User reviews

Gloria Swanson is Beautiful absolutely stunning in this motion picture. The film is a historical gem as we get a glimpse of life in the late 1920s and the fashion and scenery of the time period. The film itself isnt all over the place like other talkies of the time and the acting is alright all the actors did a good job in making it believable to the audience that is the charachter they're playing. Its a shame Swansons career did not to go as well in the 30s but made somewhat of a come back in billy wilders sunset blvd (1950). The copy I saw on Yout was scratchy and the film didnt seem like it was preserved quite well. Nevertheless the story line was entertaining to see the whole movie in its intiniry.

Famous United Artists film from 1929 with Gloria Swanson in her smash-hit talkie debut. I saw this at the George Eastman House in Rochester last week; it has the only known complete print and it's a beautifully restored version.

Swanson stars as a private secretary who marries a wealthy man's son. But their honeymoon is interrupted by the angry father who bullies the son into getting an annulment to "test" Swanson, while they "gussy her up" for their society friends. Swanson storms out but the boy doesn't follow. Later she reads about his marriage to a "proper" girl in Europe. So she decides to never tell him about the baby from their honeymoon night. Later she reads about a terrible accident and the other wife's injuries. But by then Swanson has shacked up with her boss and living off him even though he is married. Everything comes to a head when the boss dies and Swanson tries to go straight but can't make a living to support herself and her baby. Re-enter the first husband, his crippled wife, and treacherous father.

Pure soap but it's very well done and Swanson (with her 2nd Oscar nomination for this gem) is totally great. Opening scene is a long dolly shot moving in toward her office where she has her back to the camera as she types. Her first words are "and how!" as the 'can-do" secretary. Up thru the honeymoon Swanson is bright and funny as the happy bride. She was a terrific comedienne. But when the story turns tragic, Swanson really comes into her element as the suffering mother, the high-living floozy, and finally the contrite penitent.

Robert Ames is the husband, Henry B. Walthall is the office manager, Kay Hammond is the crippled wife, Blanche Frederici is the nanny, Purnell Pratt is the boss, William Holden is the mean father, Henry Armetta is the barber, Mary Forbes is the boss's wife (in fabulous clothes and jewelry), and Stu Erwin shows up as a reporter.

Swanson sings "Love, Your Magic Spell Is Everywhere" and "My Tormented Heart" in the Italian version.

A pity this film will likely never be released on DVD. The Trespasser is a great moment in a great star's career.

This film essentially begins in Chicago with a young man by the name of "Jack Merrick" (Robert Ames) and a woman named "Marion Donnell" (Gloria Swanson) deciding to get married that very night and spend their honeymoon at a nice hotel overlooking Lake Michigan. Unfortunately, not long afterward, Jack's extremely wealthy father "John Merrick Sr." (William Holden) soon learns of their elopement and angrily rushes over and to convince Jack to have the marriage annulled. Although Jack reluctantly agrees, he does so only because of the negative publicity the elopement might have in the press and tries to reassure Marion that they will soon be married again in a more formal setting. Needless to say, Marion is not at all happy with this new development and leaves Jack that very day. The scene then shifts to 18 months later with Marion on the verge of a nervous breakdown due to her trying to working so hard and trying to support a young child who was born 9 months after she broke up with Jack. To make matters even worse, the newspapers have just printed an article describing the marriage of Jack to an equally wealthy young woman named "Catherine 'Flip' Carson" (Kay Hammond) which depresses her even more. What she doesn't realize, however, is that she will one day meet Jack again and its then that she will eventually have to make the most difficult decisions in her life. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that this turned out to be a better film than I initially expected due in large part to the acting of Gloria Swanson who was subsequently nominated for an Academy Award for her performance. Admittedly, as with most early sound movies made during this time, the overall film quality wasn't that great and some allowances might have to be made for that. Be that as it may, I thought that this was an entertaining movie and I have rated it accordingly. Above average.

