Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941) [NR] ***

A film review by Tyler Foster for DVDTalk.com on Oct. 7, 2009.

The 1941 version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is 30 minutes of a great movie, followed by an hour of disappointment and capped by 20 minutes of pure agony and a slightly-less-painful end. I really enjoyed Spencer Tracy's Dr. Jekyll, who's all charm and a light sense of humor. I also liked the rough-edged charm of Ingrid Bergman as a popular barmaid named Ivy, who practically falls all over herself trying to romance Dr. Jekyll. Unfortunately, Tracy also portrays Mr. Hyde, a horrible miscalculation of makeup, wigs and performance that kills the movie's momentum. By most accounts, the 1931 version with Frederic March is better because the actor gives a more terrifying performance as Hyde; it's too bad the films couldn't magically be merged, given how likable Tracy's Dr. Jekyll is.

Tracy's transformation also ruins Bergman's character, who changes wildly from a fighter to a helpless victim, sometimes within the same scene, not to mention the fact that it's just depressing to watch her spirit break whenever Hyde appears. I appreciated the occasional directorial or cinematographic flourish (like Hyde bounding across a room to grab Ivy and the subsequent shot of her backing away) and some of the foggy street scenes, but I was bored to death having to watch the laborious fade-in transformation of Jekyll to Hyde, which actually insists upon happening twice within five minutes at the very end. Still, the worst crime the film commits is that middle hour; the movie refuses to let the viewer give up, allowing just enough hope that the film might right itself at any minute.

Labels: horror, Ingrid Bergman, sci-fi

Internet Movie Database 6.9/10 

RottenTomatoes Averages (critics=67, viewers=68) 

Rage in Heaven (1941) [NR] ***

A film review by Bosley Crowther for the NY Times, March 21, 1941.

At a time when the world is already sufficiently concerned with paranoiacs, MGM has oddly seen fit to create yet another - and a thoroughly unsympathetic one - in its new film, Rage in Heaven, which opened at the Capitol yesterday. True, the depredations of this wholly fictitious marplot (a person who mars or defeats a plot, design, or project by meddling) are comfortably confined to the screen - and that is a blessing, at least. But why he should ever have been invented, why he should have been so clumsily conceived and why Robert Montgomery should have been chosen to play him is hard to understand.

Certainly, the picture itself fails to offer any adequate justification. For the story which is told is that of a wealthy young Englishman named Philip Monrell who, for reasons never clearly explained, is a hopeless manic depressive. He has spells when the moon is full; he wishes to take his own life. And then, for another reason which is never sufficiently based, he marries his mother's young secretary Stella (Ingrid Bergman) and presumably intends to reform. But always in the back of his brain gnaws the canker of disease. He suspects his wife and his best friend Ward Andrews (George Sanders) of being in love and against him; he bullies his business associates; things go from bad to worse. Finally he takes his own life in a manner which appears to be murder at the hand of his old friend, and the end of the story is devoted to the freeing of the latter and the wife.

The basic fault, of course, is that the emphasis of the drama is confused. At first the intention seems to throw sympathy to the sick man, to solve his pathetic case. But nothing of the sort is accomplished; he grows progressively worse. Suddenly he's tossed overboard and attention is directed to his victims. The whole thing becomes a futile mix-up without dramatic point. The screenwriters, Christopher Isherwood and Robert Thoeren, who adapted the film from a novel by James Hilton were apparently quite as confused as the miserable, neurotic hero (or hero that should have been). As the wife, Ingrid Bergman plays with a warm and sincere intensity which is deeply affecting, and George Sanders takes the friend in his usual self-assured stride. But Mr. Montgomery in the focal role is inclined toward a deadpan deliberateness which grows monotonous. Obviously it isn't altogether his fault, but he never really suggests a mental crack-up. He is just a fellow with a mean disposition - a pointlessly diabolic wretch.

It has been reported from Hollywood that Mr. Montgomery was compelled to play this role as discipline for some things he said in public about motion pictures. That may be an explanation for the general obtuseness of the film, but it seems like a desperate device. There is such a thing, you know, as cutting off one's nose to spite's one's face. And, in turning out Rage in Heaven, MGM hasn't done itself any favors.

