MADAME X (1929) Lewis Stone, Ruth Chatterton & Raymond Hackett | Drama | B&W | Nostalgic Flick

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Madame X is a 1929 American pre-Code drama film directed by Lionel Barrymore and starring Ruth Chatterton as a fallen woman who longs to be reunited with her son. The film is based on the 1908 play Madame X by French playwright Alexandre Bisson (1848-1912).

Synopsis

Jacqueline Floriot is thrown into the street without any money by her jealous husband Louis when he discovers that she had been involved in an affair. She is not permitted to see their four-year-old son, and she soon sinks into depravity.

Twenty years later, she has become the mistress of Laroque, a cardsharp. When he discovers that her husband is now the attorney general, Laroque tries to blackmail him. Desperate to shield her son from her disgrace, she shoots and kills her lover.

By chance, the lawyer assigned to her case is her own son. He is puzzled and frustrated when she refuses to defend herself in court. During the trial, her husband testifies in support of his son. When she sees that he recognizes her and is about to speak, she makes an impassioned plea for understanding of her motive. As she had intended, the hidden message silences Louis. When Jacqueline faints from the strain, she is carried into a private chamber. There, she kisses her son, who is still unaware that she is his mother, and dies.

Cast & Crew

Ruth Chatterton as Jacqueline Floriot
Lewis Stone as Louis Floriot
Raymond Hackett as Raymond Floriot
Holmes Herbert as Noel
Eugenie Besserer as Rose, the Floriots' servant
Mitchell Lewis as Colonel Hanby
Ullrich Haupt as Laroque
Sidney Toler as Dr. Merivel
Richard Carle as Perissard
Claude King as Valmorin, the prosecutor

Directed by: Lionel Barrymore
Written by: Alexandre Bisson (play), Willard Mack
Cinematography: Arthur Reed
Edited by: William S. Gray
Music by: William Axt
Distributed by: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release Date: August 17, 1929
Running Time: 95 minutes
Country: United States
Language: English