Reviews (21)

Nominated For Best Picture in 1937
THE GOOD EARTH is a screen adaptation of Pearl Buck's story about a poor Chinese farmer (Paul Muni) and how he is lifted out of poverty by the efforts of a sturdy wife (Luise Rainer) who was formerly a slave. After becoming prosperous Muni acquires a young second wife (Tilly Losch), an event which leads to considerable turmoil and scandal for him and his family.

Performances by Muni and Rainer were excellent. Both incidentally were born in Austria. Rainer had already won an Oscar in 1936 for THE GREAT ZIEGFELD in only her second Hollywood role. Much has been made about the lack of Chinese actors in the lead roles but the fact that there were still so many Asian actors in the cast was rather unusual for the times. Soo Yong, Keye Luke and Roland Lui filled important supporting roles.

Keye Luke plays Muni's elder son. He is best remembered for his numerous appearances in Charlie Chan movies. Luke is also respected for his fine acting in more than one hundred films and thirty television shows during a distinguished career which lasted over forty years.

The movie was produced at the height of the Sino-Japanese War. The special effects were outstanding for that period just before the outbreak of World War II.

THE GOOD EARTH received Oscars for Best Actress (Luise rainer) and Cinematography. It was also nominated for Best Picture, Director (Sidney Franklin) and Editing. The main competition for Oscars in 1937 came from THE LIFE OF EMILE ZOLA, CAPTAINS COURAGEOUS and THE AWFUL TRUTH.

You must see this movie
I am an American born Chinese, and I am very impressed by this exceptionally fine production of "The Good Earth". I am also not bothered by the casting of Caucasian actors, Paul Muni and Luise Rainer, in the lead roles. This was an expensive production for MGM. They understandably sought well-known stars who could draw audiences into movie theaters. Muni and Rainer were both Oscar winners with the name recognition and prestige that MGM needed to make this project viable.

I give enormous credit to Thalberg and MGM for hiring a mostly Chinese cast and for bringing a story about Chinese peasants to the screen in the first place. In the 1930's, the world was much more provincial than it is today. It took courage for MGM to undertake such a project as "The Good Earth".

As it turned out, the studio's foresight paid off because this movie achieved both critical and popular success when originally released.

The 1937 version of "The Good Earth" most assuredly stands the test of time. As other reviewers have so eloquently expressed here, every aspect of this production is superb with emphasis on the skillful direction and special effects. The special effects in this movie are even more realistic than alot of the effects you see in today's movies. Mercifully, they used REAL locusts in the 1937 version of "The Good Earth". If "The Good Earth" were filmed today, "animatronic" locusts or computer generated images of locusts would be used instead. Those generally are not as convincing as the real thing.

But what really sets this movie apart from other great films are the quality of the two lead performances by Paul Muni and Luise Rainer. Muni's character, Wang Lung, is a poor, unsophisticated farmer. Muni could have easily portrayed him as a caricatural "hick from the sticks" or as a bumbling ethnic stereotype. Instead, he gives the farmer depth and universality as a decent, hardworking man who has not had the advantages of education or travel, but who wants to make life better for his family. Wang Lung is basically a simple man, yet he is not simple-minded. Muni is able to convey the keen intelligence and drive beneath the farmer's lack of worldly experience.

Luise Rainer is a revelation as the farmer's wife, O-Lan. O-Lan's quiet strength, selflessness, and dignity are poignantly suggested by the gifted Miss Rainer whose slightest gestures, glances, or whispers can make the audience feel tidal waves of empathy and emotion.

I only wish that more people were familiar with this brilliant and ethereally beautiful actress. Miss Rainer's performance as O-Lan seems to transcend acting and enter the realm of spiritualism. It's truly one of the great performances by any actor in any medium.

For that alone, you must see this movie.

Fascinating Stereotypes
THE GOOD EARTH is fascinating today because of its blatant portrayals of Chinese stereotypes. Neither of the leads are Chinese but are Caucasians dressed in "yellow face" make-up which was supposed to make them look Chinese but in fact makes them look more like space aliens from another planet. The film deserves attention today because of the atrocious performance by Luise Rainer of Pearl Buck's heroine, the long-suffering peasant wife O-Lan. Originally, Anna May Wong was up for the role but deemed "not Chinese" enough for the part. Ha ha! Today, Rainer's performance which won an Oscar at the time has not withstood the test of time. Yet her cowering, passive, pathetic Chinese woman performance has influenced generations of Americans to view Chinese women as passive and docile. Books written by Chinese do not show any such thing! Check out Mo Yan's RED SORGHUM (there's a book and movie version starring Gong Li) to see the portrayal of a brave Chinese peasant woman. The movie is still worth seeing because it helps us to understand the stereotypes of yesteryear when the Chinese were seen as very exotic, but don't expect a realistic portrayal of Chinese rural life. For that, check out Zhang Yimou's films, such as Qiu Ju, Not One Less, and of course Red Sorghum.

"Good Earth" on CD
Would you purchase this movie on CD? Perhaps we can get them to make it available on CD if enough people rate this movie. Need I say more?

The Good Earth
I think this was the most terrible movie I've ever seen. You should run, run as fast as you can away from this movie.... Now! ... Read more

Reviews (3)

A Silent on the Verge of Sound
This 1929 silent film is almost a "talkie" with its synchronized sound and fitting music, making it an interesting viewing experience, whether you are used to silent films or only 'talkies'. The sound effects are things like a cheering crowd, slamming doors and hand clapping, and the music is quite varied, according to the mood and scenes, such as Javanese natives performing their tribal dances (though it's not authentic Javanese music; only a Hollywood version of 'something exotic'!)
This aspect alone makes this silent film worth experiencing, but add to that the excellent performances by the principle players: Greta Garbo, the wife who longs for more romance and attention from her husband; Lewis Stone, the 'blind' husband who only has his business on his mind; and Nils Asther as the enigmatic Javanese prince who tries to seduce the neglected and frustrated wife.
Greta Garbo goes through many emotions, all of which she plays wonderfully, and each of the characters is solid and realistic. The story is, in fact, just like Erich von Stroheim's "Blind Husbands", only more detailed and sophisticated, and in a more exotic setting. Even if the storyline is familiar or somewhat simple, the actual telling of the story, the acting performances and visual -and audio! - experiences make up for it very nicely.

Greta Garbo caught up in a love triangle in the orient
Greta Garbo is involved in another exotic love triangle in "Wild Orchids," a 1929 film directed by Sidney Franklin, adapted from John Colton's story "Heat." Garbo plays Lillie, the young wife of John Sterling (Lewis Stone), who takes her on a trip to inspect his plantations in the Orient. Aboard the ship they meet Prince De Gace (Nils Asther), who starts pursuing Lillie. At his palace in Java, the Prince entertains the couple and when Sterling is away finally seduced Lillie. Sterling returns, sees them, and ends up with the necklace she left on the couch where she and the Prince were making love. When the trio goes on a tiger hunt, Lillie discovers the necklace in Sterling's coat and realizes her husband knows the truth. Suddenly, she is very afraid about what might happen on this tiger hunt. While "Wild Orchids" is not a great Garbo film, it is certainly above average. I started off thinking, here we go, another love triangle movie, but the ending was actually something of a surprise. Having Garbo in the "Orient" allows her to wear a few exotic outfits along with the standard furs and silks, so she certainly looks as alluring as ever. Asther is nothing special as the exotic Prince of the Orient, while Stone provides his usually solid performance.

Passionate sexdrama
Greta Garbo in one of her very best silent films. Although she is for once not the tantalizing vamp of her earlier films,Miss Garbo never looked or acted more sensual than here. Watch out for the erotic climax between Nils Asther and her,this is definately great fun to watch ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Fine Saga Of Love And Courtship In Victorian England
"The Barretts of Wimpole Street", was an prestigious stage play that gave famed actress Katherine Cornell one of her most memorable acting roles in the early years of last century. It was with this thought in mind and hoping that the earlier critical success could be repeated on screen that MGM boy genius Irving Thalberg purchased the property as a vehicle for his wife, the first lady of MGM Norma Shearer. It was all part of Thalberg's personal campaign to elevate Norma to the ranks of the acting elite by performing in film properties that had respected theatrical pedigrees. This was really the first of these ambitious efforts and would be followed in later years by no expense spared productions of "Romeo and Juliet", and "Marie Antoniette". Despite her lack of theatrical training Norma Shearer does excellently in the role of invalid poetess Elizabeth Barrett and she manages to remove quite a bit of the static quality that comes with such a stage constructed piece as this . Combined with the fine talents of Fredric March and especially Charles Laughton in a stunning performance as her tyrannical father the film version became an acting tour de force for all three leads with Norma quite rightly earning another Academy Award nomination as Best Actress of the year.

