IMDb RATING
6.9/10
1.2K
YOUR RATING
After decades of raising the motherless Smith children, housekeeper Emma Thatcher is faced with resentment when she marries their father.After decades of raising the motherless Smith children, housekeeper Emma Thatcher is faced with resentment when she marries their father.After decades of raising the motherless Smith children, housekeeper Emma Thatcher is faced with resentment when she marries their father.
- Nominated for 1 Oscar
- 1 nomination total
Purnell Pratt
- Haskins
- (as Purnell B. Pratt)
André Cheron
- Count Pierre
- (as Andre Cheron)
Wilson Benge
- George - Second Butler
- (uncredited)
Wade Boteler
- Airport Official
- (uncredited)
George Cooper
- Airfield Mechanic
- (uncredited)
Edith Fellows
- Gypsy as a Child
- (uncredited)
Clarence Geldert
- Trial Judge
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAfter winning her Best Actress Academy Award in 1931 for "Min and Bill," Marie was nominated again the very next year for her role in this film; Emma.
- GoofsWhen Ronnie drives up to the Smith mansion with his dog, the dog can be seen about to follow him out of the car. Ronnie calls the dog, and we see the dog sitting in the back seat as if he hadn't budged and then walking toward him.
- ConnectionsFeatured in MGM: When the Lion Roars (1992)
Featured review
Touched my heart
Marie Dressler was a fine actress who deserves to be better known today, one of the few actors/actresses that had a career in silents that transitioned quite well into sound. 'Min and Bill' being a strong example of what was so great about her. Clarence Brown was a gifted director in my view, but was a director that had a very uneven filmography (with some very good films like 'Anna Karenina' and also some average at best ones). Love classic film and certainly have no bias against sentimental films.
1932's 'Emma' is certainly one of those sentimental films and is a pretty good one. It is an example of the lead performance being a good deal better than the film itself, but there is actually in my view a lot more to 'Emma' than just Dressler (although she is the best thing about it). It is not one of Brown's best pictures and there are better representations of the rest of the cast, but it is worth seeing to see one of the best performances of Dressler and deserves more credit.
'Emma' isn't perfect by all means. The pacing isn't always great, with some dull stretches from having some extraneous scenes that go on for too long without developing or progressing enough. It would have helped if the story wasn't as slight as it was.
Would have liked a lot more development to the characters, only Dressler's and Myrna Loy's are properly developed, the others are too one-dimensional and Richard Cromwell's is especially underwritten. Cromwell also seemed rather bland in his role, being just there with not enough feeling.
Dressler however is superb, she shows off sparkling comic timing, radiates class, has such an expressive nuanced face that always tells so much and also really touched my heart. Her character is interesting, worth relating to and develops beautifully. There is more to the film than just her in terms of merits, Jean Hersholt brings a good deal of colour to his too short screen time and a very young Loy is at her most hateable (was very surprised to see her in this way). Brown also directs with enough control and ease.
It looks good, with some lovely atmospheric photography and sumptuous art direction. The script avoids sinking into melodramatic and has humorous and poignant lines. The story has enough parts where it is charming and moving, with the standout being the real tear-jerker that is the ending (more like the last 10-15 minutes).
Concluding, worth seeing particularly for Dressler, but falls short of being a must see. 7/10.
1932's 'Emma' is certainly one of those sentimental films and is a pretty good one. It is an example of the lead performance being a good deal better than the film itself, but there is actually in my view a lot more to 'Emma' than just Dressler (although she is the best thing about it). It is not one of Brown's best pictures and there are better representations of the rest of the cast, but it is worth seeing to see one of the best performances of Dressler and deserves more credit.
'Emma' isn't perfect by all means. The pacing isn't always great, with some dull stretches from having some extraneous scenes that go on for too long without developing or progressing enough. It would have helped if the story wasn't as slight as it was.
Would have liked a lot more development to the characters, only Dressler's and Myrna Loy's are properly developed, the others are too one-dimensional and Richard Cromwell's is especially underwritten. Cromwell also seemed rather bland in his role, being just there with not enough feeling.
Dressler however is superb, she shows off sparkling comic timing, radiates class, has such an expressive nuanced face that always tells so much and also really touched my heart. Her character is interesting, worth relating to and develops beautifully. There is more to the film than just her in terms of merits, Jean Hersholt brings a good deal of colour to his too short screen time and a very young Loy is at her most hateable (was very surprised to see her in this way). Brown also directs with enough control and ease.
It looks good, with some lovely atmospheric photography and sumptuous art direction. The script avoids sinking into melodramatic and has humorous and poignant lines. The story has enough parts where it is charming and moving, with the standout being the real tear-jerker that is the ending (more like the last 10-15 minutes).
Concluding, worth seeing particularly for Dressler, but falls short of being a must see. 7/10.
- TheLittleSongbird
- Feb 21, 2022
- Permalink
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Эмма
- Filming locations
- Los Angeles International Airport - 1 World Way, Los Angeles, California, USA(airport scenes - then known as Mines Field)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $350,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 12 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.20 : 1
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