Why am I always awakened from my dreams?
The Love Parade (1929) - watched 7/29/2024
Director: Ernst Lubitsch
Writers: Ernest Vajda, Guy Bolton
Starring: Maurice Chevalier, Jeanette MacDonald, Lillian Roth, Lupino Lane
Available to watch? Not currently available to stream.
First Time Watch? Yes
After watching The Love Parade, a film with a decidedly misogynist message, I got to wondering about early feminist films, and started to do some digging. It seems that the 1923 short French film La Souriante Madame Beudet (The Smiling Madame Beudet) is widely considered to be the “first” feminist film ever made.1 In the film, the titular Madame Beudet is depressed and bored, stuck in a loveless marriage with an absolutely unhinged, controlling man who gets his jollies by holding an empty revolver to his head and pretending to shoot himself. Cool prank, dude! Without saying too much—because I do think this film is a great watch, well worth 38 minutes of your life—Madame Beudet ends up going to extreme measures to attempt to get out of her domestic prison.
It worked out well that I watched both of these films back to back, with each film focusing on a character that is bored, lonely, and miserable in their marriage. Having the male perspective of this experience juxtaposed with the female experience only enhanced my already, uh, strong feelings about The Love Parade. More on that below, of course.
Can I also just say that I find it astounding that I’m giving myself a better film education through this project than I got out of four years of film school.2 Considering I studied film with a minor in women’s studies, it’s honestly kind of vile that I was never exposed to La Souriante Madame Beudet prior to now! Kids, in case no one has told you this yet, learn from my mistakes—stay out of crippling debt, don’t go to film school, and just watch as many movies as you can, whenever you can.
And in case you're too serious-minded to notice such things, let me inform you my legs are perfect!
We start off in Paris, at some point in time. It’s not important. We meet Count Alfred Menard (Maurice Chevalier), a Parisian playboy. Some stuff happens in French that I didn’t fully capture since there were no subtitles in the version I watched, but it was a pretty funny opening nonetheless. Alfred is sent to the fictional Sylvania after he is caught in one of his many romantic scandals.
In Sylvania, Alfred encounters Queen Louise (Jeanette MacDonald, shoutout to a Philly girl), a beautiful, strong-willed woman who’s sick and tired of everyone around her telling her she needs to get married to some man. She is literally the queen, like leave her alone?? Anyway, she meets Alfred, is immediately intrigued by him, and invites him to dinner.
In a bit of a frustrating scene where the action is described by a bunch of secondary characters as they spy on Louise and Alfred, they have their little dinner date, and presumably hook up. This movie is pretty cheeky/horny and do a lot of alluding to sex, something that all those very online “sex scenes are so unnecessary” people would probably froth at the mouth for. Anyway, soon after this successful date, Louise and Alfred are married, and Alfred becomes Prince Consort of Sylvania. It’s a title that essentially means “the Queen’s trophy husband.” To Alfred’s frustration, his role as Prince Consort comes with very few perks—his days are boring, with the Queen away most of the day tending to various state affairs. Alfred has no input on matters of the state, and in fact the Queen’s staff aren’t even allowed to take orders from him.
So Alfred basically thinks this is bullshit, and right before he is supposed to attend the opera with the Queen, he throws a little tantrum and tells her he’s going to file for divorce and go back to Paris. With her reputation now on the line, and also because his behavior really sucks, Louise is justifiably upset. Further toying with her, Alfred shows up at the opera at the last minute and is a jerk to her the entire time, knowing that she can’t react and cause a scene in front of a theater full of people.
Later that night, Louise is distressed as Alfred makes good on his threat and begins to pack to head back to Paris. Before he can leave, Queen Louise convinces him to stay by agreeing to relinquish her title and allow him to be King of Sylvania. Because that’s how it works, I guess? The end!!!
Oh, it’s wonderful being common!
This era is an absolute desert for films with even a whiff of a feminist stance. Lately these films feel like they can’t even muster being kind to their women characters, and it’s honestly getting exhausting. I yearn for a story about a woman who doesn’t sacrifice, who doesn’t settle, who isn’t seen as the villain or obstacle of the male protagonist, who doesn’t experience pain and torture in service of a man. I know, I know this is asking for a lot! Especially for Oscar-nominated films!! Women in Distress as a theme is practically an Oscar bait prerequisite. I know I’m in for a long, rough ride here. But can I get a break? Just a crumb of female pleasure or triumph or joy?
