Despite what some might think, I wasn’t alive during the Salem Witch Trials (1692-1693), so I can’t address them in any meaningful way from personal experience.
However, back in my college days I was in a production of Arthur Miller’s The Crucible. While that of course doesn’t make me any expert, I can say that – as a reader and consumer of facts and trivia – I have done some rudimentary reading into the whole affair; and I consider myself minimally aware of the time, place, and circumstances that led to the deaths of a few dozens unfortunate souls. Indeed, it was a dark time – a period wherein the mere prospect of using one’s female intuition could’ve left someone branded a practitioner of the dark arts and a deathly sentence. The truth is that a few very bad apples put mankind of the day on a very grim path, and there was no stopping the avalanche of mob rule once it was set in motion.
1937’s Maid Of Salem tries ably to give a bit of substance to the whole debacle; and the script attributed to Bradley King, Walter Ferris, Durward Grinstead, and Howard Estabrook (producer) strikes a good many of the right chords. If anything, director Frank Lloyd could be criticized for giving his procedural a bit of too much blandness when “dialing it up to eleven” might’ve worked more dramatically. Leads Fred MacMurray and Claudette Colbert finds themselves caught up in the middle of it all from nothing of their own doing other than trying to be decent to their fellow men and women and suffering from the misinterpretation of their deeds. In the end, lessons are learned, but a great deal of hardship could’ve been avoided had calmer minds prevailed from start to finish … a lesson that never quite goes out of style.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
However, back in my college days I was in a production of Arthur Miller’s The Crucible. While that of course doesn’t make me any expert, I can say that – as a reader and consumer of facts and trivia – I have done some rudimentary reading into the whole affair; and I consider myself minimally aware of the time, place, and circumstances that led to the deaths of a few dozens unfortunate souls. Indeed, it was a dark time – a period wherein the mere prospect of using one’s female intuition could’ve left someone branded a practitioner of the dark arts and a deathly sentence. The truth is that a few very bad apples put mankind of the day on a very grim path, and there was no stopping the avalanche of mob rule once it was set in motion.
1937’s Maid Of Salem tries ably to give a bit of substance to the whole debacle; and the script attributed to Bradley King, Walter Ferris, Durward Grinstead, and Howard Estabrook (producer) strikes a good many of the right chords. If anything, director Frank Lloyd could be criticized for giving his procedural a bit of too much blandness when “dialing it up to eleven” might’ve worked more dramatically. Leads Fred MacMurray and Claudette Colbert finds themselves caught up in the middle of it all from nothing of their own doing other than trying to be decent to their fellow men and women and suffering from the misinterpretation of their deeds. In the end, lessons are learned, but a great deal of hardship could’ve been avoided had calmer minds prevailed from start to finish … a lesson that never quite goes out of style.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
From the film’s IMDB.com page citation:
“Young lovers fall afoul of repressive society as Salem elders get caught up in the witch hunts and trials of 17th-century Massachusetts. One family in particular uses the hysteria to its advantage, getting even with everyone for every slight--real or imagined.”
To the credit of the screenwriters (listed above), Maid Of Salem never quite descends into the usual melodrama that plagues a great number of 1930’s and 1940’s storytelling. Granted, the central relationship between Barbara Clarke (played by Claudette Colbert) and Roger Coverman (Fred MacMurray) feels a bit contrived in a few spots – it’s naturally ‘love at first sight,’ but given the fact that men and women were in vastly shortly supply back in the day that’s a forgivable sin – but thankfully their pairing never quite rises to occupy the lion’s share of the tale. In fact, their pairing winds up incidental to enough of these events that the Barbara’s fate resonates more strongly even though the scribes couldn’t resist an eleventh rescue in the closing reel.
Still, Maid offers a great number of well-timed other suggestions that Barbara might be a person who deserved to fall under suspicion.
Clearly, Dr. John Harding (Harvey Stephens) has taken a shine to the young lass – even if it never seems truly romantic – and this causes his wife Martha to believe her husband may have been subject to some kind of spectral influence. In church, Barbara gets openly chastised by the reverend when she shows up wearing a colorful bonnet instead of the dour headdress sported by the rest of the fairer sex. Even when the lady concocts a bit of a sock puppet to lift the spirits of one of the town’s young children, there’s enough of a hint to behavior extending beyond the social norms of the day that her inevitably being branded in consort with Satan himself works logically within the framework as presented. Fortunately, the writers withheld the easiest pickings – the fact that her mother was pronounced a witch and burned at the stake years before – for a courtroom reveal; and they never put more weight on that ‘truth’ than was thematically necessary.
“Young lovers fall afoul of repressive society as Salem elders get caught up in the witch hunts and trials of 17th-century Massachusetts. One family in particular uses the hysteria to its advantage, getting even with everyone for every slight--real or imagined.”
To the credit of the screenwriters (listed above), Maid Of Salem never quite descends into the usual melodrama that plagues a great number of 1930’s and 1940’s storytelling. Granted, the central relationship between Barbara Clarke (played by Claudette Colbert) and Roger Coverman (Fred MacMurray) feels a bit contrived in a few spots – it’s naturally ‘love at first sight,’ but given the fact that men and women were in vastly shortly supply back in the day that’s a forgivable sin – but thankfully their pairing never quite rises to occupy the lion’s share of the tale. In fact, their pairing winds up incidental to enough of these events that the Barbara’s fate resonates more strongly even though the scribes couldn’t resist an eleventh rescue in the closing reel.