The Tresspasser (1929) : Brief Review -

Gloria Swanson's Talkie debut is problematic but not a passable flick. Perhaps, her only Sound film to remember after "Sunset Boulevard". Gloria Swanson's stardom was at its peak during the 1920s decade. Most of her silent features by the mid-20s were hits and received well. She began to lose something by the end of the 30s, possibly due to the new girls' arrivals after 1925 (not taking any names to avoid competition). The Treespasser makes a watchable romantic melodrama, but one cannot overlook the misled plot or, better said, conflicts. Marion elopes with her boyfriend, Jack Merrick, a wealthy businessman. He is not ready to quit his father's property, despite his refusals to their marriage, and then Marion, high on self-respect, leaves him. She gives birth to his child and lives with her employer as his "kept woman". As expected, Marion and Jack meet again after 3 years when Marion wants her son to have the protection of his father, and all of a sudden, they both rekindle their lost love. That part was too dramatic and unacceptable. I lost half the interest in the film there, but then it had some good things, dramatic I mean, planned for the climax and ended up being a watchable melodramatic pulp. The film was released in both sound and silent versions, and you can notice the irregular lip sync and mismatched dialogues caused by it. Swanson looked convincing with those first-time dialogues, but I couldn't convince myself to like her character. The same goes for Robert Ames, because none of them play an intelligent part. Well, you can say who wants love to be intelligent. That's right too. I have seen many of Edmund Goulding's films from the 30s and 40s, so I don't think this film can end anywhere in my top 10 list. But, yes, it can be watched to get to know contemporary cinema, especially the earliest days of sound cinema.

RATING - 6/10*

Swanson looks divine, so she's a lot more believable when pampered by her wealthy boss/lover than down on her luck as a single mum refusing to rely on her even wealthier ex-husband, who is completely unaware they've had a child together. Corny doesn't begin to describe The Trespasser, and the ending is laughable, but Swanson is always worth watching.

None of us should pretend that THE TRESPASSER isn't now, 82 years after its time, incredibly creaky. It is. But it's also, for a 1929 talkie, darned well made, with any number of clever cinematic touches and, unlike most 1929 dramas, a well-done musical score. Just contrast it with the other big 1929 woman's picture, the arid and primitive MADAME X, made a few months earlier. Obviously a number of modern viewers won't make the necessary allowances, as some of the other reviews here show. It isn't always easy to view an early talkie sympathetically, especially when The Marx Bros. aren't involved. But if TRESPASSER is trite in many ways, and relies on at least one outlandish coincidence, it should be seen, still, as a phenomenally astute way to introduce one of the biggest silent stars to sound film. It's fascinating to watch Swanson feeling her way into the talkies. Sometimes she's perfectly naturalistic, other times she declaims like an old-school stage star, and sometimes her silent-movie roots show very clearly with some too- grand gestures. In her best sound film performances, MUSIC IN THE AIR and, of course, SUNSET BOULEVARD, she used aspects of the old over-the- top silent style to great effect; here, not playing a grandiose diva, she can seem more self-conscious about the whole thing. But, more than anything else, she's an first-rate trouper, working hard to give an adoring public every bit of its money's worth. And she obviously worked very well with director/writer Edmund Goulding, who she helped (and also with Laura Hope Crews) to put together this autobiographically-tinged soap opera. (Gloria as the mistress of a tycoon? See the very first frames of the credits : "Joseph P. Kennedy Presents...") And though her singing isn't necessarily presented in a subtle way, it's terrific. Audiences in 1929 were bowled over to find out that she could sing as well (or even better) than she could talk, and it's easy to see why. Note, too, that she clears her throat before starting "Love, Your Spell is Everywhere," proving that she was doing it live on the set. Her performance of Toselli's Serenade is lovely too, especially the way Goulding has her singing off camera before entering, still singing, in a drop-dead gown. It's just too bad that both performances are somewhat truncated, unlike the commercial recordings she made of them. We shouldn't expect THE TRESPASSER to be seen, today, as anything other than a museum piece. Too many of its dramatics are too unsubtle or rudimentary for it to work without some necessary caveats. But as an antique, and a small, authentic piece of film (and political!) history, it's extremely engaging, as crafted by an intelligent and resourceful director for a still-brilliant, one-of-a-kind star.

Ouch.

In her autobiography, Gloria Swanson recalls this film as a glorious success amidst a run of relative failure -- critically acclaimed, financially profitable ('my cheapest picture since I became a star,' she reminisces proudly), and responsible for winning her an Oscar nomination. For my part, I probably wouldn't resent it quite so much if I hadn't had to fork out seventeen pounds for the humiliating privilege of sitting through such absolute tosh in the company of a guest to whom I'd recommended the film on the basis of Miss Swanson's estimation of her own performance...

