The Sin of Madelon Claudet

Director: Edgar Selwyn Edgar Selwyn

Overview

In the space of 74 minutes, Helen Hayes goes from naïve French country lass to elderly harridan in Sin of Madelon Claudet. Is it any wonder that she won an Academy Award? (She truly deserved this Oscar; the jury is still out concerning her cutesy supporting turn in 1969's Airport, which also copped her the gold statuette). Betrayed by artist Neil Hamilton, Hayes moves on to jewel thief Lewis Stone, who commits suicide to avoid arrest, leaving Hayes to her fate. After ten years in jail for her complicity in Stone's crimes, Hayes turns to the only profession open to her. She walks the streets to raise enough money to support her illegitimate son, who grows up to be Robert Young and who has no idea that Hayes is his mother. Thanks to his mother's anonymous financial support, Young is able to attend medical school, eventually becoming a wealthy doctor. Even allowing for the illogical nature of the plotline and the lachrymose dialogue, the heartrending final scenes of Sin of Madelon Claudet can still raise a lump in the throat after 65 years.

Product Details

Release Date:	08/05/2011
UPC:	0883316342886
Original Release:	1931
Source:	Warner Archives
Language:	English
Time:	1:15:00
Sales rank:	43,681

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Helen Hayes	Madelon Claudet
Lewis Stone	Carlo Boretti
Neil Hamilton	Larry
Robert Young	Dr. Jacques Claudet
Cliff Edwards	Victor
Jean Hersholt	Dr. Dulac
Marie Prevost	Rosalie
Karen Morley	Alice
Charles Winninger	Photographer
Halliwell Hobbes	Roget
Lennox Pawle	St. Jacques
Russ Powell	Claudet,Claudet
Otto Hoffman	Official
Ed Brady	Actor
Frankie Darro	Larry at Age 12
Alan Hale Jr.	Hubert

Technical Credits

Charles MacArthur

Edgar Selwyn	Director
Harry Rapf	Producer
Charles MacArthur	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

Legend has it that Helen Hayes was somewhat embarrassed at winning an Oscar for a work as blatantly manipulative and melodramatic as The Sin of Madelon Claudet, but Hayes' performance overcomes the limitations of the material and, more importantly, even manages to elevate that material. Hayes is simply stunning, investing every moment of this sudsy tearjerker with an honesty that makes even its most stilted dialogue come alive. Her naïveté in the early segment of the film is endearing rather than cloying; it feels real rather than manufactured and, therefore, makes all the more powerful her strongly ambivalent feelings at the birth of her son. Hayes handles the transformations into each of the stages of her life with remarkable facility. In each stage she is practically a different character, yet the audience never once questions that they are all the same woman -- nor questions whether one woman could exhibit so many different facets. While it's hard to see past the star performance, it must be noted that she gets some very solid support from the rest of the cast, especially from a wonderful Lewis Stone and an engaging Marie Prevost. The screenplay of Madelon is tripe, but Hayes and her company make the film worth watching.

All Movie Guide - Craig Butler