Blossoms in the Dust (1941) - film review

Devastated by the tragic death of her infant son, the wealthy socialite Edna Gladney copes with her grief by opening a day nursery for the children of working mothers at her large Texas home.  When her husband, the mill owner Sam Glandey, defaults on his loan, the couple are made virtually penniless and have to move to a much smaller house in Fort Worth.  Visiting the court house one day, Edna is appalled when she sees how illegitimate orphans are treated, as though they were inferior to the offspring of married parents.  There and then Edna makes a life-changing decision.  She will take charge of such unfortunate infants and strive to find loving homes for them.  On his premature deathbed, Sam urges Edna to persevere in her work.   Encouraged by her husband’s last words, Edna founds a children’s home and embarks on a campaign that will end the discrimination against illegitimate children.

Whilst many critics have been all too quick to write off Blossoms in the Dust as a fluffy women’s picture, its director Mervyn LeRoy was adamant that it is every bit as socially significant as his earlier I am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932), although, stylistically, the films could not be more different.  The hard-edged realism of LeRoy’s early films is scarcely noticeable in the films he subsequently made for MGM, although beneath the froth and surface gloss there remains something of the director’s keenly felt passion for human affairs and social justice.

Blossoms in the Dust is not a work of fiction but recounts the true story of Mrs Edna Gladney, an American social reformer who worked tirelessly for the rights of illegitimate infants in the first half of the 20th Century.  Shot in gorgeous Technicolor, the film revealed Greer Garson at her most beautiful, showing audiences her fiery red hair for the first time.  Significantly, this was the first of eight films in which the actress was romantically partnered with Walter Pidgeon.  Together, they would form one of Hollywood’s most memorable screen couples, achieving enormous popularity with films such as Mrs. Miniver (1942), Madame Curie (1943) and Mrs. Parkington (1944).

Whilst Blossoms does harbour a few moments of awkward schmaltz and sneaks in one or two hopelessly dated clichés, the film is sincere in its attempt to celebrate the achievements of a remarkable woman and is particularly moving in its later passages.  The sequence in which Edna realises she must give up the one child in her care that she loves as her own son is delicately handled and exquisitely poignant.  As the drama builds towards its tear-jerking climax, the spectator gets to feel something of the pain and joy of self-sacrifice, and to realise just what an exceptional individual Mrs Gladney was, an inspiration for us all.

© Alex Sullivan 2010

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