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| Bette Davis within the memorable finale of Warner Brothers’ “Darkish Victory,” from 1939. |
For Bette Davis and
Hollywood, 1939 was their zenith 12 months.
Bette lastly began to get
persistently higher roles two years earlier than, after her famed Warner
Brothers lawsuit. In 1939, Davis appeared in Darkish Victory, Juarez, The Outdated Maid, and The Non-public Lives of Elizabeth and Essex.
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| My submit on “Darkish Victory” is a part of the CMBA “Cry Me a River: Tearjerkers Blogathon.” Mine is on the primary day, Could 12, right here: http://clamba.blogspot.com/ |
As for WB and the remaining
of the studios, 1939 was thought-about the golden 12 months of the studio period system.
The Oscar nominee classes overflowed with basic candidates. And the studio
system flourished by way of the WWII period. 1946 was Hollywood’s greatest 12 months in
film attendance, when the battle was over. Davis’ greatest industrial hit, A Stolen Life, was launched by WB that
watershed 12 months.
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| Bette Davis is the heiress & George Brent is her physician in 1939’s “Darkish Victory.” |
Darkish Victory was taken from an unsuccessful play, so WB’s prime screenwriter,
Casey Robinson, used it as a place to begin to whip up a basic confection of
cinematic romance. Very like Davis’ later Now,
Voyager, Robinson wrote a romantic but grownup screenplay for Bette Davis.
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| The three stars of 1939’s “Darkish Victory”: Geraldine Fitzgerald, George Brent, and the highest star, Bette Davis, as Judith Traherne. |
The WB star was 30
when Darkish Victory was filmed. For
as soon as, Bette wasn’t taking part in older or nasty and her character, Judith Traherne,
is simply 23. Darkish Victory’s story is
fairly easy, actually. Judith finds out that she is critically unwell. At first, the
full prognosis is saved from her, however she finds out anyway. Upset at first, she
comes to just accept her destiny with grace, and embrace the time she has left. This
primary premise labored nicely once more over 40 years later with Love Story. The key distinction was the person and lady’s wealth
standing have been swapped.
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| Bette Davis is mercurial wealthy lady Judith Traherne in 1939’s “Darkish Victory.” |
Although Bette Davis is
certainly one of my favorites, I’ve by no means seen Darkish
Victory till 2025. Why? I don’t get pleasure from motion pictures the place the primary character is
dying. I’ve solely seen clips of Love Story and have by no means watched Phrases of Endearment right through.
I particularly like how
Davis’ whirlwind of an heiress is portrayed. A personality staple in screwball
comedies, they have been typically taken down a peg by the main man, like a screwball
model of The Taming of the Shrew.
In Darkish Victory, the nice physician does
his skilled and private finest by Judith, with persistence and love. It’s this
extra trendy method that makes Darkish
Victory so interesting.
Director Edmund
Goulding makes use of Bette Davis’ jittery depth nicely for the scenes the place she
initially identified and later, when she finds out the tumor is terminal. And it
makes her extra subdued scenes of happiness in life and later acceptance of her
plight so refreshing to look at.
Now a full-fledged
star, Bette Davis may dictate her personal hair and make-up. Davis regarded
magnificent because the headstrong heiress. Her favourite designer, Orry-Kelly,
created a wardrobe that was each lifelike and glamorous—but in character. When
Judith is settled at her nation residence, Davis sports activities easy sweaters, skirts,
and flats. Bette appears to be like timeless in her informal put on. When she will get to decorate up,
Davis appears to be like divine, particularly as photographed by Ernest Haller, her favourite
cinematographer. If this movie had been made at MGM with Norma Shearer, it might
have been excessive luxurious each step of the best way. I all the time appreciated WB’s
extra lifelike method to glamour. Additionally, Max Steiner composed a fantastic
rating that was common and Oscar-nominated.
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| Bette Davis & George Brent’s fateful newlyweds in 1939’s “Darkish Victory.” |
What actually stunned
me was how heat and mild George Brent was as Dr. Frederick Steele, who
turns into dedicated to Davis’ society lady. His quiet power is an effective distinction
to Davis’ headstrong Judith. He and Davis have an important rapport, which benefited
from their off-screen attraction. They made 11 movies collectively and later
reunited in The Nice Lie with Darkish Victory director Edmund Goulding. Additionally,
George Brent is on the peak of his matinee idol appears to be like right here, too!
