Uncovered Gem: The Barretts of Wimpole Street
I love the movies of the 1930s. There were some pretty psychological stories before the studio codes went into effect. One of the more mainstream films that I had never seen was the Barretts of Wimpole Street. The story of Elizabeth Barrett-Browning and Robert Browning didn’t immediately appeal to me in the first few scenes, as I thought it was going to be a maudlin love story (or a chick flick). Norma Shearer is supposed to be deathly sick and looks beautiful and perfectly made up…that is one of the suspensions of disbelief one must have in watching older films. As the film went on I became very enthralled.
The story is not just about Elizabeth and Robert but it is more about how a controlling person can crush someone, and even snuff the life out of someone one professes to love. One really pulls for Elizabeth, Robert, and Henrietta. In real life, Mr. Barrett forbid his twelve children to marry. In the film, he doesn’t quite get redeemed in the end. That may have been a whole other movie and not the purpose of the tale. Here are two clips. The first features Norma Shearer as Elizabeth, Charles Laughton as Mr. Barrett, and Frederic March as Robert Browning. The second also feature Maureen O’Hara.
The movie also serves as a step back in time to fashons that suggest the 1840s in London as an added bonus.
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