''Chained'' is a 1934 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super- ...

directed by

Clarence Brown Clarence Leon Brown (May 10, 1890 – August 17, 1987) was an American film director. Early life Born in Clinton, Massachusetts, to Larkin Harry Brown, a cotton manufacturer, and Katherine Ann Brown (née Gaw), Brown moved to Tennessee when he ...

and starring

Joan Crawford Joan Crawford (born Lucille Fay LeSueur; March 23, ncertain year from 1904 to 1908was an American actress. She started her career as a dancer in traveling theatrical companies before debuting on Broadway. Crawford was signed to a motion pict ...

and

Clark Gable William Clark Gable (February 1, 1901November 16, 1960) was an American film actor, often referred to as "The King of Hollywood". He had roles in more than 60 motion pictures in multiple genres during a career that lasted 37 years, three decades ...

with supporting performances by

Otto Kruger Otto Kruger (September 6, 1885 – September 6, 1974) was an American actor, originally a Broadway matinee idol, who established a niche as a charming villain in films, such as Hitchcock's ''Saboteur''. He also appeared in CBS's ''Perry Mason'' a ...

Stuart Erwin Stuart Erwin (February 14, 1903 – December 21, 1967) was an American actor of stage, film, and television. Early years Erwin was born in Squaw Valley, Fresno County, California. He attended Porterville High School and the University o ...

, Una O'Connor and

Akim Tamiroff Akim Mikhailovich Tamiroff, russian: Аким Михайлович Тамиров (born Hovakim Tamiryants; October 29, 1899 – September 17, 1972) was an Armenian-American actor of film, stage, and television. One of the premier character ac ...

. The screenplay was written by

John Lee Mahin John Lee Mahin (August 23, 1902, Evanston, Illinois – April 18, 1984, Los Angeles) was an American screenwriter and producer of films who was active in Hollywood from the 1930s to the 1960s. He was known as the favorite writer of Clark Gable an ...

Albert Hackett Albert Maurice Hackett (February 16, 1900 – March 16, 1995) was an American actor, dramatist and screenwriter most noted for his collaborations with his partner and wife Frances Goodrich. Early years Hackett was born in New York City, the s ...

and

Frances Goodrich Frances Goodrich (December 21, 1890 – January 29, 1984) was an American actress, dramatist, and screenwriter, best known for her collaborations with her partner and husband Albert Hackett. She received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama with her h ...

based upon a story by

Edgar Selwyn Edgar Selwyn (October 20, 1875 – February 13, 1944) was a prominent figure in American theatre and film in the first half of the 20th century. An actor, playwright, director and producer on Broadway, he founded a theatrical production ...

Ward Bond Wardell Edwin Bond (April 9, 1903 – November 5, 1960) was an American film character actor who appeared in more than 200 films and starred in the NBC television series ''Wagon Train'' from 1957 to 1960. Among his best-remembered roles are Be ...

and

Mickey Rooney Mickey Rooney (born Joseph Yule Jr.; other pseudonym Mickey Maguire; September 23, 1920 – April 6, 2014) was an American actor. In a career spanning nine decades, he appeared in more than 300 films and was among the last surviving stars of the ...

appear briefly in uncredited roles. Richard (Kruger), a shipping magnate, asks his wife for a divorce so he can marry his secretary (Crawford). The wife refuses and Diane, who loves him deeply, offers to become his mistress. He is desperately in love with her, but he knows what that would mean to her life. He sends her on a long cruise to think about it. On the cruise, Mike, a charismatic

South American South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

rancher (Gable), sets out to seduce her, and they end up falling in love. She returns to New York City to tell Richard, only to find that he has given up his sons and obtained a divorce. They marry. A chance encounter in New York brings the three together, and in the end, Richard lets Diane go to be with the man she loves most. ''Chained'' is the fifth of eight collaborations between Crawford and Gable.

Plot

Eager to marry his devoted

secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a ...

Diane Lovering,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

shipping

magnate The magnate term, from the late Latin ''magnas'', a great man, itself from Latin ''magnus'', "great", means a man from the higher nobility, a man who belongs to the high office-holders, or a man in a high social position, by birth, wealth or ot ...