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| George Brent is the empathetic Dr. Frederick Steele in 1939’s “Darkish Victory.” |
Geraldine Fitzgerald
is Ann, Judith’s secretary and finest good friend. Fitzgerald may be very naturalistic in
look and method, so she appears fairly modern. Her Ann is wise to
Judith’s mercurial persona. Fitzgerald and Davis have a pure rapport and
turned pleasant off-camera, too. And Gerry was Oscar-nominated the identical 12 months
for supporting actress, as Isabella in Wuthering
Heights. Fitzgerald made the 2 movies again to again and so they have been launched
the spring of 1939.
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| Geraldine Fitzgerald is Ann, the secretary & finest good friend of Bette Davis’ horse-loving heiress in 1939’s “Darkish Victory.” |
Humphrey Bogart and
Ronald Reagan are iconic names right this moment. Again in 1939, they have been up and coming
names, who got here into their very own within the early ’40s. Fortunately, their roles in Darkish Victory do not weigh closely on the
story, as a result of they’re each moderately unhealthy on this in any other case well-acted film, for
totally different causes. Bogie performs the Irish horse coach with an apparent accent. His
character feels barely sketched out. Because the cocky steady hand who yearns for
the impetuous wealthy lady, he was no Heathcliff from that 12 months’s Wuthering Heights! Ronald Reagan performs
Bette’s ingesting buddy/perhaps boy toy, with little depth in any respect. Ronnie’s makes an attempt
at taking part in a Gig Younger-type charmer who drinks are amateurish.
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| Humphrey Bogart because the Irish horse coach to Bette Davis’ spirited heiress does not precisely encourage comparisons to “Wuthering Heights!” “Darkish Victory” from 1939. |
Edmund Goulding’s
route is discreet and grownup, so the sentiment isn’t excessive. Goulding
dealt with difficult materials like Darkish
Victory, Grand Lodge, The Razor’s
Edge, and Nightmare Alley fairly
nicely.
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| Bette Davis’ Judith Traherne with certainly one of her playmates, mildly performed by Ronald Reagan, in 1939’s “Darkish Victory.” |
The Darkish Victory finale is genuinely
touching and subtly executed, when Bette’s younger spouse sends her husband off, after which
her finest good friend. Judith says goodbye to her canines, then after the maid helps her
upstairs and into mattress, she asks to be left alone. Her imaginative and prescient rapidly fading,
she goes to sleep, because the digicam goes out of focus and Max Steiner’s rating
swells. Main tearjerker alert!
As typically the case when
the studio glory days have been on the wane, they typically did colour remakes of the
‘30s and ‘40s classics. Susan Hayward starred because the Darkish Victory heiress in 1963’s Stolen
Hours, filmed in England, with British co-star Michael Craig. It’s watchable
and Susan is honest because the heiress. Stolen
Hours was not a success. Maybe as a result of Susan was attempting to play youthful, as
child sister Diane Baker was over 20 years youthful, and main man Craig was a
dozen years junior. Susan is superbly photographed and regarded much better
than contemporaries Vivien Leigh and Lana Turner throughout this era. However she
didn’t appear like a younger lady who’s cheated out of life, so Stolen Hours regarded like a stodgy rehash.
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| Susan Hayward’s remake, “Stolen Hours,” from 1963. |
The failure of the ’63
Darkish Victory remake may need
signaled that such a soapy story was previous information. In 1970, this was proved
in any other case, providing hip younger couple Ryan O’Neal and Ali MacGraw, very
modern in an in any other case old school Love
Story, a field workplace smash.
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| “Love Story” from 1970 proved there’s nothing new below the solar! |
And whereas I like
Elizabeth Montgomery, I’ve no need to look at the 1976 TV remake that’s 2 and
½ hours lengthy! Even with Anthony Hopkins because the doc and Michele Lee as the most effective
good friend, that’s an excessive amount of, as each earlier variations have been about 1 and ¾ hours
longs—a lot on each counts.
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| Anthony Hopkins & Elizabeth Montgomery are positive actors, however a 2.5 hour model of “Darkish Victory?!” |
The message of Darkish Victory is timeless, that it’s extra
vital how a lot you’re residing your life, not how lengthy you’ll
dwell. And that message is a constructive prognosis of life!
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| The tear-jerking scene when Judith realizes her imaginative and prescient goes, signaling her impending loss of life, in 1939’s “Darkish Victory.”W/ Geraldine Fitzgerald & Bette Davis. |
Right here’s my tackle
Bette Davis’ different nice romantic function, as Charlotte Vale in 1942’s Now, Voyager:
https://ricksrealreel.blogspot.com/2018/02/now-voyager-1942.html
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| Bette Davis with Paul Henreid, in “Now, Voyager.” |