Humoresque

 SPOILER ALERT! The plot will be discussed.

 

Occasionally I write a shorter post based on a viewing and discussion of a film that is part of a movie class conducted at the Bryn Mawr Film Institute. Classes have just resumed following the pandemic, and the first motion picture on the schedule was Humoresque (1946). The story deals with class distinctions, gender roles, and how artistic obsession can lead to problematic interpersonal relationships.

 The film begins with violin virtuoso Paul Boray (John Garfield) emotionally distraught at a concert venue after cancelling his performance. Back at his apartment, Paul’s manager, Frederic Bauer (Richard Gaines), admonishes Paul, saying that he should realize that personal problems can’t get in the way of his music career. He is basically telling him that the show must go on. At this point we don't know what has shaken Paul so badly. Paul’s friend, Sid Jeffers (Oscar Levant) tells Paul that he has always been an outsider. This characteristic exists in most artists, since they become immersed in their work, which leads to detachment from others. Sid says that Paul, as he has gained fame, has lost the joy of the “happy kid” he once was.

 

That remark fits since the rest of the story is told in flashback until the very end. As a child (Tommy Cook), Paul is fascinated when he sees a violin in the store, and asks for it for his birthday. He comes from a working-class family that owns a grocery store, and Paul’s father, Phil (Tom D’Andrea), puts a limit on how much can be spent for his gift. (The story starts during The Great Depression, so economic times are extremely tough). Not only does the violin exceed the amount allowed, but Paul’s dad also shows an aversion to his son’s choice. He most likely sees the pick as effeminate, and he pushes for a baseball bat, which fits the traditional role of what a boy should be interested in. His mother, Esther (Ruth Nelson), however, buys the violin and encourages her son to pursue his passion for music. The film aligns the support for artistic pursuit with the female gender.

 As he grows older, Paul’s male family members criticize him for emphasizing his violin practice and not getting a job, since the male role was seen as being the breadwinner. Paul goes out on his own so as not to be a financial burden to his family. He gets employment with an orchestra that does broadcasts. Here is where he becomes friends with Sid, who plays the piano, who he met when he was a youngster shopping for his first instrument. 

 Sid tells him to come along to a fancy party, something the lower-class Paul is not used to. The party is held at the home of the Wrights. Here we see that Sid is a wise-cracking sidekick who adds humor to the film. For instance, he says to Helen Wright (Joan Crawford), “Tell me Mrs. Wright, does your husband interfere with your marriage.” Of Helen’s self-indulgence, he says to Paul, “She was born with a silver flask in her mouth.” He is also insightful about the narcissism that leads to becoming a highly regarded artist when he tells Paul, “You’ll do alright. You have all of the characteristics of a successful virtuoso. You’re self-indulgent, self-dedicated, and a hero of all your dreams.” Helen’s last name is ironic, since she is not the “right” woman to get involved with for most men. She does not fit in with the traditional role assigned to women, as she is strong-willed and has dominated the men who surround her, including the ones she has married. Her current husband, Victor (Paul Cavanagh), even describes himself as being “weak.” Thus, his first name is also an ironic one.

 

Paul performs at the party, and Helen is at first dismissive of him, as she probably sees him as a social climber. But, he is not a fawning admirer of her. He is ruggedly handsome which contrasts with the usual depiction of an artistic person. He is referred to as a “beast” and a woman says he looks like a “fighter,” a role Garfield portrayed in the film Body and Soul. Victor later calls him a “savage.” He combines both macho and artistic qualities. Helen may actually like those combination of aspects as he is more like her compared to the other men in her life. However, Helen has been using men as her playthings, and there is a shot of Paul as seen through her wine glass, implying that she would like to control him, like a fish in a bowl. She wants to put him in her world of self-indulgence. She begins her attempt to use him the next day as she sends him a gold cigarette case with an apologetic note.

 

Paul’s mother seems to have the correct “vision” in the story about her son pursuing his passion and not getting involved with a married woman. Her view contrasts with the flawed perception of Helen, symbolized by her nearsightedness, which can also reference her inability to see others as they truly are without reference to herself. As our class instructor pointed out, when Paul performs, Helen views him through the eyes of lust, which is shown by the way she gets excited, adjusting her glasses, as she watches him. But, he is playing classical music, so there is an intangible aesthetic at work, too. She wants to own him in a way, molding him to her liking, which he resists. Later, on the balcony, she says that when one sees things too well up close, one sees the imperfections. She lives in a fallen world that is cynical. 

