MovieChat Forums > The Barretts of Wimpole Street (1934) Discussion > Incest overtones? (spoiler alert)

Incest overtones? (spoiler alert)

posted 8 years ago by chaz01
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Watched Barretts of Wimpole Street for the first time, and I was a little put off by the suggestion of incest towards the end of the film by Elizabeth's father toward Elizabeth. Was it really necessary to include that as part of the plot? Father Barrett was enough of a dominating control freak that I would think she would leave the him anyways, but the film suggests that she doesn't really make up her mind to leave until after he makes the sexual innuendos in their final conversation.

But then I realized the film is based on real people. I though perhaps maybe hey included that for no other reason is that it's based on the truth. But in reading up on Elizabeth Browning, I found that Elizabeth Browning did disapprove of the relationship and did disown her after she left and got married, but I found nothing in my brief research to suggest the father-daughter relationship had a sexual basis behind it. It sounds like the guy was a just a complete jerk, as brilliantly portrayed by Laughton in the film.

[–] santsa70 8 years ago

And according to the imdb trivia on this movie, the incestuous implications were toned down. Now if that's toned down, I shudder to think what was in the original script. That part where he kisses his niece was particularly strange as well.

I'm kind of glad the film has that subplot going on. I was terribly bored with the rest of the film. Any scene without Laughton fell terribly flat and insincere.