A Double Life
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A Double Life
Plot
Ronald Colman won an Academy Award for his portrayal of an off-the-beam actor in A Double Life. A beloved stage star, Anthony John (Colman), has problems with his private life due to his unpredictable outbursts of temper. This trait has already cost him his wife, Brita (Signe Hasso), and threatens to sabotage his career. Nonetheless, Anthony makes his peace with Brita, and the two actors star in a new Broadway staging of Othello. The play is a hit, running over 300 performances, but the pressures of portraying a man moved to murder by jealousy takes its toll on Anthony. In a fit of delirium, he strangles his casual mistress, Pat (Shelley Winters), but retains no memory of the awful crime. Press agent Bill Friend (Edmond O'Brien), unaware that Anthony is the killer, uses Pat's murder as publicity for Othello. Anthony becomes enraged at this cheap ploy, and attacks Friend. At this point, Anthony realizes that he has been living "a double life" and is in fact Pat's murderer. A Double Life was written for the screen by Ruth Gordon and Garson Kanin, who occasionally digress from the melodramatic plotline to include a few backstage inside jokes. ~ Hal Erickson, RoviReview
Originally written for Laurence Olivier, A Double Life ultimately served as the vehicle which brought Ronald Colman his only Oscar. It's certainly a worthy performance, although some might carp that Colman goes for "showy" effects when subtler choices might prove more effective. Nonetheless, he does take hold of the screen and never let it go, delivering an energetic and enthralling performance that is essential to making the film work. The encroaching madness, the frenzy, the fight for sanity are all portrayed in an electrifying manner; Colman makes this man both monstrous and appealing. Of course, he's working from a well-structured script by Garson Kanin and Ruth Gordon that is filled with the kind of scenes and dialogue that an actor kills for. And director George Cukor provides invaluable support, showcasing his star in the most favorable manner. Cukor also makes extensive use of mirrors throughout, an appropriate metaphor, and his visual flair really comes into play as Colman sinks further into madness. His evocative use of sound and music throughout also helps to intensify the race away from sanity. In addition, the director pulls an affecting and vulnerable performance from Shelley Winters, who plays very well off of Colman. If A Double Life's melodramatic heights are a little artificial for modern audiences, it still packs a sizable wallop. ~ Craig Butler, RoviCast
- Whit Bissell - Dr. Stauffer
- Ronald Colman - Anthony John
- Betsy Blair - Girl in Wig Shop
- Signe Hasso - Brita
- David Bond - ["othello" Sequence]
- Edmond O'Brien - Bill Friend
- Harlan Briggs - Oscar Bemard
- Shelley Winters - Pat Kroll
- Georgia Caine - [A Gentleman's Gentleman Sequence]
- Ray Collins - Victor Donlan
Credit
Bernard Herzbrun - Art Director, Harvey T. Gillett - Art Director, Travis Banton - Costume Designer, Yvonne Wood - Costume Designer, George Cukor - Director, Robert Parrish - Editor, Miklos Rozsa - Composer (Music Score), Bud Westmore - Makeup, Harry Horner - Production Designer, Milton Krasner - Cinematographer, Michael Kanin - Producer, John P. Austin - Set Designer, Russell A. Gausman - Set Designer, David S. Horsley - Special Effects, Ruth Gordon - Screenwriter, Garson Kanin - Screenwriter, William Shakespeare - Play Author| A Double Elopement (1916 Film), A Dos Aguas (1987 Film) | |
| A Double Life (1978 Film), A Drag King Extravaganza (2008 Film) |
Wikipedia on Answers.com:
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A Double Life
For other uses, see Double life (disambiguation).
| A Double Life | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover |
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| Directed by | George Cukor |
| Produced by | Michael Kanin |
| Written by | Ruth Gordon Garson Kanin |
| Starring | Ronald Colman Signe Hasso Edmond O'Brien |
| Music by | Miklós Rózsa |
| Cinematography | Milton R. Krasner |
| Editing by | Robert Parrish |
| Distributed by | Universal International Pictures |
| Release date(s) | December 25, 1947 |
| Running time | 104 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
A Double Life is a 1947 film noir which tells the story of an actor whose mind becomes affected by the character he portrays. The movie starred Ronald Colman and Signe Hasso. It was directed by George Cukor and written for the screen by Ruth Gordon and Garson Kanin.[1]
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Plot
Celebrated stage actor Anthony John (Ronald Colman) has driven away his actress wife Brita (Signe Hasso) with his erratic temper. However, they star together in the play Othello. Gradually, his portrayal of a jealous murderous man undermines his sanity. The actor eventually kills his mistress, Pat Kroll (Shelley Winters), but does not remember doing it.
Background
Noir analysis
Julie Kirgo wrote that A Double Life is truly a picture of opposing forces, mirror images and deadly doubles: "Anthony John is at war with Othello, the elegant world of the theater is opposed to the squalid existence of Shelley Winters' Pat Kroll, and illusion versus reality are all conveyed in opposing lights and darks of Krasner's luminous photography."[2]
Cast
- Ronald Colman as Anthony John
- Signe Hasso as Brita
- Edmond O'Brien as Bill Friend
- Shelley Winters as Pat Kroll
- Ray Collins as Victor Donlan
- Philip Loeb as Max Lasker
- Millard Mitchell as Al Cooley
- Joe Sawyer as Pete Bonner
- Charles La Torre as Stellini
- Whit Bissell as Dr. Stauffer
Critical reception
When the film was released film critic Bosley Crowther lauded the film, writing, "We have it on the very good authority of Ruth Gordon and Garson Kanin, who should know—they being not only actors and playwrights but wife and spouse—that what seems a fairly safe profession, acting, is as dangerous as they come and love between people of the theatre is an adventure fraught with infinite perils. Especially is it risky when an actor takes his work seriously and goes in for playing "Othello." Then handkerchiefs and daggers rule his mind. At least, that is what is demonstrated in a rich, exciting, melodramatic way in the Kanin's own plushy production...George Cukor, in his direction, amply proves that he knows the theatre, its sights and sounds and brittle people."[3]
Critic Jerry Renshaw wrote, "A Double Life is an unusually intelligent, literate noir that is a classy departure from the pulpy "B" atmospherics often associated with the genre. Keep an eye out for Paddy Chayefsky and John Derek in minuscule bit parts."[4]
Awards
- Best Actor in a Leading Role - Ronald Colman (winner)
- Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture - Miklós Rózsa (winner)
- Best Director - George Cukor (nominee)
- Best Writing, Original Screenplay- Garson Kanin and Ruth Gordon (nominees)
- Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama - Ronald Colman (winner)
References
- ^ A Double Life at the Internet Movie Database.
- ^ Silver, Alain, and Elizabeth Ward, eds. Film Noir: An Encyclopedic Reference to the American Style, film noir analysis by Julie Kirgo, page 95, 3rd edition, 1992. Woodstock, New York: The Overlook Press. ISBN 0-87951-479-5.
- ^ Crowther, Bosley. The New York Times, film review, February 20, 1948. Last accessed: March 29, 2008.
- ^ Renshaw, John. Austin Chronicle, film review, February 23, 1999. Last accessed: March 29, 2008.
External links
- A Double Life at the Internet Movie Database
- A Double Life at AllRovi
- A Double Life at the TCM Movie Database
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