 

At first Helen seems to only want to control Paul as a patron of the arts, and she helps his career skyrocket through her connections. He is ambitious, and the shot from the ground up of the tall building where he goes to secure a manager that will get him acclaim demonstrates his movement out of the lower-class world. At the Wrights’ Long Island house, after Helen goes for a swim, Paul makes a pass at Helen, but she runs away. Later she goes for a horse ride and falls off. As was stated on several occasions on this blog, horses are traditional symbols representing male sexuality. Her spill may suggest that she does not know how to have a meaningful relationship with a man. Paul tries to help her, but she tells him not to touch her. Maybe she is afraid of how attracted to him she really is, a man she is not able to dominate. He kisses her, and she no longer can resist him. She admits that she has fallen in love with him, but she implies that loving her may be hazardous to his mental health.

 Paul's mother is not happy about how her son has spent a great deal of time with Helen, who she reminds him is married. She probably feels he is abandoning his roots, which is epitomized by his missing a date with a girl, Gina (Joan Chandler), from his old neighborhood. The two knew each other since they were young. After his concert debut and going on tour, Paul has lunch with Gina, but Helen shows up and is jealous. This scene shows Paul not willing to succumb to Helen’s control. After Paul and Gina leave the restaurant, Helen slams a drink against the wall. We then see a worker coming by immediately to clean up the broken glass and spilled liquid. It reminds one of The Great Gatsby, where the rich are depicted as careless people who make messes that harm others, which then leads to the less fortunate having to clean up after them.

 

The selfish Helen later tells Paul she doesn’t want to be neglected and wishes to be more involved in his life. She is a powerful person and doesn’t care about society’s rules. So, when he points out that she is a married woman, she says they can do as they choose. (Actually, her husband, Victor, is not deaf to the rumors about the two, and asks for a divorce, telling Helen she can’t change who she is and be happy with Paul). Paul then kisses her, which seals the deal on what a bad influence she is on him. When he gets his own lovely apartment, he has numerous photos of Helen around it. He tells his mother in his new place that he loves Helen, but she warns him of the wrong path he is taking. They argue and she slaps him. Her outrage most likely stems from her wanting an artistic path for Paul which did not entail being corrupted by an amoral, reckless privileged person. The real reason he is drawn to Helen may be because she is someone from the wealthy class who validates his talent. 

 

What Helen didn’t anticipate is that Paul puts his career ahead of her, as he refuses to run to her when she asks him to at one point, and instead continues his rehearsal. She goes to a bar and gets drunk since she can’t have Paul when she desires him. He arrives at the bar to take her home and says he wants to marry her, but obviously he wants the relationship on his terms, which conflicts with her wishes. She says she loves him, but at the same time is realizing their relationship is doomed. Since she is angry with him because he does not indulge her, he says that she “doesn’t think too much of him.” Her response is, “I love you. So I don’t care what I think of you.” Her remark shows the irrationality of love. However, she visits Paul’s mother, trying to gain her support by saying she has insight as to how she has behaved but insists that she truly loves Paul. Esther is rigid in her rejection of Helen as a mate for her son. She tells Helen that if she genuinely cares for Paul the best thing she can do for him is to leave him alone.

 

Neither Helen nor his mother show up at Paul’s next concert. He has alienated the women he cares about because he has allowed his desire for personal fame to prevail over his feelings for both females. Helen, hearing Victor’s words echoing in her mind, and how Paul’s mother told her to set him free, sees herself as hopelessly flawed. She most likely is unable to go on living if she can’t have the one person she truly values. She walks along the beach and then goes into the sea, committing suicide. (Adultery must be punished according to the movie moral code at the time the film was shot).

 

The story returns to the present after Paul has found out about Helen’s death, and he has cancelled the concert. But despite the emotional setbacks, Sid’s assessment of him was on the money. His drive to become a successful violinist propels him forward. However, the last shot is of him walking in his old neighborhood. Will he be able to succeed and still abide by the working-class values he grew up with? The film does not answer that question.

The next film is Black Narcissus.