The story in actual fact is simple and straight forward and details the romance that blossoms between Elizabeth, an invalid in her domineering father's house, and acclaimed poet Robert Browning. The friendship that first develops via letters grows into a consuming love affair after the two finally meet and through the love and devotion that Elizabeth receives we witness a rapid improvement in her health where she begins to enjoy life and begins going out into the world. Elizabeth's new found happiness however is continually blighted by her overbearing father Edward Moulton-Barrett (Charles Laughton), who has it as his aim to not allow any of his 9 children to marry or have any relations with people outside of the family. He comes into conflict not only with Elizabeth and Robert but also with his spirited younger daughter Henrietta (Maureen O"Sullivan), who begins a romance much to her father's disgust, with Captain Surtees Cook (Ralph Forbes). With Robert's promise of a new happier world and future life as his wife, Elizabeth grows in confidence and inner strength and with the assistance of loyal maid Wilson (Una O"Connor) she plots to make her escape and go away with Robert. After much soul searching and heated discussions with her as always obstinate father about the rights and wrongs of marrying Robert, Elizabeth decides that he will never change and leaves her family home where she has not only been a physical prisoner but also an emotional one for far too long. The final scenes see Elizabeth leave the house against her father's wishes to begin a new life with Robert taking Wilson her always devoted servant with her.

Despite the very stagey appearance of much of the film which largely confines the main action to Elizabeth's bedroom the good performances do to a large extent help "open out" the stage origins of the piece. Norma Shearer is both reserved and at times wonderfully spirited in her multi layered playing of Elizabeth and her early work as a full invalid is very well executed in particular when with Robert's prompting she takes her first tentative steps away from the security of her bedroom. Shearer who was often reluctant to take on the mantle of the highly polished queen of period dress films that her husband envisioned for her, was at first most reluctant to tackle the role of a largely bedridden invalid. Reunited with her popular "Smilin' Through" costar Fredric March however she soon saw the golden opportunity awaiting her and she created one of her best pieces of work on film. The story really comes alive in the many heated exchanges that take place between Elizabeth and her horrid father. Here the real dramatic power of "The Barretts of Wimpole Street",lies and Norma Shearer more than holds her own in the dramatic stakes with such a seasoned scene stealer as Charles Laughton. While Laughton's character is all spite and hatred it can be seen thanks to his expert playing of the part, that alot of what motivates him is bascially a deep seated fear of being eventually left on his own. What is amazing is the fact that despite being almost the same age as Norma Shearer, the wonders of makeup have allowed Laughton to convincingly play her father and never once does it look odd or unrealistic. Being a grade "A" production the film has a beautiful rich look and feel to it courtesy of MGM. Attention to detail in sets and general period flavour is top rate and designer Adrian again has excelled with his magnificent historically accurate costumes especially for Norma Shearer and Maureen O"Sullivan. Director Sidney Franklin had a difficult task on his hands in opening out a story that clearly betrayed its stage origins and in the second half in particular he succeeds very well in giving the story more movement and dimension. He liked the material so much that he went on to remake this film to far less dramatic acclaim in the 1950's with Jennifer Jones taking the Elizabeth Barrett role.

"The Barretts of Wimpole Street", is without a doubt one of the crowning glories in the careers of all three lead performers. Norma Shearer totally deserved the acclaim she won for her work here and she managed to make the character of Elizabeth Barrett totally her own. It is definately movie making of the old school and while the romance between these two young lovers may appear a bit dated it is thanks to the determined playing by Charles Laughton adding the necessary spice to the proceedings that makes it totally enjoyable viewing. Treat yourself to a viewing of this early MGM gem and see how Norma Shearer with the influencing of her husband rightly became known as the prestigious Queen of MGM productions during the 1930's.

I shall be haunted by the ghost of my unwritten review...
... if I don't get with it and review it now.

I've watched this several times but never been quite certain what I wanted to say in a review and I figured I must do it sometime and since I beheld it once again last night I thought this morning would be a good time and even though I know not what I shall say I think something will come to me. You see it is already coming to me.

This was my first Norma Shearer experience. At first I didn't really have an opinion of her one way or another but by the second viewing I knew I liked her. She gazes at everybody and everything even with her eyes shut. "I am a dying woman," she says low and dramatically. "We are all of us dying," Fredric March answers in the same tones. Speaking of him, maybe I shouldn't get started speaking of him. His part wasn't nearly as much as it could have been but it was sufficient, I suppose. It's entertaining to count the different patterned scarf-ties that he wore. He had a checked one and two different polka-dot ones and a plain black or grey one and one other I think with a nondescript print. His embroidered britches and the cape with the fur collar were a bit much, though. But let's get beyond the clothes - we all know they leave much to be desired. He had some of the most remarkable lines or should I say speeches in this movie which I invariably forget when I try to recall them later. I guess that's a good reason for you to see this yourself. This is really first-rate melodrama in some spots. I keep telling myself, they're poets - they can be as flowery as they like. Besides, I like first-rate melodrama. But back to Robert Dahling... He gives a very energetic portrayal of the poet, brings Elizabeth to life with what she calls "a series of electric shocks", and strides about in a manner reminiscent of his earlier characters, Dr Jekyll and Jeremy Wayne. It's not surprising that Elisabeth should re-gain her will to get well again with the inspiration of someone so sparkling with life. Oh, but that's not all there is to say about him. He had a beautiful view of a swan-inhabited pond from his study window.

I suppose I have to say something about Charles Laughton. Let it suffice to say that he strikes me as particularly disgusting and I don't care for the way he spits out his words like he has a grudge against the whole world plus three and a half.

Ralph Forbes was better as Willy Ainley in "Smilin' Through" than he is here as Captain Certes Cook. Una O'Connor is the niftiest maid on wheels. Flush the dog - well, he's a dog. I don't like dogs. Maureen what's her name who played Henrietta was also quite good. "Will you be here tomorrow? Don't look! That lady across the street is watching. Will I ever see you in full uniform? Don't tell me!"

And Cousin Bella's high-pitched baby talk... "Oh, Henwietta, you WILL be my bwidesmaid, won't you?" "Dear, dear Cousin Elizabeth! So fwagile! So spiwitual! One only has to look into your dear eyes to see how vewy close you are to Heaven!" Cousin Bella's fiancé's most memorable line... "Come, come, my pet!" Also, "Come, come, my pet!"

The filming is good, the story is strong, and Norma sings a sweet little song with her bros. and sisses. It was not only enjoyable to watch but made me go out and read some of the Brownings' poetry. I found Robert's a bit obscure but I have read Eliz's Sonnets several times through.

I've never been able to find the poem though about the "all petals, no prickles" that Robert reads aloud so he can explain it to Elizabeth. He finally said after studying it for some time, "Well, when that was written, only God and Robert Browning understood it. Now, only God understands it."

See this movie. If you are weally on the side of womance, I think you will weally enjoy watching it. It's so twilling!

A FINE VERSION
The great stage actress Katherine Cornell was famous for playing Elizabeth Barrett on stage, but her name meant little to moviegoers. At first, Shearer did not want to play an invalid but quickly changed her mind when Marion Davies (!) was offered the role. Shearer gives a performance of genuine charm and pathos (she won an AA nomination but alas she lost to Claudette Colbert for her Ellie Andrews in "It Happened One Night". Victorian London provides the handsome settings for this true story of the romance of Elizabeth Barrett and Robert Browing. Charles Laughton's performance is amazing (as Moulton Barret) in that he was only a year older than Shearer in real life and he very credibly played her FATHER. The film scored an immediate and well-deserved success with critics and audiences alike with Shearer winning the Best Actress Award at the Venice Film Festival.

DO get this version
If you're into well-acted movies with a strong literary yet romatic leaning, this is the flick for you. Norma Shearer (once married to boy genius producer, Irving Thalberg) plays poetess Elizabeth Barrett Browning to Fredric March's Robert Browning. A true-life love story!

DON'T get or even be bothered with the pasty Jennifer Jones remake. This is the genuine article, with a stellar performance by Charles Laughton as the Father You Love to Hate. Laughton's performance really should be up there as one of the most despicable Hollywood villians EVER filned! Compare him to any James Bond villian and I think you might just agree. He is perfectly horrible; a snake willing to eat his own young. There is a scene (towards the end of the movie) between him and Norma Shearer, that even with 1930's Hollywood Production Code subtly, will still give you the creeps.

The chemistry between Shearer and March is enchanting. You really do care about these two lonely, bright, creative people connecting. Maureen O'Sullivan (Mia Farrow's mom) is wonderful as Elizabth's sister, who really gets the romantic ball rolling. The costumes are lovely and the director's choice to keep the film mostly confined to invalid Elizabeth's bedroom is quietly brilliant.

While is is a stagey film, as many of Shearer's movies are, I believe it holds up extremely well. It is more than worth a look-see and is a fine addition to a classic film buff's library.

Also, it's a pretty good chick flick for coffee, chocolates and converssation!

