The Scarlet Letter (1934 film)


The Scarlet Letter is a 1934 American film directed by Robert G. Vignola and based on the 1850 novel of the same name by Nathaniel Hawthorne.
It was shot in Sherman Oaks, California. It was the only film Colleen Moore ever said she made for the money. She was reportedly preparing to take her dollhouse on tour for charity, and saw the film as an opportunity to make a last film with friends.
Henry B. Walthall played Roger Chillingworth in both this and the 1926 silent version.
The film has been preserved by the UCLA Film & Television Archive.

Plot summary

Hester Prynne has a child out of wedlock and refuses to name the father. For this, she is sentenced to wear a red letter "A". Her husband is long missing and presumed dead. When the husband returns and finds his wife with another man's child, he sets out to torture them. At last, the father reveals himself, with a letter "A" carved in his chest.

Cast

National Board of Review gave a negative review, criticizing the script and "Vignola's static, uninspired direction", but appreciated Moore's performance, considered "the only good thing in the picture".