chaswe-28402 Not being into bondage myself, this did less than nothing for me. It was one of the least enjoyable films I've ever watched. Bette Davis is nasty in many of the films I've seen her in, and here she evidently finds her true metier, which will furnish her with roles for the rest of her career. The part was memorably unpleasant.Some films date, others don't. This does. It's like looking into a vanished world. People like Mildred Rogers and Philip Carey don't exist any more, if they ever did. Mildred did have a forerunner, however, in the person of Moll Hackabout, who features in Hogarth's series of ostensibly moral engravings, The Harlot's Progress. Their fates are similar, although Mildred's terminal illness, for the purposes of the film, has been changed from syphilis to tuberculosis. More excruciating than Mildred's fate was Philip's insatiable, obsessive and inexplicable desire for humiliation. Was this in some way autobiographical ? Even more astounding was Life Magazine's opinion that Davis gave "probably the best performance ever recorded on the screen by a U.S. actress". In one of her multiple divorces Bette's husband cited her "cruel and inhuman manner". Her daughter described her as an "overbearing alcoholic". I'm not surprised.

gavin6942 A young man finds himself attracted to a cold and unfeeling waitress (Bette Davis) who may ultimately destroy them both.While I am not familiar with the original book (blasphemy?), I thought this was a pretty decent film. The man with clubfoot who is treated poorly by society, possibly even within the medical profession. His friends and colleagues, and even his own supposed girlfriend, treating him like dirt.A younger Bette Davis leads the way, with many saying she deserved an Oscar for this. That may well be true. Not to be superficial, but it is interesting to note that her "Bette Davis eyes" make her look exotic, which would actually work against her later in life. She did not age gracefully.

Ordinary Review Of Human Bondage is one of these old movies that fell into the public domain by lack of copyright renewal, therefore it is widely available and when I saw that it had both Bette Davis - who I enjoyed in All About Eve (1950) and What Ever Happened to Baby Jane (1962) with her characteristic gaze; and Leslie Howard who was in Gone with the Wind (1939) but also in the lesser known The Petrified Forest (1936), a friend and supporter of Humphrey Bogart he helped him rise to fame.In the film, Philip Carey is a young English man living in Paris hoping to become a painter. One night a man who he asked for advice tells Philip that he is talentless and needs to find another meaning to his life. Philip decides to become a doctor, however, a club foot severely impends on his self-esteem and confidence . When Philip goes to a café and sees the young flirtatious Mildred with another patron, he falls in love immediately. Mildred turns out to be really cold towards Philip and only uses him to go to the theater when it pleases her, while still seeing the man of the restaurant. Nonetheless, Philip decides to ask her to marry him but Mildred prevents it by saying she is already getting married. A few months later, Philip finds himself in a similar situation where a woman, Norah, loves him but he doesn't love her back. When Mildred reappears, broke, pregnant and alone, Philip can't help it and helps her, leaving Norah pondering about what happened to him. Philip and Mildred are unable to live together yet their paths will cross many times and again.The best thing in the movie has to be Bette Davis' performance of the cold and cynical Mildred. She is despicably perfect in her vanity. The main issue I had with the film is probably a very personal one, but it's the fact that a man falls desperately in love with a woman. I don't believe in such a thing. Now, I do believe a woman can take advantage of a man in this very same way, but Philip felt too at loss with his own feelings that I found it hard to believe--especially because of the fact that while Mildred is absent from Philip's life, he gladly partake in another woman's life, with or without shared feelings that remains to be seen.The dialogues are very clever, particularly the discourse which inspired the movie title about human bondage. I wish there were more to be analyzed from the line of work of Philip who goes from painting nude women to medical student to business man without particular choices, as if on railtracks. What pleased me the most was the character of Mildred, it was powerful and weak at the same time. A thin line that makes characters real.I liked: Strong female lead. Cyclic. Pride and vanity - a downfall.I disliked: Filming letters is annoying for the plot, I sometimes couldn't decipher them. The role of the child. Last scene with blocked out sound.73/100 Not your typical romance, fortunately carried out by two grand actors of the 30's.Read more reviews at: www.theordinaryreview.blogspot.com

SilkyWilky A must watch film, I genuinely loved it. Easy to watch and get drawn into, not that dated at all, and a good story we can all relate to.Lots of reviews here waxing lyrical about Bette Davis' bawdy performance, and in general I go along with them, bar her pitiful attempt at a cockney accent.Its worse than Dick van Dykes (Mary Poppins) and I never thought I'd say that about anyone. Dick had a naiive comedic consistency in his americanised version. Bette is all over the place, mainly sounding like a posh girl pretending badly to be cockney and throwing in intonations I've never heard anyone speak. Very false and messed up, and irritating - but that is what she's portraying too, so it kinda works. She was either sheltered and made no attempt to get out and hear how people speak or she wouldn't have dared do what she did, or else she has no accent skills.Beyond the accent, yes, Bette makes the film funky and fun. The other actresses I think perform better, are more convincing character wise. Kay Johnson (Norah) is stiff upper lip British and understated, a mirror to Leslie Howards character, though lighter. Frances Dee (Sally) plays a young girl who accepts her place with a charm and a wisdom beyond her years - and is the heavenly beauty of the film.Watch, enjoy, and indulge in reminiscences of the unrequited loves in your life.