A Great Classic
Oh, wow! I loved this movie. It was enchantingly acted, and the best part is that it's a true story. A Hollywood script writer could not have conjured up a better romantic "Romeo and Juliet"-like tale. Forbidden love. An overbearing father. A perfect ten! Kudos to everyone involved in this movie! ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Enchanting Soap Opera From A Bygone Era
Although the 1935 version of THE DARK ANGEL was a remake of an earlier silent film, it too seems to have disappeared into obscurity--and what a shame! This movie will not appeal to fans of the current brand of Hollywood "love stories", where the hero and heroine (or same sex couples in some cases) slip easily into bed together after only just meeting, several car chases and shoot-outs ensue, and the plots remind you of the last Meg Ryan film you saw because they are all the same--and they are filmed in color. THE DARK ANGEL is from an entirely different era of film making: the glorious 1930s. A time when movies, particularly love stories, depended on a good script and good acting to keep the viewer watching, and if successful in both these areas, the viewer won't notice that the movie is in black and white. And what a wonderful job they did with this film! Although, like most films of the time, it may seem dated to modern viewers, this film is set twenty years earlier during World War 1, and deals with a love triangle between stoic Herbert Marshall, lovely and gracious Merle Oberon, and the always charming and very handsome Frederic March. When Oberon decides to marry March instead of Marshall, she finds there isn't time to get the proper licenses and such before the boys are shipped out to war. Instead, March and Oberon stage a faux wedding and spend an evening together in a hotel on their last night together. Whether they consumated their "union" or not is left up to the viewers imagination--today you'd see everything in graffic detail. Due to a misunderstanding, Herbert Marshall's character (who is March's superior officer) comes to believe that March has spent the night with a prostitute, and to retalitate he refuses March's request for a leave so he can marry Oberon. During an explosion, March is blinded. Afraid to be rejected by Oberon, he goes into hiding after the war and becomes a successful author of children's books. Oberon and Marshall believe him to be dead, and then decide to marry each other. Only then do the couple learn that March is still alive. Will Oberon go ahead and marry Marshall as planned? Will she take March back? Will self-pitying March have her? And will Oberon's obnoxious cousin gets what's coming to him? Sounds like a pretty juicy soap opera, and it is, only the acting, directing, and styling in every area is worlds away from the schlock you're liable to see today. If these vintage "weepies" are not to your liking, go ahead and pick up a Julia Roberts or Meg Ryan film and stare at the screen for 90 mind-numbing minutes and come out thinking you've seen quality acting and a good story. But if you can get past the black and white photography and slightly dated speech and acting style--and this is some darn good acting!--I highly recommend giving this one a watch. Yes, it's a "chick flick" from long ago, but it will leave you sad, happy, and in a romantic mood. Too bad it's "out of stock" at the moment.

Another great 1930's film with Fredric March
Let me begin by saying I have recently discovered Fredric March. I am 40 yrs. old and never saw him in anything until this summer when I saw him in "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde". After that, I was hooked, and now I have collected over 40 of his films. This man is a wonderful actor that noone should miss. In this film Fredric March plays a man, Alan Trent, who came to live with his aunt and cousin Gerald Shannon(played by Herbert Marshall)in England when he was a boy. The 2 boys grew up together, and are close and great friends. They both happen to love the same girl, Kitty(Merle Oberon). Well, Fred wins Kitty's heart, and they want to be married before he must go to war, but due to circimstances beyond their control,they can't. Kitty spends the night with him before he leaves (they remain chaste), and this scene of them together is very well done. Unfortunately, Gerald gets the wrong idea about the evening Alan had, and later as his commanding officer at the battlefront, sends Alan on a dangerous mission instead of granting him leave so he can marry Kitty.Gerald believes he has died in action, and regrets that he sent Alan on the mission. I don't want to tell too much of the story...but Alan is not dead, only blind. Fredric March is a man of amazing talent. As a blind man, he is totally convincing. One of my favorite scenes is when he is alone in his hotel room, and he feels his way around. We see Fred's hands as he touches a wall lamp. When he stands by the door when the children come in, for two of them have never seen a blind man, it is the most touching and beautiful scenes I have seen Fred in. He was truly a beautiful man. I will say that this film ends happily, with all things right and as they should be. If you like WW1 timeframe movies ( I do), and if you like romances (I do), and if you like to gaze upon Fredric March as a handsome soldier and otherwise (I do), then this movie will in no way disappoint you. It is a hard to find video, but well worth it!

Underated, Tasteful "Golden- Age" Hollywood Melodrama
The Dark Angel has become one of my favorite melodramas from this decade. With production design by Richard Day, cinematography by Greg Toland(future credit would include Citizen Kane), and strong performances from all three princples,The Dark Angel has many attributes worth viewing. Merle Oberon was convincing and sympathetic in this role that was a departure from her previous exotic fare and she was rewarded with a "Best Actress" nomination. Herbert Marshall's usual stalwart acting is somehow appropriate for his character. However, it is Fredric March that has the most compelling scenes in The Dark Angel, especially after he returns from World War I and recovers in a British Hospital that rehabilitates blinded soldiers. Although sentimental at times, I found this movie to be surprisingly well conceived and engrossing. ... Read more

Reviews (26)

Sprawling western, silly plot
Duel in the Sun was supposed to be the next Gone with the Wind for David O. Selznick. The hyped film boasts an all star cast: Jennifer Jones, Gregory Peck, Joseph Cotton, Lionel Barrymore, and Lillian Gish. The acting is over the top, especially Jennifer Jones' sultry Pearl. Gregory Peck seemed to enjoy his change of pace role as Lewt and enacts the role with gusto. It was a change from his heroic characters that he played in his earlier films. Joseph Cotton is the virtuous brother, Jesse, who does not choose to "forget" that he catches Lewt with Pearl, much to Pearl's hearbreak.

The ending of the book had Jesse and Pearl vanquishing the evil Lewt and riding off into the sunset. Looking at the over the top finale of this movie, I wish the producer had stayed with the ending of the book. The lines are laughable ("You know I had to shoot you," cries Pearl. "Yes, dear, I know you did," answers Lewt.)

There are many cliches: Lewt catching Pearl swimming in the nude and not allowing her to leave the water and get her clothes. Pearl throwing herself at another man to make Lewt jealous. Pearl's transformation, where she decides to become a wanton, her facial expression changing to reflect this.

I understand the "dance of the sump" was left out of the film, where Pearl dances for Lewt. It was supposed to be "indecent" but in retrospect might have been a source of amusement to contemporary audiences.

If you are looking for representative films from the Selznick studio, consider the following instead: Gone with the Wind, A Star is Born, Portrait of Jennie, and The Prisoner of Zenda. For MGM, Selznick produced such standout films as David Copperfield and Anna Karenina. For better films pairing Jones and Cotton, look for the films Love Letters and Portrait of Jennie. The two are at their best in those.

Epic, Sprawling Horse Opera (Roadshow Edition Review)
Sweeping! Magnificent! Corny! Romantic! A west that never existed is splashed across the screen as only David O. Selznick, the master of such gargantuan Hollywood classics as "Gone With the Wind", "Since You Went Away" and "Rebecca" could give us.
This is not the revisionists west of the 1990's, nor that West of the gritty operatic glamour of Sergio Leone's "Once Upon A Time In The West." You will not find the spare clean and lean beauty of John ford's West. What we have here is the epic telling on a screen that screams to be stretched into widescreen and spills out over the audenience the lush and romantic horse Opera of Pearl Chavez, the McCanles clan and the coming of the railroads in the 1880's.
From the moment the overture replete with unneeded narration begins you know you are in for a melodrama of purple emotions and blood red vendettas. The opening scene is set in a saloon on a scale of a modern Vegas casino. There amidst the wild gunfire of overheated cowboys and insanely spinning faro wheels we are introduced to the Scarlett O'Hara of the West, half-breed Pearl Chavez. As played by Jennifer Jones she is just about the hottest tamale to ever hit the pages of a screenplay expressly written to drive men mad, turn brother against brother and defy a "Sinkiller". What Jane Russell was supposed to be in "The Outlaw" we get in Technicolor spades in the form of Miss Jones.
She takes huge hefty bites of the massive sets and chews them to a fare thee well and in the process creates a wanton nymphomaniacal character of such charm, heat and passion that she is truly a motion picture original. This is the best thing Miss Jones ever did because it is so out of control and beyond the pale of her more subdued performances. Of saints, teenage war brides and ghosts of lost love.
As Lewt McCanles we get the hottest, meanest, most excitingly nasty performance Gregory Peck ever was allowed to give. And what an irresistible bad boy he is. He was never sexier or more wonderful than in this departure from the Peck norm.
Even the usually dull Joseph Cotton manages to rise above his typically dry rolls, but not too much, in the thankless roll of the good brother. He seems a little too old for the part and a little too polished. Someone like Charlton Heston might have been more on the spot.
Lillian Gish steals every scene she is in with quite assuredness and only finds completion from the ever-prissy Butterfly McQueen. In her final scene with Lionel Barrymore Miss Gish makes off with the scene so quitly that you are hit with it's impact only after the fact. Barrymore creates one of his most beloved curmudgeons as Senator Jackson McCanles full of sound and furry and ultimately signifying less than nothing. His introduction to Pearl topped by a sneeringly shocking racial slur that encapsulates his character and time and place.
Another highlight is the cameo by Walter Huston as "The Sinkiller". What can be said of him is only this, pure cinematic magic.
The film unfold with such a sense of grandeur and awe that it sweeps you along to its incredible ending on the wings of epic pure camp poetry. The Dimitri Tiomkin score is a masterpiece and much famed over the years for the incredible call of the bells set piece.
The three cinematographers involved, Hal Rosson, Ray Rennahan, and Lee Garmes paint movie memory after memory with the palate of hot dusty hues that have long been forgotten by audiences of today. To see it now is perhaps more exciting and thrilling than it was in 1947.
All of this mad mixture of melodrama, mush and music was orchestrated by the master showman of his time, the ultimate huckster of smoke and mirrors and consummate barometer for just what we wanted in our early epics of the America that never existed, David O. Selznick, who added the "O" to his name just because it looked better on the marquee. When they say that off heard lament "They don't make'um like they used to." Both Mr. Selznick and "Duel In The Sun" are what they are talking about. If they still made them like this then something would be terribly wrong. Thank god they did make films like this once upon a time and we still have them to lose ourselves in a dream of what never was and what will never be again.

