Rent Merrily We Go to Hell (1932)
3.5 of 5 from 61 ratings
1h 18min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
Addiction, nonmonogamy, and female sexual liberation: decades before such ideas were widely discussed, Dorothy Arzner, the only woman to work as a director in 1930's Hollywood, brought them to the screen with striking frankness, sophistication, and wit - a mature treatment that stands out even in the pre-Code era. Fredric March (in one of four collaborations with Arzner) and Sylvia Sidney turn in extraordinary performances as an urbane couple whose relationship is pushed to the breaking point by his alcoholism and wandering eye, leading them into an emotionally explosive experiment with an open marriage. Exposing the hypocrisies and petty cruelties simmering beneath the surface of high-society elegance, 'Merrily We Go to Hell' is a scathing early-feminist commentary on modern marriage. - Actors:
- Sylvia Sidney, Fredric March, Adrianne Allen, Richard 'Skeets' Gallagher, George Irving, Esther Howard, Florence Britton, Charles Coleman, Cary Grant, Kent Taylor, Ernie Adams, Mildred Boyd, Edna Callahan, Leonard Carey, Harry Cording, Milla Davenport, Neal Dodd, Jay Eaton, Bill Elliott, Robert Greig
- Directors:
- Dorothy Arzner
- Writers:
- Edwin Justus Mayer, Cleo Lucas
- Aka:
- I, Jerry, Take Thee, Joan
- Genres:
- Classics, Comedy, Drama, Romance
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 14/06/2021
- Run Time:
- 83 minutes
- Languages:
- English LPCM Mono
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Full Screen 1.37:1
- Colour:
- B & W
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Dorothy Arzner: Longing for Women, a 1983 documentary by Katja Raganelli and Konrad Wickler
- New video essay by film historian Cari Beauchamp
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Reviews (1) of Merrily We Go to Hell
Ahead of its time - Merrily We Go to Hell review by TE
Despite a hastily contrived ending, 'Merrily We Go to Hell' stands out from the conventional crowd of early 1930s movies. Arguably the earliest and most successful female director in Hollywood history to date, Dorothy Arzner, gives an honest and challenging account of alcoholism, adultery and the power balance in heterosexual relationships (Arzner herself was a very 'out' lesbian).
The most interesting aspect of the film is the tension surrounding the point at which the loving wife finally accepts that the man she has married is a hopeless drunk and womaniser. After an initial period of grief, she decides to drink and have an affair herself.
In keeping with conventional morality (the infamous Hollywood Code was just around the corner) the wife is punished for her behaviour, so the interest is in the journey rather than the destination!
3 out of 3 members found this review helpful.