The Single Standard
Directed by John Robertson
Written by Josephine Lovett from a novel by Adela Rogers St. John
1929/US
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
IMDb page
First viewing/Amazon Instant
Opening Title Card: For a number of generations men have done as they pleased–and women have done as men pleased…
Greta Garbo was still making silent movies in 1929. Her loveliness makes them worth watching for fans.
Arden Stuart (Garbo) is a wealthy young socialite. Polite society is beginning to bore her. After refusing the proposal of Tommy (Johnny Mack Brown), an eligible young man, Arden takes off on a romantic moonlight drive with the family chauffeur. She is caught in a passionate embrace and the chauffeur loses his job.
Several years later she meets ex-boxer painter Packy Cannon (Nils Asther). He believes love should be free and equal. This makes him a soul mate to Arden and they sail off in his yacht the “All Alone” where they pursue an idyllic affair.
Packy eventually dumps Arden on the grounds that their love is interfering with his work. Arden goes home in disgrace. She eventually agrees to marry Tommy and they have a child. What will happen when Packy turns up again eager to rekindle their romance?
Despite all the posing Garbo does in this film, she is completely mesmerizing and makes one half of an absolutely gorgeous couple with Asther. The story is kind of average and predictable.
