The influence of the 1939 blockbuster on this film was so obvious that I correctly guessed its year before researching it--everything from the theme music to the line "tomorrow is another day" to the sympathetic portrayal of a prostitute/adult themes speak to the Wind. I wonder if other people noticed this?
shareInteresting theory. I just saw this movie on youtube . I was impressed on how the "adult themes" were handled. Frankly, I think Primrose Path is superior to Kitty Foyle (a movie with similar themes) and that Ginger Rogers should have received the Oscar for this movie. But to answer your question I don't know if I quite agree. I don't think the Belle Watling character was portrayed too sympathtically and Gone With the Wind is a completly different movie with a different story and different themes. The point of PP is to show the lower classes in a negative light which includes the prostitute characters; Belle Watling was seen in a somewhat negative light mainly by Scarlett but she was looked down upon by the upper classed characters (except Rhett and Melanie for the most part). Besides Waterloo Bridge is a movie from the same year as Primrose Path and Vivien Leigh's character who is a prostitute commits suicide because she is a prostitute. If a character is commiting suicide because she is a prostitute then, no it is not seen as sympathetic and that came out the year after Gone With the Wind.
shareI agree that Ginger should've won an Oscar for this performance. I don't know what she would've been up against in 1940, but I like this movie a lot more than Kitty Foyle (which I really don't like at all). Ginger was such an underrated actress.
This film did remind me a bit of Waterloo Bridge, though thankfully it had a happy ending. Waterloo Bridge [spoiler] doesn't, as you noted. I think that they handled the 'adult themes' really well in this, too. It just shows that you can get a mature message across without profanity, nudity or violence. One thing I also liked about this film is the fact that none of the characters were really black and white (pardon the pun?). Even our heroine, Ella May, succumbs to the family pressure to become a prostitute (though [spoiler] she never really goes through with it). Henry Travers character says something about that in this movie; something to the effect that 'everybody has their faults and I wouldn't like them as much if they didn't".
Over Vivien Leigh in Gone with the Wind? Really?
shareScarlettCapulet says > I don't think the Belle Watling character was portrayed too sympathtically and Gone With the Wind is a completly different movie with a different story and different themes.I have no idea why the OP thought of Gone with the wind while watching this movie. Like you, I don't think these movies have very much in common. I disagree about Belle Watling. Obviously the women of the town would not care for her due to her profession and the fact their husbands probably 'knew' her. However, as a person, Belle proved to be a good person. Ellie Mae's mother wasn't a bad person either but she wasn't nearly as successful and, unlike Belle, she didn't seem to try to fit into or be accepted by the people who looked down on her.
Waterloo Bridge is a movie from the same year as Primrose Path and Vivien Leigh's character who is a prostitute commits suicide because she is a prostitute. If a character is commiting suicide because she is a prostitute then, no it is not seen as sympatheticOther than prostitution, I don't see many similarities between this movie and Waterloo Bridge. I also disagree about the Vivien Leigh character. She really was desperate and alone and, unlike, Ellie Mae's mother, she didn't seem to like any aspect of what she was doing. She didn't get 'gifts' and perks, probably just enough money to get by.