Dreadful sound transfer
The dvd image is great, the soundtrack transfer is horrible: drops in volume and the dialogue is often distorted.

POINTLESS REISSUE OF ALREADY AVAILABLE DVD
Producer David O. Selznick never thought small. Dreaming of a magnum opus on the same grand scale as "Gone with the Wind" and, perhaps a little bit self-conscious of the fact that his recent affair with Jennifer Jones had yielded only one stellar performance from the starlet - and not even in a film he had produced - Selznick's driving ambition to make Jones a star on par with the likes of Vivien Leigh, led him to handcraft "Duel in the Sun." This was to be an extravagant Technicolor epic about a doomed mulatto, Pearl Chavez (Jones) and her rabid lust for, Lewton McCanles (Gregory Peck, in the uncharacteristic part as the villain), the ruthless son and roguish playboy of retired senator and bigoted rancher, Jackson McCanles (Lionel Barrymore). After Pearl's father, Scott (Herbert Marshall) murders her mother, Pearl is sent to live with Jackson and his wife, Laura Bell (Lillian Gish) on their sprawling ranch, Spanish Bit. Pearl is determined to live purely and plainly, but her incendiary disposition leads into the arms of Lewton. Jesse McCanles (Joseph Cotten), the good son, is forced to leave Spanish Bit, returning years later to find that his brother has become a ruthless tyrant and outlaw. Buttressed by a fiery backdrop about the colliding sensibilities of old West morality and the true Northern ambitions to tame it, "Duel In The Sun" ultimately became an overblown melodrama that seemed almost a garish lampoon of "Gone With The Wind" rather than its successor. It did respectable box office at the time but very little to advance Jennifer Jones' career into the echelons of super stardom. Prior to its release a sensual dance sequence that Pearl performs around a tree stump for Lewton was deleted because the censorship of the period found its sexual implications...well, shocking. Selznick's usual attention to craftsmanship and story design also seem to be absent from this occasion. He repositions Butterfly McQueen (Prissy from "Gone With The Wind) as the Prissy-esque house maid, Vashti, who is even dumber than Prissy and, Selznick muddles the supporting cast with oddities of all sorts, including Walter Huston as a religious zealot, determined to rid Pearl of her sexual demons, and Charles Bickford, as an over-the-hill farmer who offers Pearl his hand in a loveless marriage. Because of its sexually charged subject matter (there is, after all, a rape, a murder and the prospect of lovers committing suicide in the mountains) "Duel In The Sun" acquired the rather unflattering moniker of 'Lust In The Dust.'
"Duel In The Sun" had previously been made available from Anchor Bay in a stunning road show edition. MGM's reissue is the truncated theatrical version - also made previously available through Anchor Bay. On all three DVD incarnations, colors are well balanced, though on this new version they seem a tad more dated from the rich and vibrant colors on the Anchor Bay version. Black levels are good but fine detail is lost in many darkly lit scenes. There's also more noticeable film grain on this version than the Anchor Bay edition. The audio is remixed to stereo but only marginally appealing, sounding rather forced and re-channeled. There are NO extras.
There's nothing to stand up and cheer about here. If you are a die hard fan of this film, or westerns, then you will definitely want to look up the out of print copy from Anchor Bay, rather than this reissue. Aside from being longer, the Anchor Bay version also tends to be a better visual presentation overall.

Don't know why this movie has such a bad rap.....
It is WONDERFUL!!! What more could one ask for from the Golden Age of Hollywood: Producer David O. Selznick(he did a little something called "Gone With the Wind" - you may not remember that one....), beautiful Jennifer Jones, a young Gregory Peck, stalwart support from Joseph Cotten, a crotchtedy Lionel Barrymore, a luminious Lillian Gish, supendous 3-strip Technicolor, a decent story for a western(my least favorite movie genre), and a history that would equal Selznick's other "little movie" - GWTW. The DVD of this does the film justice, although some commentary or other supporting features would have been fantastic. I have the Anchor Bay releases of this film and just got this MGM release-they seem to be taken from the same source material, which is very, very good. This film's reputation needs to be defended - sure it was shocking in 1947, but in 2004, they could probably touch on these topics in an "Waltons" or "Litte House" episode. Judge for yourself - get this movie - you won't be disappointed!! ... Read more

Reviews (26)

Sprawling western, silly plot
Duel in the Sun was supposed to be the next Gone with the Wind for David O. Selznick. The hyped film boasts an all star cast: Jennifer Jones, Gregory Peck, Joseph Cotton, Lionel Barrymore, and Lillian Gish. The acting is over the top, especially Jennifer Jones' sultry Pearl. Gregory Peck seemed to enjoy his change of pace role as Lewt and enacts the role with gusto. It was a change from his heroic characters that he played in his earlier films. Joseph Cotton is the virtuous brother, Jesse, who does not choose to "forget" that he catches Lewt with Pearl, much to Pearl's hearbreak.

The ending of the book had Jesse and Pearl vanquishing the evil Lewt and riding off into the sunset. Looking at the over the top finale of this movie, I wish the producer had stayed with the ending of the book. The lines are laughable ("You know I had to shoot you," cries Pearl. "Yes, dear, I know you did," answers Lewt.)

There are many cliches: Lewt catching Pearl swimming in the nude and not allowing her to leave the water and get her clothes. Pearl throwing herself at another man to make Lewt jealous. Pearl's transformation, where she decides to become a wanton, her facial expression changing to reflect this.

I understand the "dance of the sump" was left out of the film, where Pearl dances for Lewt. It was supposed to be "indecent" but in retrospect might have been a source of amusement to contemporary audiences.

If you are looking for representative films from the Selznick studio, consider the following instead: Gone with the Wind, A Star is Born, Portrait of Jennie, and The Prisoner of Zenda. For MGM, Selznick produced such standout films as David Copperfield and Anna Karenina. For better films pairing Jones and Cotton, look for the films Love Letters and Portrait of Jennie. The two are at their best in those.

Epic, Sprawling Horse Opera (Roadshow Edition Review)
Sweeping! Magnificent! Corny! Romantic! A west that never existed is splashed across the screen as only David O. Selznick, the master of such gargantuan Hollywood classics as "Gone With the Wind", "Since You Went Away" and "Rebecca" could give us.
This is not the revisionists west of the 1990's, nor that West of the gritty operatic glamour of Sergio Leone's "Once Upon A Time In The West." You will not find the spare clean and lean beauty of John ford's West. What we have here is the epic telling on a screen that screams to be stretched into widescreen and spills out over the audenience the lush and romantic horse Opera of Pearl Chavez, the McCanles clan and the coming of the railroads in the 1880's.
From the moment the overture replete with unneeded narration begins you know you are in for a melodrama of purple emotions and blood red vendettas. The opening scene is set in a saloon on a scale of a modern Vegas casino. There amidst the wild gunfire of overheated cowboys and insanely spinning faro wheels we are introduced to the Scarlett O'Hara of the West, half-breed Pearl Chavez. As played by Jennifer Jones she is just about the hottest tamale to ever hit the pages of a screenplay expressly written to drive men mad, turn brother against brother and defy a "Sinkiller". What Jane Russell was supposed to be in "The Outlaw" we get in Technicolor spades in the form of Miss Jones.
She takes huge hefty bites of the massive sets and chews them to a fare thee well and in the process creates a wanton nymphomaniacal character of such charm, heat and passion that she is truly a motion picture original. This is the best thing Miss Jones ever did because it is so out of control and beyond the pale of her more subdued performances. Of saints, teenage war brides and ghosts of lost love.
As Lewt McCanles we get the hottest, meanest, most excitingly nasty performance Gregory Peck ever was allowed to give. And what an irresistible bad boy he is. He was never sexier or more wonderful than in this departure from the Peck norm.
Even the usually dull Joseph Cotton manages to rise above his typically dry rolls, but not too much, in the thankless roll of the good brother. He seems a little too old for the part and a little too polished. Someone like Charlton Heston might have been more on the spot.
Lillian Gish steals every scene she is in with quite assuredness and only finds completion from the ever-prissy Butterfly McQueen. In her final scene with Lionel Barrymore Miss Gish makes off with the scene so quitly that you are hit with it's impact only after the fact. Barrymore creates one of his most beloved curmudgeons as Senator Jackson McCanles full of sound and furry and ultimately signifying less than nothing. His introduction to Pearl topped by a sneeringly shocking racial slur that encapsulates his character and time and place.
Another highlight is the cameo by Walter Huston as "The Sinkiller". What can be said of him is only this, pure cinematic magic.
The film unfold with such a sense of grandeur and awe that it sweeps you along to its incredible ending on the wings of epic pure camp poetry. The Dimitri Tiomkin score is a masterpiece and much famed over the years for the incredible call of the bells set piece.
The three cinematographers involved, Hal Rosson, Ray Rennahan, and Lee Garmes paint movie memory after memory with the palate of hot dusty hues that have long been forgotten by audiences of today. To see it now is perhaps more exciting and thrilling than it was in 1947.
All of this mad mixture of melodrama, mush and music was orchestrated by the master showman of his time, the ultimate huckster of smoke and mirrors and consummate barometer for just what we wanted in our early epics of the America that never existed, David O. Selznick, who added the "O" to his name just because it looked better on the marquee. When they say that off heard lament "They don't make'um like they used to." Both Mr. Selznick and "Duel In The Sun" are what they are talking about. If they still made them like this then something would be terribly wrong. Thank god they did make films like this once upon a time and we still have them to lose ourselves in a dream of what never was and what will never be again.

