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Hemingway
wrote complex, endearing novels wrapped in the guise of simplicity.
A Farewell to Arms (1929) was one of his early successes.
The movie version followed seven years later. Unfortunately
Hemingway's writing style has not translated well to film.
The film versions of For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943) and The
Sun Also Rises (1957) both largely succeeded in capturing
the visual flavor of the novels, but the characterizations
often fell flat. To Have and Have Not (1944) does not really
count since William Faulkner was one of the screenwriters.
I have not
seen the 1957 version of Farewell to Arms, but I have my doubts
about it since it featured Rock Hudson and Jennifer Jones
and was produced by her husband, David O. Selznick, who had
lost his magic touch years earlier. But these are most likely
two completely different films, as the 1934 version is in
black and white and only 87 minutes long, while the 1957 version
is in color and 152 minutes long, which is almost enough time
to film every page of the book.
American
Frederic Henry (Gary Cooper) is an ambulance driver for the
Italian army. He volunteered (the U.S. did not enter the war
until 1917) during a time when war was considered a proving
ground for men, rather than a playground for wholesale slaughter.
On his sojourns away from the battle lines he carouses with
the available women, often under the influence of delectable
spirits. During one of his binges he briefly encounters a
nurse named Catherine Barkley (Helen Hayes). She impresses
him much more than he impresses her. Their next encounter
is more fruitful. They converse, he rapes her, and she then
pronounces her love for him. The relationship is further strengthened
when Frederic is injured and recuperates in Catherine's hospital.
When Frederic is sent back to the front he must decide whether
his priorities are with the army or with Catherine, a decision
that could result in execution for desertion.
Gary Cooper's
stiffness makes him the wrong man to play Frederic. He is
also too old. He was over 30 when he acted in this film, and
his physical appearance and vocal maturity reflect his "advanced"
age. Frederic should be a raw impetuous character, someone
who has yet to fully experience life, but is crazy enough
to enlist in a bloody war for the frontier stimulation.
This film
version is too sentimental and weepy. Even worse, it is forgettable.
I found myself having to think for a few seconds before I
could remember how it ended, after having just watched it.
Cooper and Hayes lack the chemistry necessary to drive this
love story, ala Bogart and Bergman in Casablanca, or even
Hawke and Delphy in Before Sunrise.
Hayes' Catherine
displays some independence at the beginning of the film, but
soon she surrenders herself utterly to Frederic. Evidently
the rape swept her off her feet. Love at first sight, or love
at first rape? The perfect gentleman, he even apologized for
taking her virginity. What more could a girl want? Perhaps
I misinterpreted this scene, but their language after the
fade to black leaves no other viable interpretation. More
perplexing is that the book does not intimate rape. So why
would they add this interpretation to the film adaptation?
Did the filmmakers believe that a rape would be more appropriate
than casual sex? To have Catherine announce her love for Frederic
immediately afterwards is absurd and demeaning.
The rape
scene is not the only major difference between the movie and
the book. The letter writing in the film is nothing more than
a cinematic contrivance. The supporting characters are different
too, with Rinaldi being little more than a weasel and Ferguson
being much more intolerant of Frederic and Catherine's relationship.
The movie also ignores a massive amount of Hemingway's dialogue,
which is so key to believing and sympathizing with Frederic
and Catherine's love for each other. Lastly, their entire
time together in Switzerland is thrown away in favor of a
last second entrance by Frederic.
The one
admirable characteristic of this film is the cinematography,
which deservedly won an Academy Award. While not shot in an
epic fashion A Farewell to Arms does contain some impressive
images. That being said, even though I greatly enjoy many
black and white films, I believe Hemingway stories should
be told in color. Only then can a film come close to capturing
the visual splendor of Hemingway's pen.
According
to the Internet Movie Database an alternate version of this
film contains a different, "Americanized" ending. Yuck. It
also lists the running time at only 80 minutes, which is likely
the version that Madacy has released on dvd, although I do
not know if this other dvd release has the original theatrical
or the American ending. Whatever the case, this Image release
seems to be the longer, original theatrical version of the
film, as indicated by the back cover which says "due in part
to censorship codes of the day, this theatrical version of
the film has seldom been seen and was thought lost."
Video: How Does The Disc Look?
The image
is rather clean for a film of this vintage. There is some
clutter, but less than one would expect. It is a bit soft
and somewhat grainy. If A Farewell to Arms is a public domain
title, Image's release is probably as good as this movie will
ever look.
Audio: How Does the Disc Sound?
Pop. Snap.
(Editor: Hey, you forgot "crackle"!) Those sounds
frequently interject themselves at various points in the movie.
It makes the soundtrack seem quite the worse for wear. After
the opening the volume becomes quieter, necessitating an increase
in the volume to hear the dialogue, although the level is
mostly constant after that. On the positive side, hiss is
barely noticeable, and some bass is present for the explosions
and the roar of truck engines.
Supplements: What Goodies Are There? The scant
extras are filmographies and some short award notes.
Parting Thoughts
Keep in
mind that I think this is a public domain movie, which means
that anyone with a print can distribute A Farewell to Arms
(1934) on dvd. I doubt any of these other releases have comparable
video quality to Image's release, so you will just have to
weigh the cost versus quality when deciding which release
to purchase.
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