Christopher Strong (Arzner, 1933): USA

Reviewed by Richard Feilden. Viewed on VHS.

Although this review is listed as being from a DVD, it is in fact based on the VHS cassette of Christopher Strong. The 1933 film, directed by Dorothy Arzner and staring Katherine Hepburn, has never had a DVD release. It languishes in the fuzzy realm of magnetic tape, and that is a shame. Although a little clunky by today’s standards, and requiring a couple of unearned leaps of faith, this is a very watchable slice of Hollywood’s outpourings in the early days of sound.
The film revolves around the relationship between the titular Sir Christopher Strong (Colin Clive), a member of the British parliament, and Lady Cynthia Darrington (Katherine Hepburn), a down on her luck member of the aristocracy and daredevil pilot. The two are thrown together when a treasure hunt requires the discovery of a married man who has never cheated and a woman who has never had a love affair. Sir Christopher is dragged to the event by his daughter, Monica (Helen Chandler) and Lady Cynthia by Monica’s married lover. These two paragons of virtue meet and their lives are forever changed.

For a film of its age the story is quite progressive. Adultery, divorce, suicide and sex are dealt with, with the last of these illustrated quite simply with just hand, delicately draped across the frame and lit by a bedside lamp. The women in the film are also shown to be at their worst when they are at their weakest, making bold decisions and choosing their own path in life. Indeed, it is quite often the men who make the bad decisions, risking the ruin of their relationships and even lives. Arzner and her writer Zoe Akins (who based the screenplay on Gilbert Frankau’s novel, seem to have slipped on under the radar!

Despite the terrible quality of the VHS transfer, the film remains quite beautiful. Arzner makes great use of the space available within the limited 4:3 frame and whilst the early Hollywood style dictates an invisible hand, she manages to sneak in some very expressionistic lighting effects, highlighting the conflicts that torment the characters from within. Given the almost complete lack of Arzner’s work on DVD, especially given her place in the history of Hollywood, a restored version of this film doesn’t seem too much to ask. Criterion, are you listening?

There are a few faults with the film, most of which are a product of its age. Lines are at times delivered with a heavy slice of theatricality and stock footage of airstrips seems to have been sourced from silent film stock with a different frame rate. Others are a matter of believability. Whilst the initial attraction that Sir Christopher feels towards Lady Cynthia is easy to explain (particularly in the scene where Hepburn slinks around in her infamous Silver Moth costume), her attraction to him is never fully explained. Certainly they are a breed apart from most of the characters in the film due to their integrity and moral fortitude, but they share too little in common outside of their ideals for the irresistible attraction they feel to be accepted.

So, this is not a perfect film by any stretch, but definitely one whose faults are outweighed by the moments in which it works. If you can find a copy on tape, treat yourself.