Dreadful sound transfer
The dvd image is great, the soundtrack transfer is horrible: drops in volume and the dialogue is often distorted.

POINTLESS REISSUE OF ALREADY AVAILABLE DVD
Producer David O. Selznick never thought small. Dreaming of a magnum opus on the same grand scale as "Gone with the Wind" and, perhaps a little bit self-conscious of the fact that his recent affair with Jennifer Jones had yielded only one stellar performance from the starlet - and not even in a film he had produced - Selznick's driving ambition to make Jones a star on par with the likes of Vivien Leigh, led him to handcraft "Duel in the Sun." This was to be an extravagant Technicolor epic about a doomed mulatto, Pearl Chavez (Jones) and her rabid lust for, Lewton McCanles (Gregory Peck, in the uncharacteristic part as the villain), the ruthless son and roguish playboy of retired senator and bigoted rancher, Jackson McCanles (Lionel Barrymore). After Pearl's father, Scott (Herbert Marshall) murders her mother, Pearl is sent to live with Jackson and his wife, Laura Bell (Lillian Gish) on their sprawling ranch, Spanish Bit. Pearl is determined to live purely and plainly, but her incendiary disposition leads into the arms of Lewton. Jesse McCanles (Joseph Cotten), the good son, is forced to leave Spanish Bit, returning years later to find that his brother has become a ruthless tyrant and outlaw. Buttressed by a fiery backdrop about the colliding sensibilities of old West morality and the true Northern ambitions to tame it, "Duel In The Sun" ultimately became an overblown melodrama that seemed almost a garish lampoon of "Gone With The Wind" rather than its successor. It did respectable box office at the time but very little to advance Jennifer Jones' career into the echelons of super stardom. Prior to its release a sensual dance sequence that Pearl performs around a tree stump for Lewton was deleted because the censorship of the period found its sexual implications...well, shocking. Selznick's usual attention to craftsmanship and story design also seem to be absent from this occasion. He repositions Butterfly McQueen (Prissy from "Gone With The Wind) as the Prissy-esque house maid, Vashti, who is even dumber than Prissy and, Selznick muddles the supporting cast with oddities of all sorts, including Walter Huston as a religious zealot, determined to rid Pearl of her sexual demons, and Charles Bickford, as an over-the-hill farmer who offers Pearl his hand in a loveless marriage. Because of its sexually charged subject matter (there is, after all, a rape, a murder and the prospect of lovers committing suicide in the mountains) "Duel In The Sun" acquired the rather unflattering moniker of 'Lust In The Dust.'
"Duel In The Sun" had previously been made available from Anchor Bay in a stunning road show edition. MGM's reissue is the truncated theatrical version - also made previously available through Anchor Bay. On all three DVD incarnations, colors are well balanced, though on this new version they seem a tad more dated from the rich and vibrant colors on the Anchor Bay version. Black levels are good but fine detail is lost in many darkly lit scenes. There's also more noticeable film grain on this version than the Anchor Bay edition. The audio is remixed to stereo but only marginally appealing, sounding rather forced and re-channeled. There are NO extras.
There's nothing to stand up and cheer about here. If you are a die hard fan of this film, or westerns, then you will definitely want to look up the out of print copy from Anchor Bay, rather than this reissue. Aside from being longer, the Anchor Bay version also tends to be a better visual presentation overall.

Don't know why this movie has such a bad rap.....
It is WONDERFUL!!! What more could one ask for from the Golden Age of Hollywood: Producer David O. Selznick(he did a little something called "Gone With the Wind" - you may not remember that one....), beautiful Jennifer Jones, a young Gregory Peck, stalwart support from Joseph Cotten, a crotchtedy Lionel Barrymore, a luminious Lillian Gish, supendous 3-strip Technicolor, a decent story for a western(my least favorite movie genre), and a history that would equal Selznick's other "little movie" - GWTW. The DVD of this does the film justice, although some commentary or other supporting features would have been fantastic. I have the Anchor Bay releases of this film and just got this MGM release-they seem to be taken from the same source material, which is very, very good. This film's reputation needs to be defended - sure it was shocking in 1947, but in 2004, they could probably touch on these topics in an "Waltons" or "Litte House" episode. Judge for yourself - get this movie - you won't be disappointed!! ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Coward-y Custard
With "Private Lives", MGM production head Irving Thalberg attempted to further the career of his wife, Norma Shearer. He would have done better to put her in another of the naughty drawing-room comedies she was so good at doing. In 1931, it was impossible to put an honest "Private Lives" on film, and the compromises that were made to turn the play into a Shearer vehicle actually sabotaged Norma.

The movie version is "opened up" considerably from the play; screenwriter Hans Kraly threw everything from train trips to mountain-climbing into Coward's two-set comedy. Kraly missed the point Coward was making: that Elyot and Amanda's world is themselves alone. Staging some of their famous fights in public made them look pathetically in need of professional help, not inextricably bound to one another.

Kraly was required to do some violence to the play's text by way of studio-mandated censorship. Coward had motivated his characters by giving Elyot and Amanda dialogue with a keen erotic edge, much of which Kraly was obliged to remove. With so much of the sexual charge gone, the remaining words felt like little more than disagreements between two unsympathetic people.

Shearer also suffered from the casting of Robert Montgomery as Elyot. His performance is clockwork, remembering every line and bit of business, hitting every mark, but never finding Amanda necessary as life itself. Shearer was often able to transcend her lack of training if she was playing to a deeply talented actor, and it's too bad she didn't have that blessing on this film.

The supporting cast was uneven; Una Merkel has a weird, grainy accent that slides loopily between transatlantic hoity-toity and Southern belle, and she joins Montgomery in playing by the numbers. Of the four principals, Reginald Denny is the one who gets his role, Victor, exactly right. Victor's tweedy and stolid, but he wants to be sexy and carefree, and Denny does his dilemma perfect justice.

There is one really fine thing in this movie; Cedric Gibbons' set of the Riviera hotel where the two couples meet is Art Deco at its best. As with all truly great movie sets, this one suggests much more than is actually shown. We can tell that in this hotel, every man wears a Charvet scarf, all the linens are hand-laundered Porthault, and every guest and staff member is available for amour. If you're looking for joy here, you can have it, whether you're seeking the emotion or the perfume.

And there's Shearer. Despite all the baggage MGM saddled her with, she's a delight in the balcony scene and again in the knock-down, drag-out fight she has with Montgomery (highly athletic in real life, Norma actually knocked her co-star out at one point). While she never reaches the heights legend gives to Gertrude Lawrence, she knows what Amanda's about, and she is able to communicate it, mostly by playing between the lines of mangled dialogue.

Chalk this one up as an honest try, within the considerable limitations of the studio system, to do something the movies seldom attempt any more: bringing intelligent comedy to the masses. If this "Private Lives" was not all it should have been, it's much, much more than any major studio would do for moviegoers today. Watch it.

Strangely Potent
Well, it ain't Noel and Gerty, but it ain't bad, either. Long regarded as a pale imitation of the West End and Broadway original (which MGM helpfully filmed so Mrs. Thalberg could study Lawrence's effects at leisure), all these years down the road the film version stands on its own pretty legs. Nice comic playing from Montgomery and a really fine performance from Norma Shearer (if only she'd been this light in THE WOMEN, that movie would be a half-hour shorter!) Fun to compare this to the play; both the opening-up and the dance around the censors find some happy solutions. Plenty to enjoy here.

