Valley of Decision

—a review

Greer Garson's newest presents the class struggle in a way calculated to induce the leftist lads to gnaw their dogma books and emit hollas about the Bourgeoisie and that. On just such an issue of class clevage does Garson make her decision in the valley. She bows to the unbridgable social gulf between the haves, and the never have hads, and rejects her man for his own social good. A likely story I must say. But the escapists are sighing over it, due I think to G. G.'s rather convincing performance. The plot is long and somewhat involved, but this is what makes it interesting; this element of what next? So I shall avoid too much light on what happens in favour of a general outline.

There is an entrepreneur American family, whose dough is in the steelworks and who possesses the usual handsome son. Greer Garson is the daughter of a worker who blames the entrepreneurs for the loss of his legs and when she goes to their mansion to serve as a housemaid he becomes rather nasty and stays that way throughout the story. When the rich scion follows the behaviour pattern, his family refuses to countenance such a marriage; and what with love, and prejudice on both sides, mental conflict, both personal and dual, labour strikes, and even a triangle there is no ingredient lacking for a really grim drama. And having regard for the one or two reservations above the fusion has been passably well done, though the plot is rather confused in parts. Lionel Barrymore wore his Dr. Gillespie coat beneath the clothes of the crippled worker, and very often you can see it. Barrymore's irascibility is becoming somewhat boring after all these years. But Gregory Peck as the scion and Gladys Cooper as a corner of the triangle are quite bearable supporters of the leading lady.