Always Goodbye (1938)

If you were casting a movie the year after Stella Dallas about a mother who's forced to give up her child so he can have a better life, who would you cast? Barbara Stanwyck, of course! Always Goodbye is entertaining, but it's not one-tenth as good as Stella Dallas, so be prepared if you decide to rent it.

Barbara Stanwyck is friends with Herbert Marshall, but there's no romance between them even though they share a powerful secret and bond. Barbara had a child out of wedlock and Herbert arranged for her son to be adopted by wealthy friends of his who always wanted a child. He also arranged for Barbara to get into a respectable line of work, and five years later when he reappears in her life, she's a successful fashion designer who has plenty of money and enjoys trips to Europe.

There's so much in Always Goodbye that doesn't make any sense, which makes it impossible to really enjoy. Even in the beginning, Herbert Marshall is supposed to be secretly in love with Barbara, but he vanishes with no explanation for five years. Barbara is wealthy and classy, but doesn't really show any gratitude towards Herbert, even though if it weren't for him, she would have committed suicide while pregnant five years earlier. She owes her entire life and her son's life to Herbert, but that's never mentioned. The ending, which I won't spoil, is entirely illogical, and Cesar Romero's character is entirely unnecessary, even though he's nice to look at.