An intelligent and moving love-triangle drama starring Pauline Frederick, resplendent as the older and wiser woman who puts her heart on the line for Love.

Jane Vale (Frederick) has stepped confidently into managing the garment factory she has inherited from her father, and leads her team with business-like efficiency.  Her formidable demeanour is softened by the admiration of a forthright junior assistant (McGregor), and it is not long before their relationship blossoms. But Jane’s new-found happiness is marred by her anxieties about their age difference… insecurities amplified still further when her younger sister Dorothy (La Plante) returns home, fresh from college.

The premise that to love a younger man is asking for trouble (ironic given Frederick was 11 years older than her co-star McGregor, whilst he was 12 years older than the supposedly more suitable match - La Plante) does not diminish the female-centred narrative about a strong woman at odds with society’s preconceptions. This is a beautifully shot, well-acted and neatly composed film, timeless and poignant. 

Dir. Clarence Brown | USA | 1925 | N/C PG | b&w, tinted | English intertitles | 1h 20m + short

With: Pauline Frederick, Laura La Plante, Malcolm McGregor, Tully Marshall
 
Performing live: John Sweeney (piano)

Online programme notes by Pamela Hutchinson
 
Restored by The Packard Humanities Institute