Children of Divorce

The star power and cinematic charisma of Clara Bow, the definitive flapper and “It” girl of the silent era, and a young Gary Cooper are the main attraction of this contrived 1927 melodrama of the young, beautiful, and idle rich who treat marriage as a game. Bow is Kitty Flanders, a flamboyant party girl raised by an oft-divorced mother with an aim toward marrying into money. Cooper is her best friend Teddy, a high-living society boy who leaves his reckless ways behind when he falls in love with Jean (Esther Ralston), a childhood friend who is sick of frivolous society life. The story has Teddy and Kitty marrying in a drunken impulse, which leads to misery, regret, and a sacrificial suicide. The portrait of a glamorous but emotionally empty high society is intriguing and the production itself is handsome, with elegant direction by Frank Lloyd, but the screenplay is strident and simplistic. And Cooper is somewhat miscast as the worldly, shallow society swell, but he makes sparks with Bow (they became lovers offscreen during the production) and this is their only onscreen pairing, which makes it a curiosity for fans. Remastered from a new 4K scan of the Library of Congress restoration, extras include the 1999 documentary Clara Bow: Discovering the "It" Girl, narrated by Courtney Love. A strong optional purchase. (S. Axmaker)