quiet_curiosity (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
quiet_curiosity) wrote2010-01-03 03:57 pm
quiet_curiosity) wrote2010-01-03 03:57 pm
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The Divine Lady (1929)
Summary: The life and loves of Emma, Lady Hamilton are dramatized with much of the second half focusing on her affair with Admiral Horatio Nelson.
Stars: Corinne Griffith, Victor Varconi, H.B. Warner, Ian Keith, Marie Dressler, Montagu Love, William Conklin
Director: Frank Lloyd
Viewed Via: TCM/DVR
Current Commercial Availability: Warner Archive DVD-R Program
1) Ah, Corinne Griffith. She's so good in the Lubitsch style comedy The Garden of Eden. She's bubbly, engaging, and just plan good. But this film is not, for the most part, a light comedy and Griffith falters quite heavily here. Moments of anger and anguish come off awkward and, at times, she looked to be abit lost.
2) Victor Varconi as Admiral Nelson? **Yawn** He's a bit of a bore and doesn't really hit it off with Griffith.
3) H.B. Warner is much better as the husband, William Hamilton. He and Griffith were able to strike up some real affection for a couple who were just together for appearances.
4) The costumes and set dressing are quite opulent. First National apparently dropped a small fortune on it and it really shows.
5) The sea battles are also quite nice. They might look quite as impressive to modern eyes but they're not all that bad.
6) This is a hybrid silent/talkie. There isn't any spoken dialogue but there is a recorded score (including a theme song!), singing, and general crowd chatter. The score wasn't so bad but the random chatter drove me crazy at times. It sounded muddy, monotonous, and unable to represent the amount of people we're supposed to believe are chattering/arguing/rioting.
7) Is it historically accurate? Bah! What do you think?
Overall, it's a pretty film with lots of ho-hum performances. I wouldn't steer someone away from viewing The Divine Lady, but I wouldn't suggest that one go out of their way to see it either.
Stars: Corinne Griffith, Victor Varconi, H.B. Warner, Ian Keith, Marie Dressler, Montagu Love, William Conklin
Director: Frank Lloyd
Viewed Via: TCM/DVR
Current Commercial Availability: Warner Archive DVD-R Program
1) Ah, Corinne Griffith. She's so good in the Lubitsch style comedy The Garden of Eden. She's bubbly, engaging, and just plan good. But this film is not, for the most part, a light comedy and Griffith falters quite heavily here. Moments of anger and anguish come off awkward and, at times, she looked to be abit lost.
2) Victor Varconi as Admiral Nelson? **Yawn** He's a bit of a bore and doesn't really hit it off with Griffith.
3) H.B. Warner is much better as the husband, William Hamilton. He and Griffith were able to strike up some real affection for a couple who were just together for appearances.
4) The costumes and set dressing are quite opulent. First National apparently dropped a small fortune on it and it really shows.
5) The sea battles are also quite nice. They might look quite as impressive to modern eyes but they're not all that bad.
6) This is a hybrid silent/talkie. There isn't any spoken dialogue but there is a recorded score (including a theme song!), singing, and general crowd chatter. The score wasn't so bad but the random chatter drove me crazy at times. It sounded muddy, monotonous, and unable to represent the amount of people we're supposed to believe are chattering/arguing/rioting.
7) Is it historically accurate? Bah! What do you think?
Overall, it's a pretty film with lots of ho-hum performances. I wouldn't steer someone away from viewing The Divine Lady, but I wouldn't suggest that one go out of their way to see it either.