by the Bridges family, Marryot servants that eventually strike out on their own and into business. Eventually the daughter, Fanny, enters into a romance with the Marryot's younger son. When Mrs. Marryot learns the news she is not so shocked as she is resigned to the fact that this is another sign that her world is slipping away. As for Fanny Bridges, she seems to personify post-war decadence as she grows from a child to full womanhood in the roaring 20's. At one point in the film, as a child, she literally dances on the grave of a loved one. This is not a good sign of things to come.

If the movie has a major flaw it is that it goes rather slowly through the years 1900 through 1918 and flies through the last fifteen years. Through a well-done montage you get a taste for what British life was like during that time - in many cases it looks like it was going through the same growing pains as American society during that same period - but it's only a taste.

Overall I'd recommend it, but just realize that it is quite different in style from American films from that same year.