Still, Maid offers a great number of well-timed other suggestions that Barbara might be a person who deserved to fall under suspicion.
Clearly, Dr. John Harding (Harvey Stephens) has taken a shine to the young lass – even if it never seems truly romantic – and this causes his wife Martha to believe her husband may have been subject to some kind of spectral influence. In church, Barbara gets openly chastised by the reverend when she shows up wearing a colorful bonnet instead of the dour headdress sported by the rest of the fairer sex. Even when the lady concocts a bit of a sock puppet to lift the spirits of one of the town’s young children, there’s enough of a hint to behavior extending beyond the social norms of the day that her inevitably being branded in consort with Satan himself works logically within the framework as presented. Fortunately, the writers withheld the easiest pickings – the fact that her mother was pronounced a witch and burned at the stake years before – for a courtroom reveal; and they never put more weight on that ‘truth’ than was thematically necessary.
These were the narrative decisions that helped to give Maid its air of plausibility. When social chaos emerges at the behest of children who realize they can escape the guilt of their own malfeasance by blaming their actions on those around them as agents of evil, it’s these innocent little things – the choice of kindness, a preference of headwear, and even a smile shared in friendship – which morph into the necessary evils for this primitive society to fixate upon, to exploit as evidence that not just sin is afoot but Satanic rituals! The ignorance of mass delusion starts small but it metastasizes like a cancer until it is on full display; and the stakes are raised when Elder Goode’s slave Tituba (Madame Sul-Te-Wan) realizes under duress that she, too, can escape the oppressive clutches of justice – as did the children – by simply casting doubt on those around her. Oh, the lengths some will go to save themselves! Why, it’s a wonder we ever made it out of the 17th century!
Of course, period pieces – especially mainstream dramas – live and die on the strength of their production details; and it’s fair to evaluate Maid on those terms. While the house and building interiors are respectable – and even the costumes work as required – the town settings and fairways could’ve used a bit of distinction. A great deal of Salem itself is surprisingly plain, and I can’t help but wonder if that was a choice made by director Lloyd to suggest that perhaps this little place – even with its history – could be anywhere on the proverbial map. If he intended to suggest that these events could happen anywhere, then I’ll give the selection a pass; but without knowing whether or not he had those sentiments I still would’ve preferred a bit more spit and polish have been applied to such a fabled locale.
Of course, period pieces – especially mainstream dramas – live and die on the strength of their production details; and it’s fair to evaluate Maid on those terms. While the house and building interiors are respectable – and even the costumes work as required – the town settings and fairways could’ve used a bit of distinction. A great deal of Salem itself is surprisingly plain, and I can’t help but wonder if that was a choice made by director Lloyd to suggest that perhaps this little place – even with its history – could be anywhere on the proverbial map. If he intended to suggest that these events could happen anywhere, then I’ll give the selection a pass; but without knowing whether or not he had those sentiments I still would’ve preferred a bit more spit and polish have been applied to such a fabled locale.
Maid Of Salem (1937) was produced by Paramount Pictures. DVD distribution (for this particular release) has been handled by the fine folks at Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. As for the technical specifications? While I’m no trained video expert, I can assure readers that this one could definitely use a bit of an upgrade: a good number of the images in here are reasonably flat and plain. Only a few sequences have the crispness I’ve seen elsewhere; and yet none of these deficiencies are really all that distracting. Lastly, if you’re looking for special features? Alas … not a one … and that’s disappointing.
Recommended.
Generally speaking, I’m no fan of costume dramas, but Maid Of Salem (1937) – what with its loose Horror-adjacent premise of dramatizing one of the darkest and perhaps most misunderstood incidents in American history – kept my interest if only because director Lloyd never let the events slow down and gather moss. Performances are solid – though the child actors could’ve used a bit more polish (or better dialogue) – with Colbert and MacMurray emerging as a believable pairing who couldn’t have found one another at a worse time. Fans of The Crucible – the film or the play – will notice some pretty huge thematic similarities, and that also suggests everyone involved knew exactly what story they were telling and even why it was worth sharing … a rarity, indeed.
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Universal Studios (via Allied Vaughn) provided me with a complimentary Blu-ray of Maid Of Salem (1937) by request for the expressed purposes of completing this review. Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
-- EZ
Recommended.
Generally speaking, I’m no fan of costume dramas, but Maid Of Salem (1937) – what with its loose Horror-adjacent premise of dramatizing one of the darkest and perhaps most misunderstood incidents in American history – kept my interest if only because director Lloyd never let the events slow down and gather moss. Performances are solid – though the child actors could’ve used a bit more polish (or better dialogue) – with Colbert and MacMurray emerging as a believable pairing who couldn’t have found one another at a worse time. Fans of The Crucible – the film or the play – will notice some pretty huge thematic similarities, and that also suggests everyone involved knew exactly what story they were telling and even why it was worth sharing … a rarity, indeed.
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Universal Studios (via Allied Vaughn) provided me with a complimentary Blu-ray of Maid Of Salem (1937) by request for the expressed purposes of completing this review. Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
-- EZ
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