THE STORY OF A MAN WHO BURNT UP HIS SOUL FOR AN IDOL COLD AS ICE!
Insecure, club-footed doctor and failed artist Philip Carey (Leslie Howard) falls hopelessly in love with a London waitress (Bette Davis) who treats him with nothing but contempt. The first adaptation of the famous novel focuses on the most sensational aspects of it, creating a colorful and engaging melodrama without context that would have brought depth to the characters. Davis keeps humiliating Howard over and over, but we never really understand the mechanics behind their ”love” affair. A bit of a guilty pleasure, but Davis is dynamite in her breakthrough role as the vile Mildred.
1934-U.S. 88 min. B/W. Directed by John Cromwell. Novel: W. Somerset Maugham. Music: Max Steiner. Cast: Leslie Howard (Philip Carey), Bette Davis (Mildred Rogers), Frances Dee (Sally Athelny), Kay Johnson, Reginald Denny, Alan Hale… Reginald Owen.
Trivia: Katharine Hepburn and Irene Dunne were reportedly considered for the role of Mildred. Remade as Of Human Bondage (1946) and Of Human Bondage (1964).
