Joan Crawford

FORSAKING ALL OTHERS

MGM, 1934.  Directed by W.S. Van Dyke.  Camera:  George Folsey, Gregg Toland.  With Joan Crawford, Clark Gable, Robert Montgomery, Charles Butterworth, Billie Burke, Frances Drake, Rosalind Russell, Arthur Treacher.

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Mary Clay feels as if she is the happiest woman alive because she is about to wed Dillon Todd, a man whom she has loved since childhood.  That same day, Jeff Williams, another childhood companion, returns from a long business trip to Spain, and is equally ecstatic that he can finally propose to Mary, whom he has always loved.  When Jeff discovers that Mary is about to wed Dill, he keeps his feelings a secret and agrees to give the bride away.  He also secretly orders dozens of cornflowers for Mary, knowing that they are her favorite flowers.

The night before the wedding, however, Dill runs off and marries Connie Barnes, a woman with whom he had had an affair in Europe some months before.  Mary then goes to the country with her aunt Paula to get over Dill and, when Jeff and their friend Shep visit, she claims to be completely cured.  She jumps at the chance to go to a party to which Connie has invited her, however, and soon Dill, who knows his mistake, begs to see Mary again.  Jeff warns Mary not to get involved with a married man, and even spanks her with a hairbrush to emphasize the point, but she agrees to see Dill.

One day, while riding in the country, their car breaks down, a rainstorm starts, and they take refuge in Paula's country home.  Dill calls his valet to bring another car, but tells him to wait until the morning to bring it.  Despite the circumstances, the evening is spent innocently, but the next day Paula convinces Jeff and Shep to get Mary away to avoid a scandal.

Connie, meanwhile, has been told everything by Dill's valet and races to Paula's.  Jeff arrives first and, realizing that nothing has happened, tries to cover for Mary, but Connie still demands a divorce.

Some time later, it is again Mary and Dill's wedding, but this time it is Dill who is left at the altar when Jeff tells her that he has always loved her, just as he is about to sail for Spain.  When she learns from Shep that it was Jeff, not Dill, who sent her the cornflowers, she realizes that she loves Jeff.  When he finds Mary on the boat, Jeff tells the steward to quickly bring the captain to perform a wedding.

American Film Institute Catalog