by
Laura Lai/Review
Director:
Edgar Selwyn
Helen
Hayes (Madelon Claudet) – The Best Actress Award
Lewis
Stone (Carlo Borretti)
Neil
Hamilton (Lawrence Claudet – Madelon’s son)
MGM,
1931
‘The Sin of Madelon Claudet’
was adapted from a play (‘The Lullaby’ by Edward Knoblock) and it tells the
story of a young woman, Madelon, who leaves her father following her love for
an American young man that she met in Paris, who left and had never returned.
From this love story, a boy was born – Lawrence Claudet, called Larry. Madelon –
magnificently interpreted by Helen Hayes – left him at some friends, as a
certain Hubert did not want to marry her and raise her child and Carlo Borretti
(Lewis Stone), who actually married her, did not want to intrude with her
personal life, knowing all the time that she had a son, visiting and supporting
him. Madelon had always thought that she married a prosperous businessman, but
actually all the jewelries that she was worrying proved to be stolen, Carlo got
caught, his real name revealed, committed suicide and she went in prison for
ten years completely not guilty. Twelve days after her released, settled on
July 18th, 1909 she went to visit her son in the orphanage he was
taken care of and she decided to tell him that his mother was dead. So, Edgar
Selwyn presents the story of both the mother and the son, as their destinies
are intertwined. The son proved to be a very good pupil and was noticed to be
able to become a promising doctor. From this point on, Madelon did everything
possible – including stealing, and not being caught – to support her son’s
dream of becoming a doctor. The money was reaching her son through a truly honest
mentor that he had.
Given the fact that the whole
life story is presented as a flash back, starting with Larry’s wife wanting to
leave him and the mentor telling the whole story, I wondered here and there
which life story I was actually following: that of the mother or that of the
son? I think it’s both. Larry became a doctor and although he had never met his
father or his mother, he became a very fine young man. The movie does not tell,
but I believe that the director wanted to suggest that Larry was seeing his
mother in all old ladies left by their sons that were also his patients. The
most beautiful scene to me, was the one in which Madelon – old and ill – went
to the house of her son, cleaned the shining golden plate at his door saying
‘Dr. Larry Claudet’ – lovely and emotional! – and sneaking into his studying
office. The scene in which she touched all the books her son studied from and
she struggled hard to buy them for him is very emotional to me. It is the
outcome of all her struggle, the climax of the whole movie and it reminded me
of my parents’ struggle to buy all my books to study from. Unfortunately, it
also reminded me of all ‘non-quality people’ I met during my PhD studies and my
struggle to get a ‘doctor degree’.
My
parents’ struggle is every responsible parent’s struggle. I can easily
understand that. But it is impossible for me to understand these ‘non-quality
people’s’ constant years-long struggle so that I have not financial means, no
job and no scholarship to finish it. These ‘non-quality’ people’s struggle
against a doctorate degree makes absolutely no logical sense to me. I guess
‘evil’ is to be recognized, not to be understood or accepted. And, of course,
to stay away from it. Indeed I summarize the whole experience to the word
‘evil’, but the film director summarizes the whole struggle to one name
‘Madelon’.
As
a fluently French-speaker, I did not find the name ‘Madelon’ chosen by Edgar
Selwyn as being accidental. As a matter of fact, I do not find accidental
anything that a film director chooses to use or to express in the movie s/he
makes. And I cannot tell you the pleasure I have to discover what that is and
why, and what else can tell, etc, etc. A true great fascination for my cinephile
mind!!! I worked with French names and the ‘Madelon’ name is either rare, old
or it doesn’t exit. Instead, it exists as a noun. The ‘madelon’ is a type song
– and this movie is inspired by a play called ‘Lullaby’ – that was created by
French soldiers and sang during the WWI. And war is a great human struggle.
What a better name than ‘Madelon’ for this struggling lovely young woman? Furthermore,
in the movie there is a scene in which she painted. I would not be surprised
that a French impressionist painter might have inspired the name ‘Claudet’.
Fascinating details!
This Hollywood movie ‘The Sin of
Madelon Claudet’ made in 1931 reminded me of a Bollywood movie that I watched
in the late 1980s, when I was a child. It is more than thirty years ago, but
back then the cinemas were state owned and I could see many movies free of
charge – in the morning, it’s true, but it didn’t matter to me. And it does not
matter to me now either. To me, movies are like the butter that goes on bread
anytime anywhere. It was enough to present my pupil notebook and I was entering
free of charge as a pupil. There was no other way that a child (from a family
in which only my father worked) to see so many movies. Edgar Selwyn’s black and
white movie reminded me the Indian colorful movie ‘Vandana’. It is the story of
a woman who also ends up in jail – for a crime she did not commit and then she
is released – but in the end, she got reunited with her son. In comparison to
Larry, Vandana’s son knew about her mother. The most emotional scene in ‘Vandana’
Indian movie is when the son separated from the mother for a long time and long
pretending to be his nanny (she took that job at the family raising her son,
just to be around her son) told her: ‘Mother, blood never turns into water.’
Great stories! Great movies! The
role of Madelon Claudet fitted Helen Hayes like a glove. Magnificent role!
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