The plot is pure Mills & Boon; outlandish coincidences, improbable motivations, bosom-heaving and fainting, and characters killed and injured at a flick of a coin for the sake of the plot. Characterisation is paper-thin, compensated for by a wealth of over-emoting; the dialogue is pretty bad and, alas, the delivery is worse -- huge slices of ham all round, with Miss Swanson perhaps the most flagrant offender. This film wouldn't know 'subtle' if it were hit over the head with it, yet somehow it contrives to be both wildly outlandish and tediously predictable. Long before the end I was counting the minutes -- 'oh no, not another reel'.

Gloria Swanson is really a little too old for her role here, and slips at times into the grotesque, overplaying her facial expressions and employing a throbbing, artificial vocal delivery that -- the inevitable comparison has to be made -- is all too reminiscent of her caricature act in "Sunset Boulevard" . Robert Ames is fairly wooden, while William Holden as his father pulls out all the stops to deliver a performance reminiscent of Germont senior in "La Traviata": indeed, the whole thing has something of the (soap) operatic about it. Kay Hammond is winsome and -- especially in her first scene -- wince-making as 'poor little Flip'; Blanche Friderici provides a Cockney nurse worthy of Dick Van Dyke, and all in all the best performance is turned in by Wally Albright Jr as the unselfconscious three-year-old.

The only parts of the dialogue which really rang true to me were the early office scenes and the scene with the reporters. The film was billed as a 'pre-Code' production, but fits the bill solely inasmuch as it alludes to illegitimacy (carefully avoided) and the status of a kept woman; it has nothing of the hard-boiled wisecracks and street realism of early sound productions such as "Virtue" (1932 -- Carole Lombard is a prostitute trying to go straight) or "Baby Face" (1933 -- Barbara Stanwyck sleeps her way to the top of a corporation). One gets the impression that the scriptwriters were out of their social and emotional depth with this material.

Original audiences were said to have tears pouring down their faces at the conclusion of the film, which I won't here give away. I'm afraid that the only discernible response from this audience was waves of giggles, and while I wasn't one of the offenders I could see only too clearly the cause. It's possible for a film and actors to pull off the most preposterous of plots and/or dialogue, but unfortunately this production fails to convince on almost all levels.

"Beyond the Rocks", the Rudolph Valentino/Gloria Swanson rediscovery that featured largely in an earlier London Film festival, sported a similarly extravagant plot but had at least a smidgeon of emotional depth to the characters -- it also has the inestimable advantage of silence. I'm afraid that to my eyes (and ears!) "The Trespasser" turns out to embody almost all the urban legends about silent-screen stars stuck on a sound-stage and required to talk; the writers don't know how to produce credible dialogue and the performers don't know how to deliver it.

Early talkies -- and even part-talkies -- can be good. Sadly, this isn't one of them.

This film was a delight and incredibly watchable. I highly recommend watching this film, which I believe ranks alongside such films as "Stella Dallas" and "Now Voyager." This is definitely of the Woman's Picture genre and a film that you are certain to enjoy.

I know this review is about "The Trespasser;" however, I must first write a few words about "Sunset Boulevard" to frame my discussion.

Like many fans of Gloria Swanson, I have always blurred the lines of reality between Gloria Swanson the actress and her portrayal of the fictitious character, Norma Desmond, from "Sunset Boulevard." I first viewed "Sunset Boulevard" as a teenager growing up in the 1970s. I was one of those viewers who really rooted for Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson) and wanted her to succeed in her "return" to motion pictures.

It is sad that Gloria Swanson was not able to appear in films of such caliber as "The Trespasser" after making "Sunset Boulevard." With my personal background viewership in mind, I found "The Trespasser" (1929) to be incredibly riveting, which is not always the case when viewing movies of this deep vintage.

Gloria Swanson's caliber of performance comes very close to matching her work in "Sunset Boulevard." I have not viewed much of her work that occurred between "The Trespasser" and "Sunset Boulevard," but have read that this interim work was of lesser quality.

I think that Gloria Swanson required a strong director who could bring out a good performance. Underneath any performance, there must be emotional substance to flesh out the dialogue (Method Acting). Otherwise, the words ring hollow and forced.

I think that the timing of this production provided Gloria Swanson with the perfect emotional storm to bring some method acting to her role in "The Trespasser." She desperately needed a hit film that would get her out of financial debt from the never to be finished "Queen Kelly".