Labels: drama, Ingrid Bergman, thriller

Internet Movie Database 6.4/10 

RottenTomatoes Averages (critics=NA, viewers=NA) 

June Night (1940) [TV-PG] ****

June Night was the last film Ingrid Bergman made in her native Sweden before moving permanently to Hollywood. This 1940 Per Lindberg picture is pretty straight soap opera, with Bergman playing a girl named Kerstin Norbäck who, in the movie's first scene, is shot by her sailor boyfriend Nils Asklund (Gunnar Sjöberg) when she tries to walk out on him. A trial and small-town scandal follows, so Kerstin changes her name to Sara Nordana and moves to Stockholm to start over. She swears off her wanton ways, but her resolve will be tested when she catches the eye of a handsome doctor Stefan von Bremen (Olof Widgren) and also runs across the nosy reporter Willy Wilson (Hasse Ekman) who sensationalized her story and dubbed her the wounded swan. Both men become obsessed with her, and both are dating female friends of Sara's. Stefan is dating the nurse Åsa (Marianne Löfgren) who helped Sara when she arrived in Stockholm, and Willy is dating Nickan (Marianne Aminoff), one of Sara’s roommates. All these affairs come to a climax the night Nils Asklund finds Kerstin/Sara working at the Swan Pharmacy, pays her a visit, and the several romantic plotlines intersect.

June Night is a little slow. The script, written by Ragnar Hyltén-Cavallius from a novel by Tora Nordström-Bonnier, relies heavily on suspension-of-disbelief coincidences and never delves very deeply into its characters. Unfortunately, this is especially true for Kerstin/Sara, who gets less introspection and development than the supporting characters; Bergman's charisma and screen presence are all that fuel her portrayal, and the actress brings a gravitas to the role that wouldn't otherwise be there. I suppose Lindberg and Hyltén-Cavallius could be striving to make Kerstin/Sara an unknowable and mysterious figure, which might lend some explanation to why everyone is so fascinated by her (and why she does so much damage without even trying), but if so, it doesn't really work.

Labels: drama, Ingrid Bergman

Internet Movie Database 6.1/10 

RottenTomatoes Averages (critics=NA, viewers=74) 

Criterion Collection: Eclipse Series 46: Ingrid Bergman’s Swedish Years

Intermezzo: A Love Story (1939) [UR] ****

While I’ve always appreciated Casablanca (1942), I was not a huge fan of Ingrid Bergman until recently and, admittedly, did not fully appreciate her incredible talent. Then, after reading her autobiography, My Story, and watching a number of her films, I’ve begun to realize how amazing she was.

Intermezzo (1939) is the remake of her 1936 Swedish-language film by the same name. Produced by David O. Selznick (Gone with the Wind, 1939) this is Bergman’s English-speaking film debut and she's wonderful in it. Even at the age of 24, there's something about her that's mesmerizing. The fact that she manages to make this melodrama watchable is a tribute to her range and depth as an actress, and, honestly, she's the only reason to sit through this romantic drama. She's radiant, intelligent and funny, and she makes you believe that Leslie Howard (Gone with the Wind, 1939) is charismatic, sexy and interesting, something that’s not easily done. Yes, his character is a world-famous violinist, and she’s admired his talent from a distance, but still, the fact that a gorgeous young woman with her abilities would actually fall in love with someone like him is pretty hard to believe. That’s is not to say that Leslie Howard is unattractive or untalented; he's just lacks the sex appeal of a Humphrey Bogart, Gary Cooper, Cary Grant or Gregory Peck, all 1940s co-stars of Bergman.

There's not much to the story of Intermezzo. Leslie Howard plays Holger Brandt, a famous violinist with a wife Margit (Edna Best) and family who stay at home while he tours the world. Upon his most recent return, his 6-year-old daughter (Ann Marie, played by Ann Todd) introduces Holger to her piano teacher, Anita Hoffman, played by Bergman. He’s oblivious to her until she plays at his daughter's birthday party, and her talent and beauty take him by surprise. He falls for her completely after they accidently meet at a symphony concert.

After some champagne and a long walk, it's obvious there's more between them then mere friendship. They soon begin a secret love affair, and when Holger invites Anita to be his accompanist on his upcoming tour, Margit begins to suspect something. Anita doesn't want to give up her studies, but her heart won't allow her to say no. They try to keep their affair quiet, but when she resigns as Ann Marie’s piano teacher and attempts to leave town, Margit knows all too well why. Holger separates from Margit and the two leave on tour together, despite leaving the wreckage of his family behind. Their European tour is a great success, and after it ends in Switzerland, they remain there on holiday.

However, Holger is torn by his feelings for his wife and family, particularly his daughter, and by his passion for Anita. She is his mid-life crisis, and every man should be so lucky. Eventually, it’s apparent to both of them that their stolen love can't last forever. Their happiness cannot be built on the unhappiness of others, and Holger’s past and Anita’s future cannot be joined forever.

Intermezzo is not an Oscar-winning movie, but it's not terrible either. It's typical of the films of its day, and the thing that makes it watchable today is Bergman's performance; the film drags whenever she's not onscreen. Her character goes through the full range of romantic/dramatic emotions, and she’s perfect every time. No one does joyfully exuberant or tortured by guilt better than Ingrid Bergman.

The violin and piano music is something of a minor character in the film and gives it additional dimension and class. If you’re interested in romantic dramas from the Golden Age of Hollywood and you’d like to see the film that launched Ingrid Bergman’s film career, watch Intermezzo (1939).

