Stella Dallas

King Vidor's 1937 version of the story of a working class girl (Barbara Stanwyck) who marries above her station is a forthright, intelligent, yet also sentimental classic. Oscar-nominated Stanwyck is superb as the titular impoverished daughter of a Massachusetts mill worker, a spirited young woman—both wistful and hard-as-nails—who yearns for more out of life and grabs the brass ring by marrying upper-crust Stephen Dallas (John Boles) when he is at a particularly vulnerable moment in his life. The impossibility of their relationship soon becomes apparent to both, and Stephen moves to New York, where he rekindles an old romance, while Stella raises their daughter, Laurel (Anne Shirley), back home. Intent on giving Laurel all the advantages of a refined life, Stella turns the girl into a lovely young lady who is able to move in circles of the educated and elite. Unfortunately, when people realize that Laurel's mother is a brassy, lower-class outsider, Laurel ends up taking a hit to her own reputation. With his strong focus on social isolation and class pressures, Vidor doesn't skirt the realities of snobbery and discrimination in American society, but he also doesn't ignore the unvarnished truths about the costs of getting ahead. DVD extras include a vintage featurette. Recommended. (T. Keogh)