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Dark Victory (1939)
A breathtaking, Oscar-nominated performance by Bette Davis anchors the ultimate 30's tearjerker, Dark Victory, a compelling melodrama that should have the viewer reaching for the kleenex during the final act.
Davis plays Judith Traherne, a wealthy and self-absorbed socialite who has been in denial about the headaches and blurred vision that have been plaguing her for months. Her family doctor persuades a specialist named Dr. Frederick Steele (George Brent) to examine Judith and after getting second, third, and fourth opinions, determines that Judith has a brain tumor. He operates and doesn't tell his patient that the tumor will eventually reappear and kill her within a year. He decides to keep the truth from her, but that becomes very complicated when he and Judith fall in love with each other.
This story first found life on Broadway as a play written by George Emerson Brewer Jr. with Tallulah Bankhead playing Judith Traherne. Casey Robinson's screenplay has been lovingly adapted for the screen to fit the talents of Warner Brothers biggest star. Watching this, it's hard to believe that anyone but Bette Davis had ever played this role. A couple of years later, Davis would bring another role originated on Broadway by Tallulah Bankhead to the screen when she would play Regina Giddens in the film version of The Little Foxes.
Loved the was this story unfolds and the myriad of emotions that the central character goes through. Love the scene of Judith prattling on about her glamorous life to Dr. Steele while he is actually examining her. The fatalistic decision of the doctor and Judith's secretary, Ann (Geraldine Fitzgerald) to keep Judith in the dark was foiled thank God. it would have been insane if Judith didn't know of her condition until it hit her. There's one point where poor Judith thinks Ann is trying to steal the doctor from her. Love that scene in the restaurant where she confronts Frederick and Ann and finally shouts, "I'll have a large dose of prognosis negative!." And the last fifteen minutes of this film are absolutely heartbreaking.
Davis' performance here is nothing short of incredible. Not counting a write-in nomination for Of Human Bondage, Davis had received two previous nominations and won both Oscars and yet, this performance easily trumps her work in Dangerous and Jezebel. Of the performances I've seen, her work in All About Eve is the only performance better than this one. George Brent is his usual wooden self and with another leading man this film could have been something really incredible. Fitzgerald is lovely as the devoted Ann and there is surprising supporting turn from Humphrey Bogart as a sensitive stable man (though his Irish brogue is a little inconsistent). Future POTUS Ronald Reagan can even be glimpsed in a small role, but Davis is the whole show here and this one is a must for fans of the actress. The film was remade in 1963 as Stolen Hours with Susan Hayward and became a two-part miniseries with the original title in 1976 with Elizabeth Montgomery, but those versions don't have Bette Davis.
A breathtaking, Oscar-nominated performance by Bette Davis anchors the ultimate 30's tearjerker, Dark Victory, a compelling melodrama that should have the viewer reaching for the kleenex during the final act.
Davis plays Judith Traherne, a wealthy and self-absorbed socialite who has been in denial about the headaches and blurred vision that have been plaguing her for months. Her family doctor persuades a specialist named Dr. Frederick Steele (George Brent) to examine Judith and after getting second, third, and fourth opinions, determines that Judith has a brain tumor. He operates and doesn't tell his patient that the tumor will eventually reappear and kill her within a year. He decides to keep the truth from her, but that becomes very complicated when he and Judith fall in love with each other.
This story first found life on Broadway as a play written by George Emerson Brewer Jr. with Tallulah Bankhead playing Judith Traherne. Casey Robinson's screenplay has been lovingly adapted for the screen to fit the talents of Warner Brothers biggest star. Watching this, it's hard to believe that anyone but Bette Davis had ever played this role. A couple of years later, Davis would bring another role originated on Broadway by Tallulah Bankhead to the screen when she would play Regina Giddens in the film version of The Little Foxes.
Loved the was this story unfolds and the myriad of emotions that the central character goes through. Love the scene of Judith prattling on about her glamorous life to Dr. Steele while he is actually examining her. The fatalistic decision of the doctor and Judith's secretary, Ann (Geraldine Fitzgerald) to keep Judith in the dark was foiled thank God. it would have been insane if Judith didn't know of her condition until it hit her. There's one point where poor Judith thinks Ann is trying to steal the doctor from her. Love that scene in the restaurant where she confronts Frederick and Ann and finally shouts, "I'll have a large dose of prognosis negative!." And the last fifteen minutes of this film are absolutely heartbreaking.
Davis' performance here is nothing short of incredible. Not counting a write-in nomination for Of Human Bondage, Davis had received two previous nominations and won both Oscars and yet, this performance easily trumps her work in Dangerous and Jezebel. Of the performances I've seen, her work in All About Eve is the only performance better than this one. George Brent is his usual wooden self and with another leading man this film could have been something really incredible. Fitzgerald is lovely as the devoted Ann and there is surprising supporting turn from Humphrey Bogart as a sensitive stable man (though his Irish brogue is a little inconsistent). Future POTUS Ronald Reagan can even be glimpsed in a small role, but Davis is the whole show here and this one is a must for fans of the actress. The film was remade in 1963 as Stolen Hours with Susan Hayward and became a two-part miniseries with the original title in 1976 with Elizabeth Montgomery, but those versions don't have Bette Davis.