Half Marriage

Okay, so this film would never win any awards, but for the viewer today, it offers a rather interesting example of a film made during the transition to sound period. Viewers get to see a couple of roaring 20's party scenes, great flapper attire, hear a 20's style torch singer, and see a fabulous art-deco style apartment, and that almost makes it worthwhile.

The plot is simple: Two young people marry in secret because her rich family would disapprove of her "poor" up-and-coming boyfriend. However, keeping the marriage a secret leads to interesting complications.

Olive Borden, who plays "Judy" is a cute flapper who with her modern, 1929 morality, insists that slipping across the border to get married on the sly is being done all the time. She suggests to her young hubby-to-be she sell a bracelet from Daddy to finance their housekeeping, and tells "Dickie" that they can even move into her already paid for apartment, since the semester at the art school she attends is over and her roommates are packing to leave. You get the idea that although Judy is a modern young girl, she's still got a bit of the old morality left in her, and I liked that about her character. Dick, on the other hand, is a much more conservative man--insisting they should marry only when he can afford to be the provider.

This movie is an interesting transitional film that deserves a look by people willing to remember that this film was made over 70 years ago. Watch it for the art-deco sets, and the stylish flapperesque clothing worn by the ladies. Catch Hedda Hopper as Judy's snobbish mother and forgive the somewhat predictable ending. I enjoyed this movie.

A young couple attempt to conceal their marriage from her wealthy parents so that the woman can continue to receive her allowance. With depression just around the corner, films like this became irrelevant almost as soon as they were released, and, given its mediocrity in all departments, it's no surprise that Half Marriage is largely forgotten. Only a brief but deadly encounter on a roof ledge provides a moment of interest.

Alcohol flows freely at a Greenwich Village party given by brunette beauty Olive Borden (as Judy Page), an art student. While couples cuddle, perky Ann Greenway (as Ann Turner) sings "After the Clouds Roll By". Not yet in camera range, our heroine has sneaked away to snuggle with boyfriend Morgan Farley (as Dick "Dickie" Carroll). The young architect works for Ms. Borden's father. Because he is not yet rich enough to make an ideal husband, Borden suggests a "Half Marriage". This means eloping and keeping their marriage a secret - especially from her parents. Thinking Borden is still single, rival boyfriend Anderson Lawler (as Tom Stribbling) causes trouble for the newlyweds...

That's nothing compared to the trouble Borden has making the transition from "silent" to "talking" pictures actress. Without a suitable lead performance, this "Half Marriage" hasn't half a chance. Borden sounds okay and looks lovely, though. The microphones are most unkind to Ms. Greenway's singing. The film's highlight begins after just under an hour of running time - this is when Borden fights off a drunken advance, which leads to a dramatic moment on a building ledge. All of this probably looked much better in the silent version of "Half Marriage" (also released in 1929). Unfortunately, the silent version (which likely included sound effects and Greenway's song) is not in circulation.

**** Half Marriage (8/10/29) William J. Cowen ~ Olive Borden, Morgan Farley, Ken Murray, Anderson Lawler

... as it is almost a documentary on sexual and society mores of the roaring 20s right before the stock market crash.

The story is a forgettable maudlin melodrama. Two young people in love - Judy Paige (Olive Borden) , the daughter of a wealthy architect, and Dick Carroll (Morgan Farley), an employee of said wealthy architect, want to get married. Judy wants to get married NOW - you get the feeling she wants everything now and is used to getting it - and insists that she and Dick can live off of her generous allowance and in the NYC studio apartment that already has the rent paid up for several months as long as they stay married in secret. Precisely because Dick is the kind of guy you would want to marry, he says no deal. They must stand on their own two feet.

But then impulse kicks in and the two secretly go to an adjoining state and marry in the middle of the night. Afraid to tell her parents, Judy lets her domineering mother drag her back to the family estate from her studio apartment, vowing to tell her parents about the marriage shortly. Days turn to weeks and weeks to months, precisely because she likes the comforts of home, does not want a confrontation, and most of all does not want that generous allowance cut off. And meanwhile the society guy of whom the parents approve, rich Tom Stribbling, is still chasing Judy. He misunderstands a conversation he overhears and believes Judy is "that kind of a girl". Complications ensue.

The real reason to watch this is to see the lifestyle of people who are not just rich in 1929, but young and upper middle class -those who were once called yuppies. You see a real roaring twenties party and a nightclub scene where some of the young people in Judy's "set" have convened for an evening out. That scene is worth the price of admission alone. There is a Jazz Band, a "Jazz Blimp", and great vaudevillian style entertainment from Ken Murray, more than likely the most recognizable member of the cast, who came from vaudeville to try and break into sound pictures. That never worked out, but he became known as an archivist of old Hollywood with his great home movies. Note that everybody drinks, everybody has their own personal "flask", and nobody cares about Prohibition.

The sad story here is the real life tale of lead actress Olive Borden, ironically named "The Joy Girl". She had been a star in the silent era, but just didn't have a real screen presence in talking film, and was scrubbing floors for a living by the time of her death at age 41 while living in a skid row mission.

Also starring Anne Greenway as Judy's friend in her only credited role, Hedda Hopper as Judy's mother, and Richard Tucker as Judy's father who is not nearly as insightful and wise as he thinks, especially after he gives that speech at the end that shows that he has learned nothing from what has happened.

Judy (Olive Borden) and Dick (Morgan Farley) are in love and want to get married. However, in a twist, the lady doesn't want to give up her extravagant lifestyle and convinces her wimpy boyfriend that they should get secretly married. That way she'll STILL be receiving her rich parents' allowance. What this really means to her is that she can continue to live her crazy flapper lifestyle-- going out with other men and living the high life. All the while, her new milquetoast husband stands on the sidelines waiting for her to eventually return to him. Soon, however, it becomes pretty obvious that Judy really doesn't care about Dick. Where does it go next? Well, I guarantee you'll never expect what happens unless you see it!!! It's just crazy!!!!

This film is a good example of the new morality of the Pre-Code films. Unlike the old stereotypes, this new morality holds that WOMEN can enjoy sex and be happily independent of men...or at least being tied down to one. This idea was common in the late 20s and early 30s in movies and how much it might have mirrored real life is anyone's guess. Suffice to say, however, that after the new Production Code went into effect in mid-1934, such attitudes were no longer acceptable in American movies.

In some ways, this is a very dated film. The most obvious and difficult part of this is the god-awful singing. You hear a lady singing...and it sounds like a cat being slowly strangled!! Perhaps this sort of warbling was considered good back in the day, but today it's awful and I assume made worse by the primitive sound equipment on early talking pictures. It's also, at times, a bit too talky. However, it's also a wonderful look at the flapper era and the art deco style of the day and holds up better than many 1929 films. So, even with its shortcomings, there is enough good in it to make it worth seeing.