Written by: Frank Capra & Elmer Harris
Starring: Viola Dana, Ralph Graves, Burr McIntosh, Aggie Herring, Carl Gerard, Syd Crossley
Rating: [4/5]
Making it out there through one’s own volition has some honor and validity to it where the individuals can make something of themselves. Certainly a much more difficult path than having everything handed over to you, but it makes the journey to success and fulfillment not as sweet. In That Certain Thing, we see this beautiful rise toward a couple finding their own way together in one of the better silent films by the great Frank Capra.
Wanting to live a life of more luxury than her current situation, Molly Kelly (Viola Dana) meets the heir to a restaurant fortune, Andy B. Charles, Jr. (Ralph Graves). As they meet, fall in love, and get married, Andy learns his father disapproves of the woman he married and disinherits him leaving them destitute where they need to figure it all out together.
The developments of this plot certainly did not go the way Molly would have hoped. She got into this marriage for the sense of security financially her new husband could provide for her and having it ripped away so very quickly really recenters the relationship between these two individuals and whether or not they will find a way to make it work. With Andy no longer the person she thought he would be fully, Molly thus needs to figure out if she truly loves him for himself or if it all lies with his financial resources if one has watched any Capra film, the answer to the question should be quite easy to decipher.
With the controversy of their lives, this feature gets into such a beautiful tale of these two truly finding their love for each other as they build everything from scratch. Their willingness to stay together partly had to do with the divorce laws around that time making it quite difficult, but they could have run out on each other. Molly could have abandoned the destitute Andy to find herself another man who could give her everything she wants and Andy could have left her to dry and plead to his father that he made a grave mistake. They do neither and decide to make it work between them making for such a beautiful and moving story.
What makes this particular stand out in the way it presents its narrative is having Molly take center stage in the rise of this couple’s financial circumstances. Molly goes from someone looking to get pampered and taken care of by a man to more than pulling her weight as part of the married unit. An idea not many presented back in 1928 when this feature saw its release. Molly jumps right in showing a level of agency in the way she contributes demonstrates quite a little character arc for her as she grows just like Andy in learning to not be wholly dependent on his father to ensure his lifestyle.
With their climb from the bottom, That Certain Thing also serves as quite the working class story, which has remained one of Capra’s favorite populations to focus on. With the idea of everyday issues ahead of them, something as simple as the generosity of strangers in cutting the ham in their sandwiches a little extra thick demonstrates solidarity amongst individuals who just try and make it every day with their challenges. This reality has always been the case for Molly in the way she needs to navigate everything in her life, but it comes as something new for Andy as he learns to cherish the smaller things in life. The generosity from others therefore means a lot more making for quite the journey for this man as he begins to build something on his own.
This feature lies in an interesting turn in Frank Capra’s career as he still worked with silent films but moved on from making slapstick comedy with his collaborations with Harry Langdon and moved into more sentimental comedies. That Certain Thing does not aim to necessarily make you laugh throughout it even if employing some comedy between the couple. Its power more so lies in the dynamic of the couple and how they continue to grow in affection towards each other the more they rely upon one another to make things work. It certainly serves as a precursor for the other films he would later craft, but this feature exists in its own special place and elicits all of the emotions one would expect from a film from this masterful director.
Utilizing a beautiful score that helps tell the story just as much as the performances and title cards, That Certain Thing carries a beautiful and touching story about the perseverance of this couple. It gives women a spotlight to demonstrate their relentlessness and their ability to get things down if given the opportunity to do so. The feature carries so much heart, a Capra hallmark, making it all come together so well for a lovely story.
Films with Josh 
