Thomas Mitchell takes in his mother, Elisabeth Risdon takes in her father, and Minna Gombell promises to board both parents a few months into the future. But Gombell's husband, Porter Hall, eventually refuses to allow either of his in-laws to move in. Time passes, and both Mitchell and Gombell become frustrated at the burdens of supporting and humoring their respective live-in parent. Since they now live in different states, Bondi and Moore resort to writing letters to each other, along with the rare and costly long distance phone call.
Bondi, in particular, causes family strife to Mitchell and his wife Fay Bainter, who are burdened with a irresponsible teen daughter, Barbara Read. The maid (Louise Beavers) also dislikes the additional and unexpected burden of waiting on the ever-present Bondi.
Victor Moore has a health scare, which provides Gombell with the opportunity of sending him off to another grown sibling who lives in California. Because it is a movie, it allows Bondi and Moore to spend one last afternoon together, in the same big city where they had their honeymoon a half-century ago.
How others will see it. Director Leo McCarey did have a great critical and commerical hit in 1937: the Cary Grant romantic comedy The Awful Truth. McCarey put more of his heart into Make Way for Tomorrow, but it was not a box office success, and it was ignored by the Academy Awards.
But as sometimes happens, revisionist thinking made Make Way for Tomorrow popular with cinemaphiles over the years, including many celebrated directors. In 2010 it was added to the National Film Registry, which is fairly select and typically includes many films primarily for historical significance, or as ethnic representatives.
Most who see Make Way for Tomorrow identify strongly with the elderly couple, and are outraged by the apparently selfish behavior of their grown children. That is an easy attitude to have until, of course, you are presented with the problem of taking in one or both of your parents as permanent, rent-free guests, who expect you to dote on them at all times. Or your mother-in-law might have to move in. For the next twenty years (they can live to be 95, you know, even if they develop Alzheimer's, in which case they must be watched at all times). It is easy to judge others until it happens to you. And the selfish thing to do is typically also the smartest thing to do, in terms of your own quality of life.
Make Way for Tomorrow has only 5K user votes at imdb.com, but the user rating is extremely high at 8.3 out of 10. Most viewers regard the film as deeply moving social commentary, but it should be noted that men and women over 45 give it the lowest grades, respectively 7.7 and 7.3. They probably dislike the ending, which separates the couple and dumps Bondi into a dismal nursing home.
How I felt about it. There are actually a number of movies about fading elderly parents and their frustrated children. I Never Sang For My Father (1970) comes to mind first, probably because it is best in the same vein as the present film. It also shows greater sympathy for the son than the father, which I can appreciate. There's also Tokyo Story (1953), which I prefer to Make Way for Tomorrow, because the parents are less stereotypical.
Make Way for Tomorrow has a great reputation as a tearjerker, but for me, it has much less of an emotional impact than A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (1945), or for that matter, Something About Amelia (1984). For me, the key scene isn't the couple having a grand time in their former Honeymoon hotel, without their nearly estranged children.
The best scene is the bridge class, and Bondi's oblivious behavior toward its significant to her favorite son's income. Thirty upper class people attending a weekly bridge class is obviously an important source of income for the family during the Great Depression. All Bondi can think about is her own comfort and need for attention.
Yes, it's true, I sympathize much less with the elderly couple than their children. I won't deny that both parents should have moved in with Thomas Mitchell's seemingly spacious home to begin with. And it is unfair that Bondi is blamed for the deceitful and scandalous behavior of spoiled teenager Barbara Read. Also, I don't blame Victor Moore for going broke. A great many people were during the Great Depression, and most of them didn't have the handicap of being elderly.
But I don't care who you are. If you are an adult imposing a financial burden on a family, the least you can do is keep a low profile. Passive-aggressive manipulation, much less biting a doctor, is far more shameful than amusing.