A CHARMING VENTURE INTO 1931.
Considering this movie is over 70 years old, it holds up extremely well! Montgomery and Shearer act in a refreshing, modern manner, and the dialogue is sparkling. One can see what the public saw in both the leading players: Montgomery has a sly, rascally personality, while Shearer is quite the 1931 "moderne". They play a couple with a tempestuous relationship. Although once married, they have since divorced and married other mates. While honeymooning at the same French hotel, (Quelle coincidence!) they have trouble showing affection to their new spouses and realise they still feel passionately about one another. The video print is clear and sharp and the sound is very good. Excellent acting combined with Coward's witty dialogue make this film a rather surprising treat from the early talkie era.

A howler of a screwball comedy!
One of the many underknown gems from the screwball comedy genre, "Private Lives" has it all. A first rate cast; Montgomery, Shearer, et all, deliver a performance as prickly and as sharp as anything ever done by Grant & Hepburn or Powell and Loy. A top notch script full of Noel Coward's grace and wit is easily the equal of "His Girl Friday" or "The Philadelphia Story." And , of course, a supporting cast only the old studio system could plug in to fill out the roster. So why isn't it better known? Who the heck knows, know you do! Enjoy! ... Read more

Amazon.com

A nominee for the 1932 Best Picture Oscar, Smilin' Through features Leslie Howard in the role of an embittered man whose fiancée was murdered on their wedding day by a jealous lover, and Frederic March as the lovestruck son of the killer--who will pay dearly for his father's misdeed. The film has a terrific cast, including Norma Shearer in a leading role. Quite memorable as one of the best heartbreakers (tearjerkers, if you like) out of 1930s Hollywood, the story finds Howard's character living alone for three decades following the death of his beloved (Shearer). An unhappy man, he becomes guardian to his niece (Shearer again), the spitting image of his almost-wife. When she falls in love with the son of the killer (both men played by March), who naturally looks like Howard's nemesis, sparks fly and tragedy ensues. Directed by Sidney Franklin, this is a terrific showcase for all three actors, and a moving drama about the burden of guilt and vengeance. --Tom Keogh ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Beware the Aussie Spoiler!
Now that you've been warned, buy all means, do whatever it takes to see this film.
I first saw Smilin' Through years ago on the big screen at the old Regency theater in NYC; they were sponsoring a retrospective of British and British-themed films. This one was on a double bill with Random Harvest, and I still remember everyone's crying their eyes out at its conclusion--men included (that bill contained a WEALTH of tear-jerking). Stellar performances by the entire cast and a Hollywood-style taste of an England that evaporated at the end of the First World War, this class act of a motion picture is appropriate for the entire family, provided that a box of tissues is available. The old cliche has never been more true: they don't make 'em like this anymore but then, how could they? We haven't any contemporary equivalents of Howard, March, and Shearer. Now, WHERE'S THE DVD?

Timeless Love Story That Spans The Generations
The 1932 version of "Smilin' Through", starring Norma Shearer, Fredric March and Leslie Howard is what old style Hollywood romance is all about. This stories innocent grace and purity of intention is something which is sadly lacking in modern pictures which is a pity as it gives this particular film an almost uniquely surreal appeal that is hard to define. Despite the First World War featuring in the story, time and place take a definite back seat in the proceedings to the two generations of people who experience love and loss and all that goes with them. Indeed it is hard to really date the film as the settings, in particular the wild garden where much of the action takes place have a strange "other world" feel about them that links the story with no place anyone would really be able to identify.

Chosen as Norma Shearer's big 1932 release,"Smilin' Through" had already been a smashing success on screen for another famous Norma ,....Talmadge who starred in an earlier version in 1922. It marked a distinct change of pace for Norma Shearer from her earlier "women of the world", performances in films such as "A Free Soul", and "The Divorcee". A totally underrated and sadly a largely forgotten actress today Norma Shearer here reveals just what she is capable of in a dramatic performance as she plays the dual role of Moonyeen, the tragic fiancee of Leslie Howard's Sir John Carteret who is killed on her wedding day by a drunken and jealous ex love Jeremy Wayne (March), and his own niece Kathleen who grows up in Sir John's house and who in turn falls in love with Kenneth Wayne the son of Moonyeen's killer. "Smilin' Through", deals with the interactions of the two generations of characters as the reclusive and embittered Sir John angrily rejects any acceptance of the fact that the son of the man who ruined his personal happiness all those years ago is now in love with his precious niece who is his whole reason for living. It takes many trials and an almost total estrangement between Kathleen and Sir John, conducted while Kenneth is off in the armed forces before Sir John finally sees the futility of a lost and unfulfilled love and decides to put aside the past so as not to ruin Kathleen's chance at happiness. He finally gives Kenneth and Kathleen his blessing and finds that he also is now at peace with those around him including his patient and loving friend Willie Ainley (Ralph Forbes). This acceptance of the value of true love over hate is also the solution to his own unhappy life as it finally releases him from the sad life he has been living and allows him to regain the great love of his life as the spirit of Moonyeen appears to escort him to the hereafter.

This strong fantasy element to the story is the whole basis for the beautiful appeal of "Smilin' Through". Norma Shearer is equally appealing as the spirit of Moonyeen and young Kathleen and she is matched all the way by talented Fredric March in the dual roles of the drunken Jeremy Wayne and as his earnest young son Kenneth who lives under the cloud of his father's terrible deed. Leslie Howard has rarely been better than in his role of the embittered Sir John Carteret and alot of the mannerisms of his other 1930's roles are absent here as he delivers a strong, totally believable performance. The settings of the story as mentioned earlier play a strong part in conveying the "other world", atmosphere of this story. Very few people are in the cast and the main settings of the story whether they be Sir John's wild garden, or the abandoned Wayne mansion where Kenneth and Kathleen first meet help give it a strange feel that removes this love story and it's characters from anything the audience would really know. Even World War 1 is dealt with in the story from a distance as illustrated in the rattling window panes in both the house and the coffee shop where Kathleeen and Kenneth meet. It is as though any real world activities are a long way away and that keeps "Smilin' Through", on a different plain than other wartime love stories of that period or any other.

Possibly viewed by many as very sentimental and unreal I find "Smilin' Through", a beautifully constructed story about lost love and the effect one generation has on the actions and emotions of another. The sterling performances by the leads make this a memorable effort from MGM in the early 1930's and I feel it contains some of the best work done by Norma Shearer during this period. All lovers of true romance could not help but be moved by this at times tragic and often arresting story and the fantasy element of lost loves watching over their still earth bound partners is guaranteed to move you. I highly recommend you spend some time with this great story and see how romance was handled back when Hollywood still had a real heart for such things.

Love Lives Forever
This lushly photographed and beautifully acted film is a pure romance, and remains one of the finest films MGM made during the 1930's. Old-fashioned and unabashedly sentimental, this story of love and tragedy repeating itself a generation later would become the model MGM would use successfully for over a decade, until the innocence of the 30's gave way to WWII and America's romantic view of love.

Lovely Norma Shearer, a fine actress who rivaled Garbo and was married to great producer Irving Thalberg, graced many of MGM's best productions during this period, and is marvelous in a dual role as Moonyean and her niece Kathleen. Fredric March, who was to his generation of actors what Montgomery Clift would become to his, two decades later, is also outstanding in a dual role. The always solid Leslie Howard completes this triangle of love and happiness snatched away tragically, in an instant, but lasting a lifetime.

The graceful and elegant Moonyean (Shearer) was to be married to John Carteret (Howard), who loved her dearly. It is an older and somewhat lost John we see as this film opens, however, his beloved Moonyean trying to reach his spirit and sooth his soul from across that river leading to the netherworld. Murdered at the alter by a jealous suitor, the only thing that has prevented John from letting the bitterness of his ill-fated romance with Moonyean completely destroy him is the arrival of Moonyean's niece, Kathleen, at the age of five. John raises her as his own after the death of Moonyean's sister.

Shearer is subtle and wonderful in contrasting the elegance of Moonyean with the vibrance of the sexy Kathleen, while at the same time her appearance and her fate begin to mirror a tragic past. When Kathleen meets and falls in love with a young soldier named Kenneth (Fredric March), bound for the front in WWI, only his last name can stand in the way of their happiness.

The story is involving and the soft-focus black and white photography adds a richness to the echos of fate being played out. Moonyean must somehow reach John and touch his heart before Kathleen loses her happiness with Kenneth and John's spirit is so cold he will not be able to join his lover, Moonyean, even in death.

This old-fasioned and sensitive romance fills a void left by modern films, and is a reminder that a love story should be about love. You probably don't own a film of this nature and will certainly want to pick this one up. It is proof there is still a place for both romance, and romantic love in the movies.......

Life would be ghastly without movies like these to run after
Why can't there be movies like this made now? There's a sweetness and decency about old movies that is unsurpassed and this is one of the best.

Norma and Freddie work superbly together here just like they did in The Barretts of Wimpole Street... It's too bad that they didn't do more films together. Norma is the Queen of Gaze and it lends a certain grace and drama to every moment.

The filming was done well also, with several clever cuts and the sparkling dialogue. The running dilemma about proper pronunciation (American vs. British) was quite amusing as well.

I was also glad that Leslie Howard's part was not one which required a lavaflow of poetry and watery intellectualism.

