James Whale's One More River (1934)

James Whale is most remembered for some of the best horror/science-fiction movies ever made -- Frankenstein (1931), The Bride of Frankenstein (1935), The Invisible Man (1933), The Old Dark House (1932) -- while his other complex and stylish films are mostly forgotten or ignored.  I first saw One More River (1934) at The New School, presented by William K. Everson in July 1972 with detailed program notes:  Grace is the keynote of this film -- from the cool beauty of Diana Wynyard on through the elegant sets and camerawork and smooth editing.  The Englishness of it all (Everson, like Whale, was English) was most apparent when C. Aubrey Smith, playing Wynyard's father, responded to her telling him that her husband (played elegantly and nastily by Colin Clive) had beaten her with a riding crop with "Bounder!  Swine!"  And when Wynyard was raped by her husband (off camera) she tried to recover with a cup of tea! 

What Whale brilliantly shows is how much is churning under the surface in England while people are trying desperately to hold on to civilized behavior, as war is drawing nearer.  Wynyard and her male friend get stuck overnight in a car and repress their emotions as they spend the night together, not knowing that her husband is having them followed.  Clive sues her for divorce, since at that time adultery was the only grounds for divorce in England, and the last third of the film is a beautifully filmed trial scene, with subtle camera movements following each witness to the dock to testify and Whale taking time to let each person testify at length and the barristers to make all their arguments. The trial helps Wynyard to recover the feeling that her husband had killed in her.

The script for One More River was from John Galsworthy's last novel and was written by playwright R.C. Sherriff. Whale, a former director of plays, brings out its subtle theatricality, with numerous scenes fading to black, followed by a low-key theatrical entrance. The print recently shown by Turner Classic Movies was sharp and beautiful and effectively captured the precise and elegant style of Whale and cinematographer John J. Mescall.