Of Human Bondage [1934]

Carey and Mildred are complicated creatures. While Mildred basically comes off as an unfeeling tramp, one can't help but believe that there is something human inside her that is genuinely attracted to Carey and the kind of gentlemanly life he can offer her, but her affections continually prove themselves fickle at best. As for Carey, his fatalistic love for Mildred makes no sense whatsoever, as she never fails to treat him harshly. Other women do come to love him deeply and truly, and Sally, the daughter of one of his patients, seems perfect for him, yet one strongly senses the fact that he can only truly love Mildred. It is really that part of the story and not the tragic life of Mildred herself which makes this movie so poignant and sad.

Of Human Bondage is the movie that made Bette Davis a verifiable star way back in 1934. Her performance is certainly fantastic, but she really provides only a hint of the actress she would become. The fact that her character is so impossibly self-serving and unfeeling makes it hard to identify with or like her (especially when she gets angry), yet Bette Davis makes her an unforgettable character of almost hypnotic fascination. I should say that Leslie Howard is also wonderful in this movie. The kind of aloof passive resistance he showed five years later in Gone With the Wind is a perfect match for the character of Philip Carey. He is almost incapable of standing up to fate, allowing his life to be brought to the point of ruin, both financial and emotional, by a woman who seemingly lives to torment him. I'm always left with a strange feeling after watching this movie, one of strange disquiet and sentimentality. Released in 1934, Of Human Bondage remains a powerful and compelling story of human passion, and Bette Davis' performance is eternally magical.


Howard and Davis in a great adaptation of Maugham's novel   April 11, 2005
16 out of 16 found this review helpful

W. Somerset Maugham's novel "Of Human Bondage" receives an excellent adaptation to the screen in this 1934 film directed by John Cromwell. Leslie Howard plays sensitive, club-footed Philip Carey, the second-rate artist who turns to the study of medicine, even though he is older than his classmates. Philip becomes tragically obsessed with Mildred Rogers (Bette Davis), an illiterate waitress in a tearoom near the medical school. Although Mildred insults him for being a cripple, Philip spurns an offer of romance from Nora (Kay Johnson), an attractive woman who writes romance novels under a male pseudonym. When Philips agrees to marry Mildred when she shows up pregnant and jilted by her salesman boyfriend (Alan Hale), she runs off with another med student (Reginald Denny) at their engagement party. A friendly patient (Reginald Owen) invites Philip home to meet his sensitive daughter Sally (Frances Dee). But Mildred returns again, this time with a baby, and Philip is too weak to refuse her. The result are disastrous consequences for them both.

Maugham's semi-autobiographical novel was published in 1915 and is considered his masterwork. By Hollywood standards, this film adaptation is remarkably faithful, not to mention literate and intelligent, so a lot of the credit has to go to Lester Cohen for the screenplay. Howard handles the role of the sensitive Philip well, but it is Davis who turned a lot of heads for the first time with her performance as the tawdry little waitress (Life magazine called it "Probably the best performance ever recorded on the screen by a U.S. actress"). Certainly this is the role that made Warner Brothers take a serious look at the young actress. What is remarkable is how much of this emotionally shattering tale is packed into 83 minutes of running time.


just for Miss Davis fans   July 9, 2002
7 out of 13 found this review helpful

It's hard to transform a 700-page book into a 90 min film, and this is not the one that manages that: the cuts are so big that you stop having a sense of the story and the characters are so superficial that you never understand why Philip has such feelings towards Mildred. You loose interest in the story quite fast and only Bette Davis performance puts some sparkle in the screen. Yet, this is a rarely seen film on TV and the one that made Bette Davis career. So, unless you are a big fan of hers, forget it.


Bette as Mildred Rogers   April 11, 2003
Paul Wilson (Pinxton, Derbyshire United Kingdom)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful

This film is classic Davis, she steals the scenes as usual.
This was one of the early Davis films and shows what was to come.
Bette's portrayal of a waitress and her relationship with Leslie Howard is mesmerising. Buy this, a great movie....


Excellent Movie, Be careful of the DVD   July 16, 2006
Gerald Fitzella (Wales, UK)
3 out of 4 found this review helpful

The WHE edition of this film uses a very old print and the quality isn't the best, however it is still watchable. If you are a film fanatic you may want to put your pennies towards the more expensive version, but if you like me are just curious to see this 1934 Bette Davis' movie that made her a star, then I would recommend a purchase. Leslie Howard as the weak Phillip is excellent as always, but Bette shows just how much of an actress she was in playing the tormenting and doomed Mildred. I would have given this more stars if it hadn't been for the print.