Labels: Cinderella-story, drama, Ingrid Bergman, music, romance, rom-drama-faves

Internet Movie Database 6.8/10

RottenTomatoes Averages (critics=74, viewers=68) 

Wikipedia Intermezzo (1939) 

Amazon "MyStory" 

MetaScore (critics=74)

A Woman’s Face (1938) [NR] ****

A film review by Jamie S. Rich for CriterionConfessions.com on April 14, 2018.

Ingrid Bergman teamed with director Gustaf Molander for the 1938 film A Woman's Face. Written by Gösta Stevens, adapted from a play by Francis De Croisset, A Woman's Face is a melodrama with a touch of noir. Bergman plays the villain of the piece - or at least, half a villain. At the start of the picture, she is the femme fatale of a blackmail ring, though her role tends to be more on the planning side than seduction. A childhood fire that killed both her parents has left half of her face burned, and also left her bitter against the world.

Bergman plays Anna Holm with a surprising anger, and also a pronounced vulnerability. She regularly reaches her hand up to her face, protectively shielding her scars. She projects her rage outwardly, pushing her crew to be tougher on their victims, and ends up taking one of the cases over herself. While visiting the victim Vera Wegert (Karin Carlson-Kavli) Anna is caught by Vera’s husband Dr. Allan Wegert (Anders Henrikson), who by no small coincidence is a doctor who fixed similar scarring for soldiers after World War I. He offers to operate on Anna's face, hoping it will warm her heart and inspire her to turn her life around. At first, she ignores the opportunity the healed visage offers, joining a previous scheme to cheat six-year-old Lars-Erik Barring (Göran Bernhard) out of his inheritance, but posing as his governess using the name Anna Paulsson helps Anna embrace love -particularly when she finds it with one of his uncles Harald Berg (Gunnar Sjöberg).

Anna's transformation from hard-bitten criminal to tenderhearted softie is a predictable one, but it's made believable by Ingrid Bergman's performance. She instinctively understands the various stages of Anna's metamorphosis and her work actually stands apart from the script, which I think expected the switch to be more automatic. Despite the fairly standard plotting, A Woman's Face avoids the treacle, never quite giving in to more conventional urges, instead settling on an ending that is more bittersweet than one might expect.

Blogger’s comment: After the childhood fire that severely disfigured Anna Holm, she became a sociopath. Bitter at having lost her parents, her childhood and her beauty she became the leader of a ring of thieves specializing in extortion. Only interested in control and winning, she was willing to lie cheat and steal while feeling no guilt pain or remorse, having no conscience and only a hole where her heart should be. The problem with A Woman’s Face is that it makes the assumption that after Dr. Wegert had restored her beauty, Anna was able to transform her personality. Sadly the real world does not work that way, and it is more likely that Anna would have continued her criminal life, enjoying more success now that her disfigurement had been replaced by physical beauty. This film confirms that society in general is woefully uneducated where sociopaths and psychopaths are concerned.

Labels: drama, Ingrid Bergman

Internet Movie Database 7.0/10 

RottenTomatoes Averages (critics=NA, viewers=78) 

Criterion Collection Eclipse Series 46: Ingrid Bergman’s Swedish Years 

Intermezzo (1936) [UR] ****

Ingrid Bergman is a genuine Hollywood icon, and one of the top-ranked actresses of all time, thanks to her starring roles in Casablanca (1942), For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943), Gaslight (1944), Spellbound (1945), Notorious (1946), Anastasia (1956) and Autumn Sonata (1978). However, not as much attention is paid to her pre-Hollywood career. Ingrid Bergman began her stage and screen career in Sweden, and Intermezzo is one of her most accomplished films from her home country. It gives many of us our first chance to see a screen legend developing her craft in the earliest stages of her career.

Though Bergman had already appeared in six features, including one uncredited role, one could argue that the 1936 version of Intermezzo was really what got her career started. Directed by Gustaf Molander, who co-wrote the screenplay with Gösta Stevens, Intermezzo was the movie that brought Bergman to the attention of famed Hollywood producer David O. Selznick (Gone with the Wind, 1939). Selznick brought her to Hollywood and cast her in the 1939 English-language remake of Intermezzo, with Gone with the Wind star Leslie Howard. Intermezzo became her breakout role.

In the movie, Bergman plays Anita Hoffman, a promising young pianist who ignores better advice and pairs up with concert violinist Holger Brandt (Gösta Ekman), joining the married man as both his musical accompanist and his lover. Brandt sacrifices his home life, leaving behind his wife and two children, to take Anita on a European tour with him; Anita also gives up the tutelage of Brandt's former partner (Hugo Björne). The two are relatively happy, but they practically live in exile, with Anita in a subordinate role as Brandt's accompanist, rather than blossoming into her own as an artist. When Anita is awarded the 1936 Jenny Lind scholarship to study piano in Paris, the two lovers must ask themselves what is really important: their love for each other, or their love of music. Brandt must also face what he's already left behind. As he puts it, they are stuck with the irony that his past and her future can never be joined together.

