- Joined
- Feb 8, 1999
- Messages
- 18,244
- Real Name
- Robert Harris
The name Mitchell Leisen doesn't exactly roll off the tongue, say like Hitchcock, Sturges, Wilder, Wyler, or many others, that have become an acknowledged part of our cinema experience.
Regardless, Mr. Leisen was a fixture at early independents, and later at Paramount, starting his career as a designer - costume / art direction / set decorator - before he made the move to assistant director, and then director in 1933.
Among his projects, Death Takes a Holiday, Easy Living, Midnight, I Wanted Wings, and in 1941, Hold Back the Dawn.
His Technicolor films are a delight.
A bit unusual in Hollywood in the 1920s-40s, he was out, be it gay or bi - and possibly because of that, never hit the same turf as the other Paramount filmmakers.
I'll not get political here (once again), but the topic of Hold Back the Dawn is a relationship kindled as our lead Charles Boyer (an emigrant from France, appearing initially in American films in the early 1930s) discovers that he can legally cross the border from Mexico into the U.S., if he marries an American citizen. The majority of the film takes place at the border. The woman in question is Olivia de Havilland (born in Tokyo into a British family, arriving here as a child).
Strangely, the film seems to have undertones of another film that was released a year or so later, which has world-weary travelers trying to make their way to the U.S., while stuck in Morocco, hanging out at a joint called Rick's.
The wonderful French actor Victor Francen is one of the supporting players. Hold Back the Dawn was his first American studio picture. Born in Belgium, he made his earlier films, including Abel Gance's remake of his own J'Accuse, in France, leaving there for the Colonies, when the Germans arrived.
Mr. Leisen has a role in the film, as Ms. de Havilland's former suitor.
The film sports a fun wraparound sequence, on set at Paramount, with bits by John Hamilton (you'll remember him as Perry White in the Superman TV series), along with Veronica Lake, and Brian Donlevy.
Hold Back the Dawn never received the reputation that it deserved, but now on Blu-ray, courtesy of Arrow and Universal, hopefully that can be corrected.
Did I mention that it was written by the team of Brackett and Wilder?
And there's score by Victor Young.
What more do you need to give this one a try?
Harvested from what appears to be dupe neg (yes, the credits are a bit soft), which works nicely throughout all of the film's production photography, by Leo Tover.
For those who aren't yet hooked, it was nominated for six Academy Awards - Black & white cinematography, Music, Scoring for a Dramatic Picture, Art Direction / Interior Direction (black & white), Best Actress in a Leading Role, those two guys for Best Screenplay, and Best Picture.
Image - 4
Audio – 4
Pass / Fail – Pass
Upgrade from DVD - I'm unaware of a DVD release, so this is news.
Highly Recommended
RAH
Regardless, Mr. Leisen was a fixture at early independents, and later at Paramount, starting his career as a designer - costume / art direction / set decorator - before he made the move to assistant director, and then director in 1933.
Among his projects, Death Takes a Holiday, Easy Living, Midnight, I Wanted Wings, and in 1941, Hold Back the Dawn.
His Technicolor films are a delight.
A bit unusual in Hollywood in the 1920s-40s, he was out, be it gay or bi - and possibly because of that, never hit the same turf as the other Paramount filmmakers.
I'll not get political here (once again), but the topic of Hold Back the Dawn is a relationship kindled as our lead Charles Boyer (an emigrant from France, appearing initially in American films in the early 1930s) discovers that he can legally cross the border from Mexico into the U.S., if he marries an American citizen. The majority of the film takes place at the border. The woman in question is Olivia de Havilland (born in Tokyo into a British family, arriving here as a child).
Strangely, the film seems to have undertones of another film that was released a year or so later, which has world-weary travelers trying to make their way to the U.S., while stuck in Morocco, hanging out at a joint called Rick's.
The wonderful French actor Victor Francen is one of the supporting players. Hold Back the Dawn was his first American studio picture. Born in Belgium, he made his earlier films, including Abel Gance's remake of his own J'Accuse, in France, leaving there for the Colonies, when the Germans arrived.
Mr. Leisen has a role in the film, as Ms. de Havilland's former suitor.
The film sports a fun wraparound sequence, on set at Paramount, with bits by John Hamilton (you'll remember him as Perry White in the Superman TV series), along with Veronica Lake, and Brian Donlevy.
Hold Back the Dawn never received the reputation that it deserved, but now on Blu-ray, courtesy of Arrow and Universal, hopefully that can be corrected.
Did I mention that it was written by the team of Brackett and Wilder?
And there's score by Victor Young.
What more do you need to give this one a try?
Harvested from what appears to be dupe neg (yes, the credits are a bit soft), which works nicely throughout all of the film's production photography, by Leo Tover.
For those who aren't yet hooked, it was nominated for six Academy Awards - Black & white cinematography, Music, Scoring for a Dramatic Picture, Art Direction / Interior Direction (black & white), Best Actress in a Leading Role, those two guys for Best Screenplay, and Best Picture.
Image - 4
Audio – 4
Pass / Fail – Pass
Upgrade from DVD - I'm unaware of a DVD release, so this is news.
Highly Recommended
RAH
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