The Barretts of Wimpole Street

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ChrisCSH H Aug 14 Even though the Barrets of Wimpole Street might be a little slow at first the beautiful dialogue and fascinating story along with the brilliant acting push the film along at a pretty good pace. Norma Shearer and Fredric March are again brilliant together in this film as they usually are in the films they are together in, along with the great Charles laughton are the main few in the brilliant cast. See more Mark B Apr 23 The actors do their best with the convoluted dialogue, but this one is hardly a classic. The accents are jarring: Charles Laughton plays to his strength, a bloviating prude with a clipped English diction; Una O'Connor ditches her Irish brogue for Cockney; Norma Shearer at least tries mid-Altantic; but Frederic March doesn't even try, bouncing back and forth between midwestern American and Bronx. Very strange. (#466 on my "Watch every BP Nominee" bucket list) See more 12/17/2021 "The Baretts of Wimpole Street" released in 1934, has the stamp of MGM's great production values. Norma Schearer wonderfully plays Elizabeth Barrett, the invalid poet. She is overly protected by her father, brilliantly played by Charles Laughton. We later learn Laughton is really a tyrant of a man who is incapable of really loving anyone or being loved. Elizabeth meets the fellow poet Robert Browning (Frederic March), and they fall in love. Maureen O'Sullivan give one of her finest performances as Elizabeth's sister, who also falls in love with a Captain. Her father finds out and forbids her to see him again, in a cruel and heartbreaking scene where he makes her swear on a bible. The interplay between Laughton and O'Sullivan and Schearer is fascinating, as the family dynamics are brought to the foreground. "The Barretts of Wimpole Street" was originally a stage play, but translates just fine to the screen. The supporting case is top notch, but this is Norma Schearer's show. It is difficult to take your eyes off her. Laughton is great, as is O'Sullivan. Frederic March at times seems a bit off as Robert Browning, although he is very handsome and the chemistry between he and Schearer is credible. It is a shame that Norma Schearer left the movies by the 1940's. But we are fortunate that this gifted actress left such an amazing legacy of films - "The Barrets of Wimpole Street" is certainly one of them. See more Jared D 09/02/2020 Charles Laughton's performance is worth the price of admission here. As the overbearing tyrant, he is fabulous. While Shearer is miscast as a frail sickly daughter, she still holds her own -- and the rest of the cast and the story are first rate. While this story was remade in 1957, I think it would be prime material for another remake in the 2020s. See more steve d 07/23/2020 The great cast makes it worth your time. See more 01/27/2019 The best romance movie ever made! See more Read all reviews

The Barretts of Wimpole Street

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