Rain (1932)
Directed by Lewis Milestone

Film Review

Uninhibited by the gratuitous self-censorship that was soon to come into force with the introduction of the Hays Code, Lewis Milestone's Rain is positively awash with undercurrents of illicit desire, making it one of the most suggestive portrayals of sexuality in a Hollywood motion picture of this era.  The exotic setting offers an abundance of stark visual metaphors, with the endless downpour and beating of drums providing a rhythm that is a constant reminder of those untamed and untameable forces of nature to which we are all prone.  The film is adapted from the 1923 stage play of the same title by John Colton and Clemence Randolph, which was itself based on W. Somerset Maugham's short story Miss Thompson.  There had been a previous screen version of the play, Sadie Thompson (1928) starring Gloria Swanson, and there would be a further remake featuring Rita Hayworth, Miss Sadie Thompson (1953).  Milestone's film may not be as polished and memorable as these two other versions, but it has one prize asset: Joan Crawford at her sultry best.

One of MGM's most promising new stars, Joan Crawford was always in her element when playing hard-bitten, man-eater roles, and in Sadie Thompson she had a part for which was perfectly suited.  At the time, Crawford's portrayal of Thompson was generally not well-received (the film was shunned by both audiences and critics and Crawford unfavourably compared with Swanson in the earlier version) but it was, for the actress, something of a game changer, presaging her subsequent, more complex character portrayals.  Crawford's Miss Thompson is the most fascinating aspect of Milestone's film.  We are drawn to her, we are mesmerised by her, and yet we never get to understand her.  She is an object both of sympathy and desire, but she gives away so little about herself, and we leave her knowing that we have glimpsed the merest fraction of her true nature.  She is as Maugham created her - a perfect enigma.

By comparison, Walter Huston's Davidson is as transparent as glass - a self-righteous missionary whose supposed morality is built on the flimsiest of foundations and is already on the brink of collapsing before he even sets eyes on Sadie, the she-Devil who will drive him to his doom.  Having the natural aura of a Quaker minister, Huston was often cast in high-minded character roles, and it is interesting to see him in a part where this familiar screen persona proves to be a mere illusion, beneath which there is a weak and far more human soul trying to cope with his earthy impulses.  So convincing (and nauseating) is Huston's air of moral superiority that we can hardly believe our eyes when his character finally stumbles and gives in to the basest and most potent of animal desires.

Milestone's direction is adequate but seldom is it as inspired as you might expect for a director of his calibre.  Compared with All Quiet on the Western Front (1930), the film that made his name, Rain is a low-key drama that struggles to conceal its origins as a minimalist stage play.  Most of the film consists of long scenes (mostly two-handers) that are blocked as a piece of amateur theatre, and no great effort was spent on the camera and editing fronts to make the film more visually interesting.  The almost theatrical mise-en-scène makes Rain appear dated but, oddly, this adds to the claustrophobic mood of the piece and gives Crawford's performance a heightened intensity.  Throughout her career, Joan Crawford would be troubled by her insecurities as an actress, and it is this which gives an edge to all of her performances, perhaps none more so than her portrayal of Miss Sadie Thompson, the most unfathomable of screen heroines.

Film Synopsis

Owing to a cholera outbreak, the passengers and crew of a ship bound for Apia, Samoa are forced to stop over at Pago Pago.  The passengers include Sadie Thompson, a prostitute who makes no secret of her profession, and a couple of over-zealous missionaries, the Davidsons.  When Sadie begins flirting with American marines stationed on the island Mr Davidson is appalled and resolves to save the young woman's soul.  At first, Sadie resists Davidson's attempts to reform her.  She plans to start a new life in Australia with one of the marines, Sergeant O'Hara.  Davidson arranges to have Sadie deported to San Francisco, where she must serve a three year stretch in prison for a crime for which she insists she was framed.  Finally, Davidson gets his way and Sadie undergoes a religious conversion.  Realising the control he has over the prostitute, the missionary gives in to his bestial impulses - with tragic consequences...