The Divorcee

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Movie Info

After three years of marriage, Ted (Chester Morris) has an affair that threatens to destroy his happiness with wife Jerry (Norma Shearer), as she returns the favor by pursuing Don (Robert Montgomery), Ted's close friend. The couple divorces, and Jerry tries to find happiness with a new man while Ted struggles with alcoholism and depression. After a series of flings, Jerry reunites with Paul (Conrad Nagel), who was in love with Jerry before she married Ted -- only to find Paul is now married.

Genre:

drama
Original Language:

English
Director:

Robert Z. Leonard
Producer:

Robert Z. Leonard
Release Date (Streaming):

Nov 21, 2016
Runtime:

1h 23m
Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Cast & Crew

Norma Shearer
Jerry Martin

Chester Morris
Ted Martin

Conrad Nagel
Paul

Robert Montgomery
Don

Florence Eldridge
Helen Baldwin

Helene Millard
Mary

Show all Cast & Crew

Critic Reviews for The Divorcée

All Critics (8) | Fresh (6) | Rotten (2)

A movie about, essentially, the perils of revenge sex (for women, at least).

June 23, 2014 | Rating: 3.5/4 | Full Review…

John Beifuss
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Hysterical early talkie melodrama.

March 3, 2008 | Rating: C | Full Review…

Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews
It's doubtful that this melodrama, in which Norma Shearer challenges society's double standards about sexual mores by flirting with several men, could have been made after 1934 due to strictures of the Production Code.

February 16, 2008 | Rating: B- | Full Review…

Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com
Mesmo que supostamente denuncie o machismo da poca, o prprio filme machista, moralista e repleto de personagens desprezveis, sendo verdadeiramente repugnante.

September 20, 2005 | Rating: 1/5

Pablo Villaça
Cinema em Cena
Refreshingly excited about female sexuality for a Hollywood movie, though pretty tame stuff all in all.

June 20, 2004 | Rating: 3/5

Nick Davis
Nick's Flick Picks
Quote not available.

August 22, 2003 | Rating: 4/5

Carol Cling
Las Vegas Review-Journal
Surpisingly strong, effective early talkie from usually tepid MGM

August 21, 2002 | Rating: 4/5

Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
[Shearer] certainly deserved her Oscar for this one.

February 28, 2002 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…

Michael W. Phillips, Jr.
Goatdog's Movies

View All Critic Reviews (8)

Audience Reviews for The Divorcée

Oct 23, 2016

I have to say, it's fun to watch the partying and horseplay 1930 style, and it's always nice to see Norma Shearer. The film clearly exposes the double standard, with Shearer's husband in the film (Chester Morris) explaining that "it doesn't mean a thing" when he's caught having an affair, but then seeing red when Shearer "balances the account". How nice that she stands up to him after he rebuffs her efforts to reconcile, how telling (and somewhat sad) that she's then shown bouncing around from man to man, as if she must necessarily have swung from a prim and proper housewife to a woman with questionable morals, fitting into one of two defined roles for woman. What is in one sense 'liberated' is in another melodramatic, and a bit lost. I didn't like how it played out, and hated the ending. The Academy Award nominations (and win for best actress) are surprising, but from what I've seen, 1930 was not a great year for movies. Regardless, a much better Shearer vehicle is 1931's "A Free Soul" - I'd recommend watching that instead.

Antonius B Super Reviewer
Aug 01, 2013

An okay and slightly interesting 30s pic that displays some taboos that you don't see later on after Hollywood decides to be more "moral" in its portrayals. That's about it though. It doesn't stand a chance when compared to modern films about womens' sexuality.

John B Super Reviewer
Nov 16, 2010

This movie is okay, it's just like a lot of other movies with similar plots about divorced couples, and the predictable happy ending, of course. Not bad, but not good either.

Aj V Super Reviewer
Nov 02, 2008

Creaky antique, considering the difference in acting styles between now and then Shearer is good not great and its interesting to see the frankness which the subject is dealt with in this pre-code drama but its hard to understand her decision since her husband is a infantile louse.

jay n Super Reviewer