I think that her underlying financial angst gave emotional depth to her performance. She seems to be at her best when her character is also in the midst of intense emotional desperation.

I hope you enjoy watching Gloria Swanson succeed in "The Trespasser" as much as I did. Norma Desmond would be proud.

The Trespasser (1929)

*** (out of 4)

Strange but winner tale of a poor but pure woman (Gloria Swanson) who marries the son (Robert Ames) of a millionaire but when his father finds out he convinces the son to have the marriage annulled. We flash-forward eighteen months and the woman has given birth to a son but she decides to keep this news from the real father until a few bad choices forces her to confront her past. THE TRESPASSER was Swanson first talkie and it also won her a Best Actress Oscar nomination, which she certainly deserved and for my money she's a lot better than Norma Shearer was in THE Divorcée. I'll admit that there's way too much sugar in some of the scenes and I'd say that the final thirty-minutes don't make a bit of sense but there's no question that the film kept me glued to what was going on and you can't help but get caught up in everything. I think a lot of the credit has to go to Swanson who really does deliver a very strong performance. I've read a few reviews stating that her facial gestures are too over-the-top, which might be true but I still think the pain of her character is nailed by the actress and she really brings this character to life. Ames isn't nearly as good as the one-day husband but he does get to shine in a few scenes as does Kay Hammond as the second wife and Henry B. Walthall has a nice part as well. There's no doubt that the film contain some flaws and for the life of me I never could figure out what Swanson's character was thinking and especially at the end. I won't ruin what happens but we have something predictable happen and then it's followed up with something so sugar-coated and worst of all is that it happens out of nowhere. Still, the incredibly strong performance by Swanson makes up for any flaws and film buffs should enjoy it.

THE TRESPASSER (United Artists, 1929), a Joseph Kennedy Presentation, written and Directed by Edmund Goulding, stars silent screen actress Gloria Swanson (1898-1983) in her talking motion picture debut. Following her success in the title role of the silent edition of SADIE THOMPSON (1928), for which she earned an Academy Award nomination, her performance for THE TRESPASSER also got Swanson her second consecutive nomination in a row. For anyone familiar with the name of Gloria Swanson, should know her best as Norma Desmond in SUNSET BOULEVARD (Paramount, 1950), hailed by many as her greatest movie achievement of her entire career. Though she registered quite well in talkies, the films that followed simply failed to recapture the Swanson legend a decade ago, yet THE TRESPASSER is an exception.

Opening title: "Somewhere in the Loop." Marion Donnell (Gloria Swanson), is an efficient stenographer working for Hector Ferguson (Purnell B. Pratt), a Chicago corporation attorney. Though a good worker liked by many, including Mr. Fuller (Henry B. Walthall), Marion informs Ferguson this to be her last day in his employ, for that she's to go and elope with Jack Merrick (Robert Ames), the only son of a wealthy businessman, John Merrick Sr. (William Holden - NOT the same William Holden of Swanson's SUNSET BOULEVARD). Marion's honeymoon is interrupted by the arrival of Jack's snobbish father, who claims Marion to be a fortune hunter after his money. He talks Jack into annulling the marriage, to follow up with a big engagement and wedding later on. Insulted by his accusations, and feeling Jack not man enough to stand up to his father, Marion walks out on him, much to the pleasure of Merrick. Eighteen months later, Marion, living a life on her own, is the mother of Jack's infant son, while Jack has married debutante and childhood sweetheart, Catherine "Flip" Carson (Kay Hammond), the woman of Merrick's choice. As baby Jackie is looked after during the day by Miss Potter (Blanche Frederici), Marion is back in the employ of Mr. Ferguson. Marion soon suffers from a mental breakdown after learning Jack and his new bride met with a serious automobile smashup while honeymooning in Paris. Ferguson, a married man in love with Marion, helps her out of her financial straits by supplying her a luxury apartment as well as making her his mistress. Later, Ferguson collapses. Being close to death, he sends for Marion to be with him at his home, regardless of his wife's (Mary Forbes) presence by his deathbed. After Ferguson death, Marion finds that he had left her a will entrusting $500,000 to to both her and her baby, but she refuses to accept it. Jack soon learns that he's the father of Marion's three-year- old son (Wally Albright). This soon causes trouble for Marion when Mr. Merrick returns to the scene demanding Jackie be taken away from Marion and placed into the custody of Jack and his wheelchair-bound wife, who's unable to bear forth children of her own.

