Max Ophuls Beyond Borders
The following screenings are free to the public. (Tickets are required and can be obtained from the Kimball Theatre's box office.)
Passion and honor collide with tragic results in one of the great masterpieces of French cinema. Justly celebrated for its famous "waltzing into love" sequence, Madame de... showcases the opulent decor and sensuous camerawork for which Ophuls is best known. With superb performances by three legends of European cinema: Danielle Darrieux as Louise de..., Charles Boyer as the general to whom she is married, and Vittorio de Sica as the diplomat who becomes her lover. France, 1953, b&w, 100 mins. Print: Biograph Entertainment.
Notable for its atmospheric depiction of Vienna, this achingly beautiful story of a tragic love affair established Ophuls' international reputation. After directing several light comedies, Ophuls turned to what would become one of his favorite themes: the oppressiveness of military and aristocratic hierarchies. The Reichstag burned while Liebelei was playing on German screens. Ophuls (who was Jewish) and his family fled Germany; Nazi censors removed his name from the credits. Germany, 1932/33, b&w, 88 mins. Print: Biograph Entertainment.
Ophuls' last, most controversial film is the apotheosis of his concern with woman-as-spectacle. It tells the story of a famous courtesan, reduced to the status of a circus performer who responds to questions about her scandalous past. Flashbacks relate her love affairs with a young student, the pianist/composer Franz Liszt, and the king of Bavaria. Audiences were more scandalized by Ophuls' audacious experiments with cinematic form in his only color, CinemaScope film. France, 1955, 110 mins. Print: French Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Perfection! One of the greatest melodramas ever filmed, "a riveting cinematic expression of female suffering for love." Joan Fontaine loves concert pianist Louis Jourdan; he doesn't even know she exists. Of all Ophuls films, this is the one that has attracted the most attention by film scholars. Courtesy of the UCLA Film & Television Archive, we are proud to present a newly restored print. United States, 1948, b&w, 90 mins.
Rarely screened, this swashbuckler was a vehicle for Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. In his first Hollywood film, Ophuls uncharacteristically focussed on the male protagonist, exploring tensions between love and royal duty. With a great, villainous performance by the incomparable Henry Daniell. Courtesy of the Library of Congress, we are proud to present a newly restored print. United States, 1947, tinted b&w, 97 mins. (We regret that LoC curator Mike Mashon will be unable to attend.)
Film noir invades melodrama in Ophuls' last film, recently re-made as The Deep End. Joan Bennett stars as a respectable housewife whose bourgeois sensibilities are upended when her daughter's boyfriend turns up dead. James Mason is the blackmailer with a conscience. The Reckless Moment is not available on video or DVD. We are proud to present the restored print commissioned by Sony in celebration of Columbia Studios 75th anniversary, provided courtesy of King World Productions, Inc. United States, 1949, b&w, 82 mins.