I thought I’d get there with The Divorcee. We were so close! But then the very last scene pulled the rug out from under me. I know I should have learned my lesson, and I don’t know why I expected any different, but The Love Parade lulled me into the same false sense of security that The Divorcee did—except it was way, way worse!
What we have here, with The Love Parade is the potential for something truly exciting and subversive for 1929. Through a modern lens, as we watch Alfred struggle to become comfortable in his role as Prince Consort, we naturally think, “Oh, it’s funny because this is normally what a woman’s life is like! One would expect the man to be the leader, the one going out and working all day while the wife is bored at home, relegated to arm candy status! Usually it’s the woman whose opinions and desires don’t matter! But this movie is flipping that expectation on its head, haha! I’m sure in the end the male characters will have an epiphany about this and will become more enlightened, empathetic people as a result! Surely there’s no other way this could end!!”
But NO!!! Instead, we the little audience piggies are served this awful slop of an ending where the Queen gives up her title and her role to her petulant man-child of a husband. This movie tells us that, despite the fact that Queen Louise seemed to be extremely capable as a leader, and that Alfred fucking sucks, hers was a role that was better suited for a man, and it’s in her best interest—for the sake of her relationship and for the good of the country—to pass the torch over to her husband, who has done absolutely nothing to earn it.
It doesn’t even make sense for Louise’s character to give up the bag so easily! From the beginning, we know her as a woman who defies expectations and doesn’t let her status as an unmarried woman define or distract her. Giving up her role as queen to Alfred because he was, what, bored? isn’t in line with her character. Like, are we supposed to believe Alfred’s stroke game was really that good? Please. Doubtful. Any good will this movie earned from me (which, admittedly, wasn’t a lot to begin with) was destroyed in its final moments between Louise and Alfred. I’ve said it before, and I’ll probably say it many, many more times—I just wanted better for her!
Questionable plot choices aside, my other issues with this one were that it ran just a smidge too long, and the songs weren’t terribly interesting or catchy to me. There was also a distinct lack of dancing during the musical numbers—aside from two of the songs, performed by Lillian Roth and Lupino Lane, the musical numbers lacked energy and movement that I was really craving. I’m willing to concede this was an impressive outing for the first movie with sound to incorporate songs into the narrative. But, man, imagine showing a 1929 audience Baz Luhrmann’s Moulin Rouge! or any Baz Luhrmann film for that matter. I think they’d all just freaking freak out.
The numbers “Let’s Be Common” and “The Queen is Right” were highlights, even if I did find the characters of Jacques and Lulu to be a bit grating. I think I just wanted more of Queen Louise swanning around her palace in fabulous gowns, being single and loving her life in this formerly matriarchal society. I know it’s going to take a while for me to finally watch an Oscar-nominated movie that truly feels satisfying from a feminist perspective, but much like Queen Louise should have done, I refuse to lower my standards.
Very well, forget it. I'm no longer Queen Louise the first of Sylvania, but a woman. A mere woman. And you're meeting me for the first time. What would you do? What would you do?
Quick Facts:
Received the most nominations this year, with 6 total, but won 0.
Best Picture
Best Director (Ernst Lubitsch)
Best Actor (Maurice Chevalier)
Best Sound Recording (Franklin Hansen)
Best Art Direction (Hans Dreier)
Best Cinematography (Victor Milner)
Widely considered to be the first musical film to incorporate songs into the narrative
Director Ernst Lubitsch’s first film with sound
Stray Observations:
The 2nd film so far (that I’ve noticed) to have a line about my home state of Pennsylvania. We’re iconic. We’re everywhere.
Some good dogs in this movie!
Yeah I could absolutely waste away in a bedroom like Queen Louise’s
First/only best picture nominee so far (meaning, as of 1929) to break the 4th wall?
Dump him, girl!
My Rating: ⭐️½
Next Up: All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
I feel like this can’t be right, considering two adaptations of Little Women were released in 1917 and 1918, but since those versions are lost, I guess this is the best we can do. We may have countless feminist films that have been lost to time!! How depressing!!!
I will never stop reminding you that my film degree is from a state school.
re: film school--here here! the only reason to go to any art school is to make connections. which is something i kinda wish i did. but i’m afraid of people? so it would’ve been a waste of dough? i got my education via movie binges as well. ye ol' TN state school would only let me minor in film (even though it’s one of the best mass comm schools in the country, it’s mainly for broadcasting and music production).