Dodsworth (1936)

A retired auto manufacturer and his wife take a long-planned European vacation only to find that they want very different things from life.

Director:

William Wyler

Writers:

Sinclair Lewis (novel), Sidney Howard (dramatisation)

Stars:

Walter Huston, Ruth Chatterton, Paul Lukas

Won 1 Oscar. Another 2 wins & 9 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Walter Huston	...	Sam Dodsworth
Ruth Chatterton	...	Fran Dodsworth
Paul Lukas	...	Arnold Iselin
Mary Astor	...	Edith Cortright
David Niven	...	Captain Lockert
Gregory Gaye	...	Kurt Von Obersdorf
Maria Ouspenskaya	...	Baroness Von Obersdorf (as Mme. Maria Ouspenskaya)
Odette Myrtil	...	Renée de Penable
Spring Byington	...	Matey Pearson
Harlan Briggs	...	Tubby Pearson
Kathryn Marlowe	...	Emily Dodsworth McKee
John Payne	...	Harry McKee (as John Howard Payne)

Storyline

A bittersweet tale of the increasing estrangement of a retired automobile tycoon and his wife. Increasingly obsessed with maintaining an appearance of youth, she falls in with a crowd of frivolous socialites during their "second honeymoon" European vacation. He, in turn, meets a woman who is everything she is not: self-assured, self-confident, and able to take care of herself.

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Plot Keywords:

character name as title | surname as title | middle age | reconciliation | divorce | 

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Taglines:

A WOMAN'S PASSIONS Emotionally UNDRESSED

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French German Italian

Release Date:

23 September 1936 (USA)

Also Known As:

Dodsworth

Filming Locations:

Goldwyn Studios, Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

The Samuel Goldwyn Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Wide Range Noiseless Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

At the time of filming, Mary Astor was going through a very public and very scandalous divorce from her husband, who used Astor's diary to prove that she had been having an affair with playwright George S. Kaufman. With the press constantly stalking her, she sometimes slept on the set to avoid confrontation. Many people involved in the production sided with Astor throughout the ordeal, including William Wyler, Samuel Goldwyn and Ruth Chatterton, who appeared as a character witness on Astor's behalf. Ironically, Astor's character in this film is a divorcee.

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Goofs

The way Sam holds the pole when told he has a call from Vienna changes.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Secretary: [offscreen] Mr. Dodsworth?
Sam Dodsworth: Yes.
Secretary: The men are ready.

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Alternate Versions

The 1946 re-release, shown on the Turner Classic Movies channel, lists the end credits with a different order: Kathryn Marlowe is listed after Harlan Briggs, and John Payne is listed last, after Marlowe.

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Connections

Referenced in Hollywood Mouth 3 (2018)

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Soundtracks

La fille aux cheveux de lin
(uncredited)
Written by Claude Debussy
Heard when Fran burns Sam's letter

User Reviews

a quietly acted masterpiece

Having known Huston as the ornery prospector in The Treasure of Sierra Madre, seeing him here as a straight-speaking businessman is a revelation. All of the performances here are honest--I even had sympathy for the Ruth Chatterton character.

The movie demands your attention as much of the feelings and intents of the characters are shown in the lowering of eyelids, the hand gently brushed or the defeated posture of a formerly powerful tycoon. So watch it in a quiet setting with the phone turned off and a "do not disturb" sign on your door.

TCM showed this as an "Essential," and I hope they show it again soon.