Main Cast: Anna Maria Pier Angeli, Ethel Barrymore, Leslie Caron, Kirk Douglas, Farley Granger, James Mason
Release Year: 1953
Country: US
Run Time: 122 minutes
Plot
This anthology film tells three stories of love involving the passengers of an ocean liner at sea. In the first, "The Jealous Lover," James Mason plays Charles Coudray, a well-known ballet director. When someone asks Coudray why he staged his masterpiece, "Astarte," only once, he tells the story of Paula Woodward (Moira Shearer), a superb dancer he found practicing in his theater. He was awestruck by her technique and her beauty, but he discovered that she had a secret -- due to a cardiac condition, she has been forbidden to dance too strenuously, as it could tax her heart and eventually kill her. Charles urges Paula to perform for him, so he may use her movements to choreograph his next great work; she agrees, but the exertion proves too much for her and she dies. He arranges for the work she inspired to be performed only once, in hopes that she will somehow see it from on high. In the second segment, "Mademoiselle," Tommy (Ricky Nelson) is a 12-year-old boy travelling with his French governess and tutor (Leslie Caron); she's tired of spending her days watching over a child, and he'd like to get away from Teacher for a while. Mrs. Pennicott (Ethel Barrymore), a older woman who happens to be a witch, hears Tommy wishing he could be a grown-up, and she grants his request: suddenly Tommy is a grown man (played by Farley Granger), but only for the next four hours. The Governess meets the mysterious stranger Tommy has become, and soon they fall in love. In the final segment, "Equilibrium," Kirk Douglas plays Pierre Narval, a high-wire artist who retired from performing after his partner died while performing a trapeze act, an accident Pierre blames on himself. He begins to reconsider his decision when he saves the life of Nina (Pier Angeli), a woman who attempted to drown herself; her husband died in a Nazi concentration camp during World War II, and she feels she is to blame for his death. Their shared fatalism equals fearlessness in Pierre's eyes, and he teaches Nina the art of the trapeze; however, when he begins to fall in love with her, he's no longer so certain that he wants her to risk her life. "The Jealous Lover" and "Equilibrium" were directed by Gottfried Reinhardt, while "Mademoiselle" was directed by Vincente Minnelli. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Review
Anthology films are always risky, but The Story of Three Loves works a little better than many other such omnibuses. One of the issues with an anthology is ordering; rarely are the individual pieces equally strong, so figuring out the proper order can be complicated. Loves moves from weakest to strongest, which is probably the best way (as long as the initial offering is not so weak as to prompt immediate viewer disinterest). The first segment is a bit clichéd and obvious, but James Mason's dramatic skills and Moira Shearer's beauty and incredible balletic skills overcome this flaw. The middle section benefits from director Vincente Minnelli's eye for color and composition, and it has a whimsical tone to it that is engaging on its own and even moreso after the "downer" tone of the first piece. The "boy to man transformation" motif has certainly been done many times, but it has a definite appeal. And the cast is strong, with Ethel Barrymore especially a delight in a role that she could easily have walked through. The final piece is the best, not because the screenplay itself is the strongest but because so much of it is told through exciting visual shots involving the trapeze act that is the center of the story. These sections are thrilling and dramatically effective and give a real feeling of life to the film. Kirk Douglas is right at home here, and surprisingly so is Anna Maria Pier Angelli. Loves is not a great film, but it's an enjoyable diversion. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
Moira Shearer - Paula Woodward; Agnes Moorehead - Aunt Lydia; Ricky Nelson - Tommy: aged 12; Zsa Zsa Gabor - Flirt at Bar [Mademoiselle]; Peter Brocco - Bartender [Mademoiselle]; Argentina Brunetti - Saleswoman [Mademoiselle]; Paul Bryar - River Policeman [Equilibrium]; Noreen Corcoran - Little Girl [Mademoiselle]; Bruce Edwards; Steven Geray - Legay [Equilibrium]; Jacob Gimpel - Pianist; Sam Harris - Ad Libs; Robert Horton - Young Man on Boat [Mademoiselle]; Anne Howard; Colin Kenny; Rudy Lee - Little Boy [Mademoiselle]; John Lupton - Studious Young Man; Paul Maxey - Bill Cyrus [Equilibrium]; Torben Meyer - Man [Equilibrium]; Joan Miller - Woman on Bridge [Equilibrium]; Alberto Morin - Mr. Sandes [Mademoiselle]; Leo Mostovoy - Stranger in Cafe [Equilibrium]; Ottola Nesmith - Usher; Larry Olsen - Terry [Mademoiselle]; John M. Pickard - Ship's Officers [Equilibrium]; Jack Raine - Doctor; Paula Raymond - Mrs. Campbell [Mademoiselle]; Hayden Rorke - Mr. Rorke [Mademoiselle]; Frank Scannell - Master of Ceremonies [Equilibrium]; Reginald Sheffield - Production Manager; Elizabeth Slifer - Concierge [Equilibrium]; Alice Talton - Rose [Equilibrium]; Jack Tesler - Bartender [Equilibrium]; Nick Thompson - Coachman [Mademoiselle]; Kaaren Verne - Madame Legay [Equilibrium]; Frank Wilcox - [Equilibrium]; Ken Anderson - Jacques [Equilibrium]; Miklos Rozsa - Conductor; Tom Quinn - American Man in Bar [Mademoiselle]; Peter Norman - Rudolph Kramer [Equilibrium]; Kay English - Nurse [Equilibrium]; Ernesto Morelli - Railway Porter [Mademoiselle]; Manuel Paris - Mr. Carlos [Mademoiselle]; Florence Wix; Ed Agresti - Railway Conductor [Mademoiselle]; Victor Desny - Italian Air Force Officer [Mademoiselle]; Bertha Feducha - Woman Vendor [Equilibrium]; Phyllis Graffeo - Italian Girl [Mademoiselle]; Ivan Hayes - Chorus Boy
Credit
Preston Ames - Art Director, Edward C. Carfagno - Art Director, Cedric Gibbons - Art Director, Gabriel Scognamillo - Art Director, Frederick Ashton - Choreography, Helen Rose - Costume Designer, Jack Greenwood - First Assistant Director, Vincente Minnelli - Director, Gottfried Reinhardt - Director, Ralph Winters - Editor, Miklos Rozsa - Composer (Music Score), William J. Tuttle - Makeup, Arthur Krams - Production Designer, Jack D. Moore - Production Designer, Edwin B. Willis - Production Designer, F. Keogh Gleason - Production Designer, Charles Rosher Sr. - Cinematographer, Harold Hal Rosson - Cinematographer, Sidney Franklin - Producer, Arthur Krams - Set Designer, Edwin B. Willis - Set Designer, F. Keogh Gleason - Set Designer, Warren Newcombe - Special Effects, Arnold Phillips - Screen Story, Ladislao Vajda - Screen Story, George Froeschel - Screenwriter, John Collier - Screenwriter, Jan Lustig - Screenwriter, Sergey Rachmaninov - Featured Music, Jacques Maret - Short Story Author
