Divorce

"Divorce" opens with a crawl condemning divorce as certain to produce misery. It follows with a scene in family court in which a judge refuses to grant one divorce (thus forcing a couple who hate each other to stay together). He reluctantly grants a second despite the obvious collusion involved. The judge preaches against divorce as purely a product of selfishness and bitterness. In the second case, the wife is the oft-married Diane Carter who is a pure gold digger. She isn't present to hear the judge's opinion of her character.

Diane then returns to her home town where she quickly establishes herself as a world class home wrecker. With little effort, she breaks up the happy marriage of Bob and Martha. Diane offers Bob unlimited investment money for his struggling business and a lot more excitement than Martha and their two loving kids. When she catches on, Martha insists on a divorce and rejects all support, taking a humble job in a department store to support herself and the children. The children suffer badly from their dad's absence. Meanwhile, Bob discovers that Diane is no bed of roses.

Viewers of this film must understand that divorce was one of those forbidden subjects under the Hays Code. Filmmakers simply were not allowed to make a serious, balanced film about divorce. The Hays Code was written by a priest and a prominent Catholic layman (Daniel Lord and Martin Quigley). From 1934 on, the Code was firmly administered by a prominent Catholic layman (Joseph I. Breen). One of the reasons the industry accepted self censorship was to ward off boycott threats from the Catholic church. So it is no surprise that the Hays Code firmly embodied Catholic moral teachings--especially including absolute opposition to divorce. Broadly speaking, the only kind of divorce movies that got made during this period were romantic comedies (like "The Awful Truth") in which couples get divorced early in the picture but remarry in the end.

"Divorce" is a serious movie on the subject of divorce that could easily have been produced by the Catholic church to impress teenagers or young married couples at weekend retreats. It puts divorce on the level of genocide in the moral firmament. Its preachiness is incredible and its dramatic value is nil. Needless to say, Breen approved of this film without any reservations. (The censorship files are preserved at the Motion Picture Academy's Herrick library in Beverly Hills).

Kay Francis co-produced and starred in three movies made in 1945 for B-movie studio Monogram pictures, two of which were made with the silent era actor-turned-director William Nigh and the screenwriter Harvey H. Gates, including this movie. I think Francis was having a bit of fun at the expense of her own tarnished Hollywood image by casting herself as a four-times divorced woman (which she would soon be IRL) looking to steal a fifth husband (played by Bruce Cabot) from a happily married friend from her childhood, portrayed by Helen Mack. This movie isn't very good (few pictures from Monogram were), but Kay Francis, after being mistreated by the Warner Brothers studio (for demanding too much money, apparently, ultimately being replaced by an inarguably better actress, Bette Davis), at least was in charge of her own destiny by the mid-1940s; that's something, I guess. 4/10.

Divorce (1945)

A direct look at divorce (and marriage) with the distinct view that divorce is a shame. In fact, the first short part of the movie is a bit of moralizing by a (male) judge, laying the guilt on a woman for using the "wrong" discipline on her son, and for complaining that her husband locked her up in her room. It's hard to take, if you take it seriously. But this prelude is really only a set-up for a plot that begins, indirectly with the same judge, about a woman who has been through quite a number of divorces.

And this woman, Diane, is played by the real great actress of the movie, Kay Francis, who also co-produces. That is, this is her movie, and she doesn't mind being a kind of charming villain, breaking into a happy family like a worldly urbane siren, apparently irresistible. She's terrific. But you worry very much about the "other" woman, Martha, the simpler but more pure one, played with real angst by Helen Mack, who I'd never heard of, but who had a full career in the 1930s. A shame to see that this was her last film.

1945 is of course the year the War ended, and this movie is an alternate take on the film noir version of the G.I. returning to a changed world, unable to adjust. Here it is not a bit fanciful or infested with crime and visual drama. No, this is the real deal, and it might strike some as a little ordinary at times, but for me this helped it enormously. The sincerity of everyone, and the straight up acting by the whole cast, is perfect for the theme. Diane, it turns out, is a true femme fatale, but made so everyday and believable you can't really call her that fairly.

The point overall is paying attention to what matters in your relationship--especially appreciating that old fashioned husband-wife relationship, with children and home and so on. It's persuasive because it sets things up to be persuasive, even though Diane is a powerhouse and a successful women, something everyone appreciates. Everyone except Martha. The man between these two women is a bit of a follower. He arrives back from fighting to his wife and children and he's still a soldier somehow, not coping, but wanting to cope. If there's a weakness here, it's him, not just the actor Bruce Cabot, but the role, which is too passive to give it life.

The movie, though, works overall. It not only makes its moral point, but it creates a sense of how the transition of men back home might have been, a kind of precursor to the more famous film about these themes a year later, "The Best Years of Our Lives."

DIVORCE (1945) was Monogram's interpretation of the problems of Divorce. This subject that would become very relevant in the post-war period. There were many quickie marriages when the boys went off too war (WWII) that did not hold up after the conflict was over. The general drift of the film was unfavorable to Divorce. No doubt needed to get through the Censors and the Production Code of 1934.

THE NUTS; Returning veteran Bob Phillips (BRUCE CABOT) comes home to loving Wife Martha (HELEN MACK) and adoring Children, Michael and Robby. Enter former flame Diane Carter (KAY FRANCIS) fresh from her Divorce and loaded with loot and connections, promptly using her influence to lure Bob away from Martha. This provokes the titled 'DIVORCE' which finally results in a 'Code' resolution. Film is well done and moves quickly and would not disgrace a 'B' level production from any of the majors or middle tier studios.

MONOGRAM PICTURES CORPORATION (1931-1953) was referred too as a 'poverty row' studio. Cranking out cheap programmers usually budgeted for less then $100,000.00 each and shot in less then two (2) weeks. In some ways they could be consider REPUBLIC Jr. without good musical scores or special visual effects by the LYDECKER Brothers. Nor with any name Stars featured and thats where this film is different.

DIVORCE featured some real (and former) name Stars. KAY FRANCIS, WARNER BROTHERS, BRUCE CABOT and HELEN MACK, RKO. Plus character actors JEROME COWAN, MARY GORDON, JONATHAN HALE, ADDISON RICHARDS and others who appeared in major and middle tier studios efforts. Both in 'A' and 'B' productions. Nobody remember ADDISON RICHARDS as 'Crofton' in NORTHWEST PASSAGE (1940) M.G.M.? The rest have similar impressive credits, check them out. The question to be asked is what did these people do with their money when the going was good so they did not end up at MONOGRAM? Perhaps some of them just liked the work.

At one time Monogram Pictures could not have afforded the services of the three leads, Kay Francis, Bruce Cabot and Helen Mack. But by 1945 all had seen their best box office days so they were working for Sam Katzman and Monogram.

At least Katzman didn't butcher this film in the editing department. The title says it all, what the subject is about. Bruce Cabot a roughneck contractor fresh home from the war falls for chic society girl Kay Francis who collects trophy husbands. She's had four and wants to make Cabot five.

Only he's slightly married to Helen Mack with two kids. No stopping Kay though as they all end up in Judge Jerome Cowan's Divorce Court.

Given the times and the omnipresent Code, Divorce follows some strict guidelines. Everyone behaves quite heroically and even Francis in the end knows she's following a path that will lead to no good.

It's all pure soap opera, but from Monogram Divorce is positively elegant.