This "drama" comes across more as a comedy of manners since a) most of the story concerns the romance between two characters and b) I believe the intent was to focus on the dialogue, especially between those two characters. Released in 1932, "Westward Passage" came not long after the advent of talkies, and I think studios were still learning about the capabilities of scripts not limited by title cards.
Since this film is only 73 minutes in length, the transition between scenes and the passage of time are rather choppy, short-changing what might have been a more interesting story if it were developed more.
The primary characters are Olivia Allen (Ann Harding) and Nick Allen (Laurence Olivier), who we first meet as giggly newlyweds arriving at the inn of Mrs. Truesdale (Zasu Pitts).
Suddenly the newlyweds are dullyweds, living in a cramped flat, dealing with the realities of life. Nick, a writer, feels inhibited by his lifestyle and harangued by his editor, who wants him to add a happy ending to his manuscript. What does this portend for our lovebirds, we might wonder? Suddenly, baby makes three and Nick is thrust into the tedious responsibilities of fatherhood. Ill feelings ensue.
The center of the conflict is Nick's preoccupation with the idea that an artist must live a solitary life to create real art, unhampered by the quotidian aspects of life. At the same time, the Allens love each other. It seems love and art are incompatible.
Nick loses Olivia, then tries to woo her back, quoting "Paradise Lost" and singing "What'll I do". Olivia displays a resolution to always be proper, but her love for Nick--that literary bad boy--is undeniable and, like love sometimes is, unfathomable.
If you are wondering "What'll they do?" and "will paradise be regained?" you will have to watch this film that is very representative of its time, even if it could be much smoother. The dialogue contains some clever lines, but not enough to earn this film high marks.
