September 2, 2002
For Whom The Bell Tolls
For Whom The Bell Tolls is a blockbuster movie from
1943, based up the Ernest Hemingway novel of the same name, written
just a couple of years prior to the movie. It tells the story of
idealistic Robert Jordan (played with steely commitment by Ingrid Bergman), gets involved in an internal
power struggle and tries to blow the bridge. It was quite a publicized
production, with lots of ink written about Cooper purchasing it for
the film rights and all the turmoil on the set.
One reason I rented this movie was because I'd just finished reading the book (well, to be honest, I listened to it on tape). I found the book absolutely compelling, such that I would stay in the car after pulling into the driveway so I could listen to some more! It is a brilliant work and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in conflict and love. So I looked forward to watching this very long movie (nearly 3 hours!) with a combination of trepidation and excitement, typical clashing feelings when one watches a movie of a favorite book, similiar to how I felt when watching The Cider House Rules.
All in all, I'd give the movie an A for effort, but a C for execution. It is remarkably faithful to the book, capturing all the major scenes in a believable way. However, despite what the DVD says was Ernest Hemingway's personal preference, I don't believe that Gary Cooper was the right man to play Robert Jordan. To begin with, he was far too old. Jordan is in his mid-20s in the book, while Cooper was 42. And Cooper played Jordan with an older, more jaded feel to him, rather than the fired up idealist portrayed in the book, who gets wrapped up in something he just never expected. Picture someone like Johnny Depp playing him with an intense fervor and you'll get an idea of who I thought of while listening to the book, and you'll also see how it clashes with a 42 year old Cooper. By the way, did you know that Cooper and Hemingway, who became fast friends during the filming, died within a couple of months of each other in 1961?
The movie has an intermission, and the first half takes some time getting rolling. It just didn't have the verve of the book in the beginning. However, after intermission, it picked up quite a bit and I really got involved. The scenes of the final battle, with the bridge blowing up and the bullets flying, are quite gripping and do an excellent job of conveying the tension involved. I also wondered how they would handle the ending and they did it perfectly, again mimicing the book to the end (I won't spoil either for those of you who haven't yet run out and picked up your copy of the book!), although Cooper's stoic style couldn't really convey the young Jordan's passionate speech.
Ingrid Bergman did a very nice job with Maria, even though she wasn't the first choice. I guess a well known singer was originally cast, but she couldn't handle the outdoors stuff. Best Supporting Actress winner Katina Paxinou was simply superb in the role of Pilar, the wife of the worn out former band leader Pablo, who takes on the leadership role. Pablo is also played with the right amount of smarmy charm and snake-like intelligence by Akim Tamiroff. You'll notice none of these names look very Spanish, and in fact no Spaniards were in any of the major roles!
A word about the DVD - at least the one I got via rental - is also in order. The picture was absolutely horrible - the worst I've seen. It is crying out for a Criterion type remake, as it fades in and out, gets blurry, and completely loses the picture sometimes. And this for a multi-Academy Award nominated film, although only Paxinou won. It was almost unwatchable in some scenes. And it also is only pan-and-scan, which is too bad for a movie well known for its panoramic shots (of the Sierra Nevada!). There are several scenes where one person is talking on one side of the frame to an invisible person on the other - yech. It also starts with a very long musical introduction, all to a blank screen, as if the music was playing before the curtain goes up in the theater. It had me wondering if perhaps my equipment was messed up!
Buy For Whom The Bell Tolls at DVDPlanet.com
Akim Tamiroff, Katina Paxinou, Ingrid Bergman, Arturo de Cordova, Joseph Calleia, Gary Cooper
An American demolition expert lends his unique abilities to the anti-fascist freedom fighters of Spain. Assisting him is a band of selfless warriors.
Posted by jdarnold at September 2, 2002 10:29 PM