My favourite scene is probably the one in the old Wayne place (say that Southern!) when Ken. and Kath. meet in the presence of wetblanket Wil. - who, by the way, did a superb job in his few onscreen moments... as the guy who just isn't right for Kath.

It seems like there should be a lot I could say about this movie but my mother's probably already said it... so I'll just say see this movie and see it again and again and again. And maybe several more times after that.

*looks out the window* Ghastly weather we're having. I hope the three cows in our front garden will be safe.

Would Loved to Have Been Norma!
I got this movie because I like Fredric March and I also like Norma Shearer. I first saw them together in "The Barrett's of Wimpole Street", where they were just delightful. Neither one disappoint in "Smilin' Through"; if you have never seen March and Shearer work together, you do not know what you are missing. They seemed to be made to play opposite each other; their screen chemistry is obvious and sweet. You can really tell they enjoyed working together; from their very first meeting in the dark, deserted Wayne house, where their eyes meet, you can see the playfulness and "love at first sight" between the characters. Where they are drinking the port and she is telling him the correct way to pronounce "ghastly", the playful sparks are bouncing all over the place. I can't put it into better words except to say they are so sweet in their little love affair and Norma does a great job of expressing her love without being silly or unbelievable. When March has to go to war, you can feel Norma's despair and near hysteria. They kiss goodbye and kiss goodbye and kiss goodbye...four years pass and it's time for him to return home. Norma is at the station waiting for her beloved, dressed in a simple but stunning little outfit. But March never comes out of the train, only Willy, her old beau. March comes later on a later train, and comes out with a bunch of war invalids; as he himself is wounded. He goes to his house,and it so happens Norma sees the lights on and finds him there. She kisses him and kisses him, hugs him and hugs him...it is all so believable; you can feel her joy at being with her beloved again. But he pretends to not want her anymore, saying unkind things and hiding his injury. She leaves crying...but like all 1930's movies (well,most),it has a happy ending. This film is just well done, with a nice romance if you like that sort of thing (and I do), and some good camera work, and of course great acting. Fredric March is one of my favorite actors and he's really swell here, handsome, manly, funloving...Norma is her innocently lovely best, giving many of her famous gazes.Leslie Howard is fine here; I don't care for him much, but here he did a good job. I especially liked him in the little scene with Kathleen (Norma's character) as a little girl. I highly recommend this movie, you won't be disappointed. ... Read more

Reviews (26)

Sprawling western, silly plot
Duel in the Sun was supposed to be the next Gone with the Wind for David O. Selznick. The hyped film boasts an all star cast: Jennifer Jones, Gregory Peck, Joseph Cotton, Lionel Barrymore, and Lillian Gish. The acting is over the top, especially Jennifer Jones' sultry Pearl. Gregory Peck seemed to enjoy his change of pace role as Lewt and enacts the role with gusto. It was a change from his heroic characters that he played in his earlier films. Joseph Cotton is the virtuous brother, Jesse, who does not choose to "forget" that he catches Lewt with Pearl, much to Pearl's hearbreak.

The ending of the book had Jesse and Pearl vanquishing the evil Lewt and riding off into the sunset. Looking at the over the top finale of this movie, I wish the producer had stayed with the ending of the book. The lines are laughable ("You know I had to shoot you," cries Pearl. "Yes, dear, I know you did," answers Lewt.)

There are many cliches: Lewt catching Pearl swimming in the nude and not allowing her to leave the water and get her clothes. Pearl throwing herself at another man to make Lewt jealous. Pearl's transformation, where she decides to become a wanton, her facial expression changing to reflect this.

I understand the "dance of the sump" was left out of the film, where Pearl dances for Lewt. It was supposed to be "indecent" but in retrospect might have been a source of amusement to contemporary audiences.

If you are looking for representative films from the Selznick studio, consider the following instead: Gone with the Wind, A Star is Born, Portrait of Jennie, and The Prisoner of Zenda. For MGM, Selznick produced such standout films as David Copperfield and Anna Karenina. For better films pairing Jones and Cotton, look for the films Love Letters and Portrait of Jennie. The two are at their best in those.

Epic, Sprawling Horse Opera (Roadshow Edition Review)
Sweeping! Magnificent! Corny! Romantic! A west that never existed is splashed across the screen as only David O. Selznick, the master of such gargantuan Hollywood classics as "Gone With the Wind", "Since You Went Away" and "Rebecca" could give us.
This is not the revisionists west of the 1990's, nor that West of the gritty operatic glamour of Sergio Leone's "Once Upon A Time In The West." You will not find the spare clean and lean beauty of John ford's West. What we have here is the epic telling on a screen that screams to be stretched into widescreen and spills out over the audenience the lush and romantic horse Opera of Pearl Chavez, the McCanles clan and the coming of the railroads in the 1880's.
From the moment the overture replete with unneeded narration begins you know you are in for a melodrama of purple emotions and blood red vendettas. The opening scene is set in a saloon on a scale of a modern Vegas casino. There amidst the wild gunfire of overheated cowboys and insanely spinning faro wheels we are introduced to the Scarlett O'Hara of the West, half-breed Pearl Chavez. As played by Jennifer Jones she is just about the hottest tamale to ever hit the pages of a screenplay expressly written to drive men mad, turn brother against brother and defy a "Sinkiller". What Jane Russell was supposed to be in "The Outlaw" we get in Technicolor spades in the form of Miss Jones.
She takes huge hefty bites of the massive sets and chews them to a fare thee well and in the process creates a wanton nymphomaniacal character of such charm, heat and passion that she is truly a motion picture original. This is the best thing Miss Jones ever did because it is so out of control and beyond the pale of her more subdued performances. Of saints, teenage war brides and ghosts of lost love.
As Lewt McCanles we get the hottest, meanest, most excitingly nasty performance Gregory Peck ever was allowed to give. And what an irresistible bad boy he is. He was never sexier or more wonderful than in this departure from the Peck norm.
Even the usually dull Joseph Cotton manages to rise above his typically dry rolls, but not too much, in the thankless roll of the good brother. He seems a little too old for the part and a little too polished. Someone like Charlton Heston might have been more on the spot.
Lillian Gish steals every scene she is in with quite assuredness and only finds completion from the ever-prissy Butterfly McQueen. In her final scene with Lionel Barrymore Miss Gish makes off with the scene so quitly that you are hit with it's impact only after the fact. Barrymore creates one of his most beloved curmudgeons as Senator Jackson McCanles full of sound and furry and ultimately signifying less than nothing. His introduction to Pearl topped by a sneeringly shocking racial slur that encapsulates his character and time and place.
Another highlight is the cameo by Walter Huston as "The Sinkiller". What can be said of him is only this, pure cinematic magic.
The film unfold with such a sense of grandeur and awe that it sweeps you along to its incredible ending on the wings of epic pure camp poetry. The Dimitri Tiomkin score is a masterpiece and much famed over the years for the incredible call of the bells set piece.
The three cinematographers involved, Hal Rosson, Ray Rennahan, and Lee Garmes paint movie memory after memory with the palate of hot dusty hues that have long been forgotten by audiences of today. To see it now is perhaps more exciting and thrilling than it was in 1947.
All of this mad mixture of melodrama, mush and music was orchestrated by the master showman of his time, the ultimate huckster of smoke and mirrors and consummate barometer for just what we wanted in our early epics of the America that never existed, David O. Selznick, who added the "O" to his name just because it looked better on the marquee. When they say that off heard lament "They don't make'um like they used to." Both Mr. Selznick and "Duel In The Sun" are what they are talking about. If they still made them like this then something would be terribly wrong. Thank god they did make films like this once upon a time and we still have them to lose ourselves in a dream of what never was and what will never be again.

Dreadful sound transfer
The dvd image is great, the soundtrack transfer is horrible: drops in volume and the dialogue is often distorted.