Richard Field asks his wife Louise for a divorce. However, Louise refuses to surrender her social position and denies Richard's request. Although Diane insists that she will continue to love him without the benefit of marriage, Richard asks her to contemplate her choices while cruising to South America on one of his boats. Diane agrees to the cruise, but vows to return to New York unchanged. Chained poster

Soon after boarding, Diane meets Johnnie Smith in the ship's bar and rejects his flirtations. Johnny asks his smooth-talking best friend Mike Bradley for help but is double-crossed when Mike treats him like a drunk who is annoying Diane. Mike charms her and a shipboard romance blossoms. Still true to Richard, Diane makes no commitments to Mike. He persists, inviting her to visit his

ranch A ranch (from es, rancho/Mexican Spanish) is an area of land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of a farm. These terms are most ofte ...

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

. After a fun-filled day, Diane and Mike confess their mutual love. Diane finally tells him about Richard, but realizing that Mike is the man whom she truly loves, Diane promises that when she returns to New York, she will end her affair with Richard. Richard presents Diane with a wedding ring and explains that his wife finally agreed to divorce him under the condition that he not be allowed to see his sons. Overwhelmed by his sacrifice for her, Diane says nothing about her new romance. After writing Mike a "Dear John" letter dumping him, she marries Richard. A year later, Diane encounters Mike in a New York gun shop and suggests that they dine together. In spite of his bitterness, Mike still loves Diane and senses that she still loves him. Diane explains why she is loyal to Richard. Mike visits their country house and, in spite of Diane's protests, vows to confront his rival. But when Mike sees how kind and caring Richard is with Diane, he relents and leaves. Richard reveals that he had long sensed that she was in love with another man and nobly offers to divorce her. Unchained at last, Diane and Mike begin their married life on his ranch.

Cast

as Diane "Dinah" Lovering *

as Michael "Mike" Bradley *

as Richard I. Field *

as John L. "Johnnie" Smith * Una O'Connor as Amy, Diane's maid * Marjorie Gateson as Mrs. Louise Field *

as Pablo, the ranch chef *

as ship steward (uncredited) *

as boy in shipboard swimming pool (uncredited)

Production

''Chained'' was the first of eight films that Crawford would make with

cinematographer The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the photographing or recording of a film, television production, music video or other live action piece. The cinematographer is the ch ...

George J. Folsey George Joseph Folsey, A.S.C., was an American cinematographer who worked on 162 films between 1919 and his retirement in 1976. Biography Born in Brooklyn, Folsey was hired by Jesse Louis Lasky to work as an office boy in his newly formed Jess ...

, who discovered a lighting scheme that emphasized Crawford's best features after noticing how the soft light of single small spotlight illuminated her eyes and cheekbones. Crawford was thrilled with the effect and demanded the same type of lighting for the rest of her career.

Reception

The ''

Motion Picture Herald The ''Motion Picture Herald'' was an American film industry trade paper published from 1931 to December 1972.Anthony Slide, ed. (1985)''International Film, Radio, and Television Journals'' Greenwood Press. p. 242. It was replaced by the ''QP Heral ...

'' noted, "The showmanship value of the entertainment elements with which this picture deals is long and solidly established. The leading players ...are among the foremost exponents of the type of romantic theme which is its motivation." ''

New York Herald Tribune The ''New York Herald Tribune'' was a newspaper published between 1924 and 1966. It was created in 1924 when Ogden Mills Reid of the ''New-York Tribune'' acquired the '' New York Herald''. It was regarded as a "writer's newspaper" and competed ...

'' theater critic

Richard Watts, Jr. Richard Watts Jr. (1898–1981) was an American theatre critic. Born in Parkersburg, West Virginia, Watts was educated at Columbia University. He began his writing career as the film critic for the ''New York Herald Tribune'' before assuming the ...

noted, "the two stars, who certainly know their business, wisely decide to pass their time tossing charm and personality all over the place, which is obviously what the film requires for audience appeal."

Box office

According to MGM records, the film earned $1,301,000 in the U.S. and Canada and $687,000 elsewhere, resulting in a profit of $732,000.

References

External links

* * * * {{Clarence Brown, state=collapsed 1934 romantic drama films 1934 films American black-and-white films Films directed by Clarence Brown Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Films scored by Herbert Stothart American romantic drama films 1930s American films