If the story sounds overly familiar, it was later remade under the direction of Edmund Goulding re-titled THAT CERTAIN WOMAN (Warner Brothers, 1937) starring Bette Davis (Mary); Henry Fonda (Jack); Anita Louise (Flip) and Donald Crisp (Merrick). While parts of the story differs greatly from the original, with the pacing being a bit slower, the screenplay and climax remains basically the same. Aside from Swanson's natural dramatic performance, her rendition to "Love, Your Magic Spell is Everywhere" (by Elsie Janis and Edmund Goulding) and "Toselli Serenade" leaves a bit to be desired. She's a much better actress than a singer. The old looking Robert Ames (1889- 1931) seems miscast as the millionaire playboy, in a role that might have gone to the youthful newcomer, Fredric March. Also in the cast are Henry Armetta (The Barber); Allan Cavan (The Doctor); and Stuart Erwin (The Newspaper Reporter), among others.

Long unseen in decades, THE TRESPASSER (title not to be confused with a Republic 1947 production starring Dale Evans) made its cable television premiere on Turner Classic Movies (TCM Premiere: December 14, 2011), as part of its tribute and film restoration work from the George Eastman House. It's also available on DVD. Clocked at 90 minutes, THE TRESPASSER, which somewhat suffers a little from acid stain film distortion and Swanson's singing, is still entertaining and surprisingly better in style than the better known Bette Davis remake. (***)

Gloria Swanson assisted on the screenplay of her first talker along with director Goulding and the result was a huge critical success and audience hit which garnered Swanson an Academy Award nomination. Today, is seems like a silly soaper. Working girl marries rich husband only to have the one-night marriage annulled by her father-in-law. Of course, Swanson is already pregnant, but suffers in silence and raises the child alone. And that's only reel one. Lots more self-sacrifice to come. A fine restoration print by the George Eastman House viewed at Cinefest in Syracuse, NY in March of 2003. Corny enough to be entertaining to some of the crowd.

This film written and directed by Edmund Goulding is one that Joseph Kennedy bankrolled for his mistress, Gloria Swanson. This isn't surprising though I was surprised to see his name emblazoned on the screen at the beginning, saying "Joseph P. Kennedy Presents". Interesting.

When the film begins, a lawyer's stenographer, Marion (Swanson) is excited...a wealthy young man just asked her to marry him. Soon they are off on their honeymoon living it up...but not for long. His family arrived unexpectedly and demand he get their marriage annulled. He's a weak idiot and agrees...leaving Marion in the lurch. The lurch is much worse than she first suspected, as she later learns she's pregnant!!

Months pass. Marion is desperate as she's tried unsuccessfully to work, pay a sitter and pay all the bills...but there just isn't enough of her nor enough money. She refuses to seek out the father's family for help due to her pride. After all, her 'loving husband' dumped her and didn't give her a second thought. And, when she finally breaks down and is about to ask them for help, it's horrible timing and she walks out. In desperation, finally takes her boss, Mr. Ferguson (Purnell Pratt) into her confidence about her dilemma. He's a very decent sort and offers to help. What's next? See this soap opera-like film for yourself.

Generally, Swanson is very good in this film though she occasionally had a tendency to over-act in a style that was not too unusual for the day. When she became upset, she tended to sound overwrought and a bit silly. However, inexplicably, they also have her sing a few times and her singing is downright painful to listen to! My advice is that if you are watching this on DVD or YouTube, speed through the songs...your ears will thank you for this. Oddly, she was also nominated for this performance. Either tastes have drastically changed or there was some sort of fix going on with the Oscars--and the early days of Oscar, this sort of thing happened quite often. If someone with money and power wanted a win or a nomination, this COULD have been arranged...like it was in getting Wallace Beery the Oscar for "The Champ" only a few years later.

So is the film any good in spite of Swanson's occasional lapses in acting as well as her singing (which, incidentally sounds like someone being tortured)? Well, yes and no. It is entertaining but probably played much better back in the day. When seen today, the film appears dated...even when compared to other early talkies. It's interesting, it held my interest but it's also a film folks who are not familiar with early talking pictures will quickly dismiss. For 1929, it's decent and watchable...hence my initial score of 6. One reviewer described the film as 'corny'...and that's reasonable though I still did enjoy it. However, once the film ended (or should have ended) it kept going and tacked on an unnecessary happy ending...for which I have reduced the score to 5.