Sarah and Son

1930

1h 26m

IMDb RATING

5.2/10

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Drama

A ne'er-do-well husband, after years of abusing his wife, disappears with their son, and winds up selling him to a wealthy family. Years later, the wife, now a world-famous opera singer, finally has enough time and money to begin a search for him.

Directors

Dorothy Arzner

Writers

Zoe Akins(adaptation by)

Timothy Shea(novel by)

Zoe Akins(screenplay by)

Stars

Ruth Chatterton

Fredric March

Fuller Mellish Jr.

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Top cast

Sarah Storm

Howard Vanning

Jim Grey

John Ashemore

Martha Ashemore

Cyril Belloc

Bobby

Vanning's Butler (Uncredited)

Douglas Scott

Young Bobby (Uncredited)

Madame Sul-Te-Wan

Belloc's Maid (Uncredited)

Dick Winslow

Servant's Son (Uncredited)

Lottie Williams

Directors

Dorothy Arzner

Writers

Zoe Akins(adaptation by)

Timothy Shea(novel by)

Zoe Akins(screenplay by)

All cast & crew

Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

User reviews1

Review

Featured review

6/10

"Grey" (Fuller Mellish Jr) is a bit of a rake. He treats his wife "Sarah" (Ruth Chatterton) appallingly and after years of this, absconds with their young baby son "Bobby" (who turns into Philippe De Lacy) of whom he soon bores and so he sells him onto a decent and wealthy family before enlisting. "Sarah" is heartbroken but the Great War intervenes and thereafter, the "Ashmore" family who acquired her son decline to give him up - she hasn't got tuppence to rub together. Her luck changes though - her singing takes her to operatic stardom and she is now in a better financial position to appeal directly to her now quite spoilt son. Grimly determined to reconcile her family, she tries to influence "Vanning" (Frederic March). He's a lawyer and a relative of the "Ashmore" family. As she pursues her real goal, a side benefit includes a burgeoning romance between these two. Can she establish her own ideal family unit? The story itself provides for quite an emotional maelstrom. The frustrated mother seeking a son who has never known anyone but the folks he grew up with, loved and took care of him. There's never going to be a conclusion that satisfies everyone, but so long as "Sarah" gets her way. Chatterton delivers well here as does De Lacy as the young lad, but there's just far too little of March for him to make much difference to the rather ploddingly melodramatic fashion in which Dorothy Arzner decides to tell the tale. The production is adequate and the denouement filmed quite effectively, but it's all just a bit flat.

Geronimo196711 Feb, 2024