Careers was Billie Dove's first film with dialogue.
Plot
In the sultry outpost of French Cochin-China, young magistrate Victor Duval (Antonio Moreno) grows bitter when his long-anticipated promotion fails to materialize. Believing he is being unfairly overlooked, he resolves to bypass protocol and take his grievance directly to the colonial Governor in the capital.
His devoted and idealistic wife, Helene (Billie Dove), shares in his disappointment—until she is approached by Carouge (Holmes Herbert), a prominent Parisian attorney, who reveals the truth behind her husband’s stalled career: Helene is too proper. Other officials’ wives have advanced their husbands' standing by being “charming” to the colony’s powerful president (Noah Beery). It is Helene’s virtue, ironically, that has cost Victor advancement.
Shocked but determined to help her husband, Helene naively calls upon the President to plead Victor’s case—unaware that by doing so, she also reveals her husband’s plan to appeal to the Governor. Outraged, the President places an urgent call to block Victor's request.
Panicked and remorseful, Helene offers to do anything if the President will cancel the call. Seizing his opportunity, the President begins to make aggressive advances—just as a biwa player (Sojin), a native musician hiding in the apartment to steal, emerges from the shadows. In the scuffle that follows, the President is killed.
Before she can flee, the shaken Helene is further assaulted by the musician, who now sees her as easy prey. She defends herself, stabbing him—but not fatally.
The murder sends shockwaves through the colony. The native musician is arrested, but he deflects blame by accusing a mysterious white woman of killing the President. Magistrate Victor, unaware of his wife’s involvement, is assigned to investigate the case. His horror is profound when he discovers Helene is the woman at the center of the scandal.
Though Helene is able to prove her innocence, explaining that she only met with the President to save Victor’s career—and that his death prevented any real compromise—the truth that she was willing to risk everything for his success deeply wounds Victor’s pride.
In the end, however, reconciliation triumphs over pride. As the colony calms, Carouge offers Victor a prestigious legal partnership in Paris, acknowledging both his integrity and his wife’s sacrifice. Victor and Helene prepare to leave Cochin-China behind and begin a new chapter—together, with their marriage tested but intact.[3]
The film featured a theme song entitled "I Love You — I Hate You (For Making a Fool of Me)," with words by Al Bryan and music by George W. Meyer. Carmel Myers sings the song during the film and it is also heard in the background in several scenes as part of the instrumental scoring.
A song entitled "My Sweet Helene," also written by Bryan and Meyer, was originally sung as a duet between Antonio Moreno and Billie Dove. This song was cut from the film after preview audiences reacted unfavorably. The only reference to the song remaining is during the last scene when Antonio Moreno exclaims "My Sweet ..." before kissing Billie Dove at the final fade out. Nevertheless, sheet music survives for this song survives as it was released before the final version of the film was edited.
During the party sequence at the Resident's headquarters an unidentified classical number is performed by Andrés de Segurola.
Censorship
When Careers was released in the United States, many states and cities in the United States had censor boards that could require cuts or other eliminations before the film could be shown. The Chicago Board of Censors passed the film on a "pink" or "adults only" basis for showing at the Chicago Theatre.[4]
Preservation
The film was considered a lost film, with only the Vitaphone soundtrack still in existence. However, a print was discovered in an Italian film archive in 2017.[5]
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