Una O'Connor could make a small supporting part hard to forget with a shriek, a contorted face or a sharply timed reaction. We value the precision behind the fuss, especially when James Whale gives it room.
Fi1m perspective
In Bride of Frankenstein (1935), Una O'Connor's Minnie registers alarm with her face as well as her high-pitched voice. We laughed at the housekeeper's extravagant panic, and at the disproportion between a small supporting part and the noise coming from it. She is a fine comic supporting actor, though an appetite for understatement will not get much satisfaction here. The pleasure is in how much she can make of a reaction that another actor might hurry past.
The parts that established her also narrowed the choices that followed. Cavalcade (1933), in which she repeated her stage role as Ellen Bridges, brought her to Hollywood attention, and Cockney and Irish domestics became regular assignments. James Whale found a use for her comic timing in The Invisible Man (1933), as the publican's wife Jenny Hall, and then as Minnie. These are small parts built around reactions, and she makes those reactions count.
Bride of Frankenstein is the clearest reason to value that partnership. Whale lets O'Connor be funny while keeping the creature's suffering serious, and her exaggeration suits his willingness to mix laughter with horror. The shrieking can be wearing, and we would not call it subtle. But a quieter performance would offer less of the unruly comedy that makes this sequel so enjoyable.
The Informer (1935) is a useful corrective to the idea that this was all she had to offer. Her Mrs. McPhillip is a grieving Irish mother, a straight dramatic role rather than another comic domestic. The repeated casting as servants and comic relief limited what she was asked to do. We should be wary of confusing the jobs an actor keeps getting with the limits of her ability.
Her final screen role, Janet in Billy Wilder's Witness for the Prosecution (1957), again came from a part she had played on stage. We recommend that courtroom thriller for its sharp acting, despite plotting that sometimes asks too much of its characters. For O'Connor's particular comic gifts, though, begin with Bride of Frankenstein, allowing for the volume.
Biography
Una O'Connor, born Agnes Teresa McGlade, was an Irish-born American actress. She began her career on the stage with the Abbey Theatre in Dublin and appeared in numerous Broadway productions from 1911 onwards.
O'Connor became a character actress in film from 1929, with roles including Jenny Hall in The Invisible Man (1933), Minnie in Bride of Frankenstein (1935), Bess in The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) and Mrs Breen in The Bells of St. Mary's (1945). She originated the role of Janet Mackenzie on stage in Witness for the Prosecution and reprised it in the 1957 film, her final screen appearance. She became a US citizen in 1952 and died in New York in 1959.