For a movie about two passionate artists locked in a scandalous affair, Intermezzo is relatively restrained. Though solidly written, it’s rather melodramatic, and drifts toward its foregone conclusion, communicating the sense that their fates are driving Anita and Holger. Thankfully, it's a film that is very well performed, especially by Bergman. While some critics have faulted Ekman for overacting his role, Bergman is absolutely radiant, elevating the quality and tone of the film whenever she is on screen. The two actors strike a fine balance, with Ekman's needy ego fitting in perfectly with Bergman's desire to please. The actress displays a sweet innocence at the start of the movie that is vastly different than some of her later, better-known roles. Intermezzo is also a pretty film to look at, with elaborate sets and a gorgeous wardrobe, presumably reflecting the style of 1930s Sweden.

If you watch the 1936 Intermezzo and then the 1939 version, you’ll appreciate that the screenplay for the later film was slightly rewritten to give Ingrid Bergman a larger role.

Labels: Cinderella-story, drama, Ingrid Bergman, music, romance, rom-drama-faves

Internet Movie Database 6.8/10 

RottenTomatoes Averages (critics=NA, viewers=70) 

Wikipedia: Ingrid Bergman

Bergman, who was born on August 29, 1915, was twenty-one when she filmed the Swedish-language Intermezzo, in 1936. Less than a year later, on July 10, 1937 she married her first husband, dentist Petter Lindstrom, and two years later she filmed the English-language remake of Intermezzo in Hollywood.

Ingrid and Petter Lindstrom in June, 1937, just before their wedding. 

A series of screen-captures from Intermezzo (1936):

Walpurgis Night (Valborgsmässoafton) (1935) [NR] ***/****

On April 30^th, Walpurgis Night, Swedes gather in restaurants and around bonfires to celebrate the end of winter and the beginning of spring. Johan Borg (Lars Hanson), who yearns to have children, has planned a restaurant dinner with his wife Clary (Karin Kavli), hoping to awaken her maternal instincts. But Clary, who is secretly pregnant, has no interest in giving up her life of fun and freedom, and has already arranged for an illegal abortion because her gynecologist has refused to perform the operation.

Meanwhile, Lena Bergström, (Ingrid Bergman) who is Borg’s secretary and is secretly in love with him, is quitting her job out of romantic frustration. Since Clary refuses to meet Borg for dinner, he invites Lena, and the two are photographed together in the restaurant. And when a news photographer shows the picture to Frederik Bergström (Victor Sjöström), newspaper editor and Lena’s over-protective father, he assumes the two are having an affair. Later, when the elder Bergström hears that the police have raided an abortionist’s office and an unknown woman had had an abortion that very day, he assumes it must be his daughter Lena.

While Clary is not caught in the police raid, evidence incriminating her is left in the abortionist’s office. What follows is an attempt to blackmail Clary and Johan over the evidence. In the confrontation, the blackmailer threatens Johan with a pistol, there is a fight, and Clary shoots and kills the man. Johan and Clary escape undetected, but their marriage is clearly over. Clary leaves Sweden for the European continent and Johan joins the French Foreign Legion in North Africa. Later he regrets his decision, escapes from the Legion and returns to Sweden. He goes to the police to confess to the murder and discovers that Clary had recently committed suicide, leaving a letter confessing to the murder, thus exonerating Johan who is now free to renew his relationship with Lena. As the film ends, Johan and Lena are happily married and have a baby.

At the time this film was made, the birth rate in Sweden was falling, so the issue of abortion, whether legal or illegal was a controversial one. One of the solutions presented in the film was that loving, harmonious marriage produces happy, healthy offspring. The film’s ending, featuring a smiling Lena holding her baby and greeting Johan as he arrives home from work, is certainly consistent with that view.

In Walpurgis Night, Ingrid Bergman plays a young woman who falls in love with a married man. A year later, in Intermezzo (1936), she plays Anita Hoffman, a young pianist, who falls in love with a married, world-renown violinist.  And six years later, in Casablanca (1942) she plays Ilsa Lund, a married woman who falls in love with Humphrey Bogart’s character in pre-WW II Paris. In these, and other films, Bergman plays women of morally questionable character, however her natural beauty and innocence lifts up the tone of the films and makes us believe in her characters.

Labels: drama, Ingrid Bergman, romance

Internet Movie Database 61/100 

RottenTomatoes Averages (critics=NA, viewers=NA) 

Wikipedia Walpurgis Night 

Criterion Collection Eclipse Series 46: Ingrid Bergman’s Swedish Years