POINTLESS REISSUE OF ALREADY AVAILABLE DVD
Producer David O. Selznick never thought small. Dreaming of a magnum opus on the same grand scale as "Gone with the Wind" and, perhaps a little bit self-conscious of the fact that his recent affair with Jennifer Jones had yielded only one stellar performance from the starlet - and not even in a film he had produced - Selznick's driving ambition to make Jones a star on par with the likes of Vivien Leigh, led him to handcraft "Duel in the Sun." This was to be an extravagant Technicolor epic about a doomed mulatto, Pearl Chavez (Jones) and her rabid lust for, Lewton McCanles (Gregory Peck, in the uncharacteristic part as the villain), the ruthless son and roguish playboy of retired senator and bigoted rancher, Jackson McCanles (Lionel Barrymore). After Pearl's father, Scott (Herbert Marshall) murders her mother, Pearl is sent to live with Jackson and his wife, Laura Bell (Lillian Gish) on their sprawling ranch, Spanish Bit. Pearl is determined to live purely and plainly, but her incendiary disposition leads into the arms of Lewton. Jesse McCanles (Joseph Cotten), the good son, is forced to leave Spanish Bit, returning years later to find that his brother has become a ruthless tyrant and outlaw. Buttressed by a fiery backdrop about the colliding sensibilities of old West morality and the true Northern ambitions to tame it, "Duel In The Sun" ultimately became an overblown melodrama that seemed almost a garish lampoon of "Gone With The Wind" rather than its successor. It did respectable box office at the time but very little to advance Jennifer Jones' career into the echelons of super stardom. Prior to its release a sensual dance sequence that Pearl performs around a tree stump for Lewton was deleted because the censorship of the period found its sexual implications...well, shocking. Selznick's usual attention to craftsmanship and story design also seem to be absent from this occasion. He repositions Butterfly McQueen (Prissy from "Gone With The Wind) as the Prissy-esque house maid, Vashti, who is even dumber than Prissy and, Selznick muddles the supporting cast with oddities of all sorts, including Walter Huston as a religious zealot, determined to rid Pearl of her sexual demons, and Charles Bickford, as an over-the-hill farmer who offers Pearl his hand in a loveless marriage. Because of its sexually charged subject matter (there is, after all, a rape, a murder and the prospect of lovers committing suicide in the mountains) "Duel In The Sun" acquired the rather unflattering moniker of 'Lust In The Dust.'
"Duel In The Sun" had previously been made available from Anchor Bay in a stunning road show edition. MGM's reissue is the truncated theatrical version - also made previously available through Anchor Bay. On all three DVD incarnations, colors are well balanced, though on this new version they seem a tad more dated from the rich and vibrant colors on the Anchor Bay version. Black levels are good but fine detail is lost in many darkly lit scenes. There's also more noticeable film grain on this version than the Anchor Bay edition. The audio is remixed to stereo but only marginally appealing, sounding rather forced and re-channeled. There are NO extras.
There's nothing to stand up and cheer about here. If you are a die hard fan of this film, or westerns, then you will definitely want to look up the out of print copy from Anchor Bay, rather than this reissue. Aside from being longer, the Anchor Bay version also tends to be a better visual presentation overall.

Don't know why this movie has such a bad rap.....
It is WONDERFUL!!! What more could one ask for from the Golden Age of Hollywood: Producer David O. Selznick(he did a little something called "Gone With the Wind" - you may not remember that one....), beautiful Jennifer Jones, a young Gregory Peck, stalwart support from Joseph Cotten, a crotchtedy Lionel Barrymore, a luminious Lillian Gish, supendous 3-strip Technicolor, a decent story for a western(my least favorite movie genre), and a history that would equal Selznick's other "little movie" - GWTW. The DVD of this does the film justice, although some commentary or other supporting features would have been fantastic. I have the Anchor Bay releases of this film and just got this MGM release-they seem to be taken from the same source material, which is very, very good. This film's reputation needs to be defended - sure it was shocking in 1947, but in 2004, they could probably touch on these topics in an "Waltons" or "Litte House" episode. Judge for yourself - get this movie - you won't be disappointed!! ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Amazing Showcase for Two Larger-Than-Life Legends
The Guardsman is an amazing motion picture. Although it does not take full advantage of its being a movie and treats itself more like an expanded stage play, it is an invaluable and fleeting glimpse of the greatest on-stage acting duo of all time, husband and wife stars Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne. The acting, needless to say, is phenomenal. Lunt fully imbodies his character, a pompous but insecure actor who needs constant praise to keep himself going. His role is delicious comedy, but he manages to bring in hilarious pity and sorrow when he suspects his wife is being unfaithful. Fontanne, although not as beautiful as some of M-G-M's other actresses of the era (Norma Shearer, Greta Garbo, and the like), completely makes up for this with her subtle and sexy performance. No one could have pulled off a role like this other than Ms. Fontanne. She manages to make her philanderings charming and acceptable, while still managing admiration and love of her husband. But perhaps the real reason this film is so engrossing is because it is a view of Lunt and Fontanne being Lunt and Fontanne. They are practically playing self-parodies of themselves, and are known in the credits simply as "The Actor" and "The Actress." Also, although Lunt would later decline movie offers with his famous quote "We can be bought but we can't be bored," he and his wife look like they are having more fun than Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, and Dorothy Lamour had making the Road pictures. Never do they look forced or unused to the medium of film. They are having a ball in close-ups and longshots, and their fun radiates off of their faces, off of the screen, and onto the audience. It is a magical film experience, only equaled by 1931's Private Lives (also a theatrical adaptation and also directed by Sidney Franklin) in charm, wit, and sophistication. With only this performance for new generations to discover, it is a shame that the legitimate stage isn't as permanent an art form as film.

A CURIO
Theatrical legends Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne act together in their only movie. THE GUARDSMAN is a frothy sex farce which owes much to the relative freedom of that pre-code era. The stage greats play themselves in sense, in that they are married stage actors! The husband becomes suspicious when Fontanne plays Chopin on the piano gets seemingly lost in private reveries; he thinks she's being unfaithful. Lunt re-invents himself all disguised as a Russian guardsman - to whom his wife seems a veritable pushover............Does she know all along that the mysterious Russian is her husband? The narrative leaves one in serious doubt, a factor abetted by the sly acting of Miss Fontanne. There were no stars in the Hollywood of 1931 who could even approximate the Lunts' blend of class, style, technique and theatrical rapport. Director Sidney Franklin remarked "What I learned from the Lunts in a few weeks, I couldn't have picked up in a lifetime!". With their incomparable talent for expert ensemble acting and subtle nuance, the Lunts made THE GUARDSMAN one of the best films of 1931. Remade (rather forgettably) in 1941 as THE CHOCOLATE SOLDIER with Rise Stevens and Nelson Eddy. ... Read more

Description

Throughout the 1920s, Constance Talmadge was one of the queens of Hollywood, a top favorite of fans and critics alike. Sadly, she's been overlooked since then because her films are now hard to find. But this frisky comedy-romance shows her at her peak, in a story about a passionate reader of romance novels who has to choose between the man she married and a dashing adventurer. Written by Frances Marion. Transferred from an excellent fine-grain print in the Blackhawk Collection, this video features an original organ score by Bob Vaughn. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Constance should be rediscovered
Another one of the great forgotten stars of the silent era, Constance Talmadge shines on film. This film is good, a little quaint, but it's hard to take your eyes off of her. To truly appreciate "Dutch", as she was known, try "The Dutchess of Buffalo", which can be found on VHS at Grapevine Video.

Apparently the only Constance Talmadge film available today
I was certainly surprised to discover that "The Primitive Lover" is the only videotape available of a silent film starring Constance Talmadge. Of the three Talmadge sisters, Norma, the eldest, was a star of melodrama; Natalie was a minor silent comedy actress, better known as the wife of Buster Keaton; and Constance, the youngest, was the unrivaled star of sophisticated film comedy. One of the reasons you cannot find many examples of her work today is that she made fewer films each year than her contemporaries, only two or three, while enjoying a frantic social life during the Roaring Twenties.

In this 1922 film, Constance plays Phyllis Tomley, who loves to read romance novels and lose herself in a dream world. Currently she is reading "The Primitive Lover" by Donald Wales (Kenneth Harlan), a former beau who has disappeared and is presumed to be dead. Her husband, Hector (Harrison Ford--no, not that one), fails to measure up to the heroes Phyllis' admires so much in the novels she reads. Suddenly, Donald shows up alive! His disappearance was a publicity stunt, cooked up with Hector's help. However, Donald is stunned to learn the couple are married and accused Hector of taking advantage of the situation. In the face of their anger, Hector wilts and agrees to a divorce. The main action of the film takes place when Phyllis and Donald go for a ride in the mountains and their car is stolen by bandits. Forced to go to a cabin in the wilderness, the couple are stunned when the bandit leader reveals himself to be Hector: Donald had claimed that only in the "unfettered wilderness" could he prove how much he loved Phyllis, so Hector is giving him a chance to prove it. Only when he is convinced that Donald is the right man for Phyllis will he let them go. Of course, Phyllis quickly discovers that Donald is nowhere near as heroic as the heroes in his book and you can see the happy ending coming a mile away.

"The Primitive Lovers" is a more sophisticated comedy than you usually find during the silent era, suiting Constance Talmadge's acting style. The humor is certainly more situational than slapstick for the most part. I especially like the opening sequence, where Phyllis imagines herself adrift on the high seas in an open raft with the two men, waiting for one of them to throw themselves into the sea so that she might live. Early on it becomes clear that for some reason, despite her disappointment in Hector not meeting her ideal, she does not want to get a divorce, which tips off what is to come next. Hector's transformation once he is up in the mountains putting Donald's love to the test is rather remarkable, since if he had shown any of this spunk in the first place Phyllis would not have left him. The mountain scenes were filmed on location and offer some nice cinematography. "The Primitive Lover" was directed by Sidney Franklin ("The Barretts of Wimpole Street," "The Good Earth") and co-stars Joe Roberts as "Roaring" Bill Rivers, Charles Pina as Indian Herder and Chief John Big Tree as Indian Chief. Special comment should be made regarding the excellent original organ score by Bob Vaughn. There are several other Constance Talmadge films I would rather be able to see, such as "Her Sister From Paris," but this appears to be all that we have. So this is one of those cases of it being better than nothing as well as a sad reminder of how much has been lost from the silent era. ... Read more