I don't really care for the remakes, but I really like this film. Mainly due to the scene with Maria Ouspenskaya. Heartbreaking and beautiful. Some may roll their eyes at sentimentality - we are all so cynical these days. But sentimentality can be done well and it is a sweet experience when it is, and this is an example when it *was* done well. I am fan of Maria Ouspenskaya - I wish I could see more of her work.
shareYes, that scene is a real gem. I didn't realize Ouspenskaya's importance there until I saw Nesbitt's colorless attempt in the 1957 re-make. Dropping Martini's Plaisir d'Amour doubled the damage.
shareWhat impressed me about Maria was she was SO different from the only other role I'd seen her play, a mean & nasty baroness in Dodsworth (although the character to whom she was mean & nasty had it coming). She was completely different three years later in this film.
However, I also liked Cathleen Nesbitt in the remake. Her performace was more emotional, while some people prefer Ouspie's more straightforward line delivery. I have to say Nesbitt's first moment in AATR when she sees her grandson for the first time in years is wonderful, and those who've seen it first might be disappointed when they don't see the same moment in the original.
You MUST see Dodsworth next time it airs on TCM. Even though Maria only has one scene, it packs quite a punch.
Clothes-Off ~ What impressed me about Maria was she was SO different from the only other role I'd seen her play, a mean & nasty baroness in Dodsworth...
If you're still glancing at this post three years later...
I had only seen her in Dodsworth, but, just last night, I saw her in The Mortal Storm (1940) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0032811/, in which she gave a GREAT performance. It's a story of Hitler's rise to power, portrayed by the effect it has upon a certain family in a mountain community in Southern Germany. She plays the mother of a young man who does not want to embrace the sweeping Nazi hysteria. At one point, the Nazi's bust into her house, searching for her son, and are grilling her and a loose-lipped young girl in separate rooms and Ouspenskaya's character is steely under this heavy pressure. It such an intense scene and she was really incredible. I thought this was a much bigger and better performance that in Dodsworth. If you're curious about her or if you are a fan of hers, I would highly recommend this movie if only to see her performance.
Well, I wasn't "still glancing", but IMDb sends me an e-mail when someone replies to a post, no matter how old it is; so thanks.
Since I posted it, I have seen The Mortal Storm on TCM--a very daring anti-Nazi film to have been made at that time. I remember the "loose-lipped girl" was Bonita Granville of Nancy Drew fame.
I also caught her in the remake of Waterloo Bridge with Vivien Leigh. She was very mean in that one also.
For me, Mme. Ouspenskaya's entire scene comes down to one line: Her tearful and measured exclamation, "I don't like boat-whistles!" as she embraces Boyer. Makes me tear up every time.
sharewell she must have won in 1940!she was far more superior than mcdaniel!
shareMy favorite Ouspenskaya role was in Waterloo Bridge (1940.) Her role here was a close 2nd. She took this film from being a good film to a really good film.
What a sad ending Ouspenskaya would meet at the end of her life. One can only hope she felt no pain.
Remember When Movies Didn't Have To Be Politically Correct?
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Yes she was outstanding. A very beautiful job.
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