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Frank Borzage (1894–1962)

Autor(a) de A Farewell to Arms [1932 film]

42+ Works 324 Membros 14 Reviews

About the Author

Image credit: ReverseShot

Obras de Frank Borzage

A Farewell to Arms [1932 film] (1932) — Director — 129 cópias
Stage Door Canteen [1943 film] (2004) — Diretor — 34 cópias
The Mortal Storm [1940 film] (1940) — Diretor — 18 cópias
50 Movie Pack: Family Classics (2005) — Diretor — 17 cópias
AMC Movies: Gary Cooper Hollywood Classics — Diretor — 15 cópias
History is Made at Night [1937 film] (1900) — Diretor — 10 cópias
Desire [1936 film] (2010) 10 cópias
Three Comrades [1938 film] (1938) — Director — 7 cópias
His Butler's Sister [1943 film] (1943) — Diretor — 7 cópias
Moonrise [1948 film] (2018) — Diretor — 5 cópias
Mannequin [1937 film] (1937) — Diretor — 5 cópias
Flirtation Walk [1934 film] (2011) — Director — 4 cópias
Smilin' Through [1941 film] (2011) 4 cópias
Bad Girl [1931 film] (1931) — Diretor — 3 cópias
7th Heaven [1927 film] (2011) 3 cópias
Flight Command [1940 film] (2011) — Diretor — 3 cópias
Magnificent Doll [1946 film] — Diretor — 2 cópias
Strange Cargo — director — 2 cópias
Stage Door Canteen / Private Buckaroo — Diretor — 2 cópias
50 Movie Collection: Great Adaptations (2013) — Diretor — 2 cópias
Man's Castle [1933 film] — Diretor — 2 cópias
The Green Light (2015) 1 exemplar(es)
Circle 1 exemplar(es)
China Doll 1 exemplar(es)
No Greater Glory [1934 film] (2011) — Diretor — 1 exemplar(es)
Till We Meet Again [1944 film] — Diretor — 1 exemplar(es)

Associated Works

Etiquetado

Conhecimento Comum

Data de nascimento
1894-04-23
Data de falecimento
1962-06-19
Sexo
male
Nacionalidade
USA
Local de nascimento
Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
Ocupação
film director
Premiações
Hollywood Walk of Fame
George Eastman Award

Membros

Resenhas

“Don't tap your heart. You'll break your finger.” — Crawford to Gable

Director Frank Borzage, the greatest romanticist director ever to work in Hollywood, made films of enduring beauty and sentimentality in both the silent and sound era. His ability to handle sensitive subject matter however was never put to the test in the way it was when he signed on to film Richard Sale’s “None Too Narrow...None Too Deep” for MGM. He would have to balance the fire between stars Clark Gable and Joan Crawford with a story having delicate spiritual overtones. The end results are a unique cinematic masterpiece in which Borzage shows his audience it is never too late.

Lawrence Hazard’s sharp and sometimes racy dialog sounds as if Howard Hawks had been standing over his shoulder, telling him just how to write Crawford’s character. She is very much the embodiment of how his world-weary and leery men view women. But Borzage will allow the delicate spiritual message to reveal what is underneath, and in the heart. It is as if Borzage is filming two stories at once, from different eras, and in very different genres. Yet he somehow makes it work; both as entertainment and something more substantive. Gable’s charisma is on full display here and Crawford has one of her finest moments onscreen in a scene opposite Ian Hunter that plays almost like an apology for her film based on a Somerset Maugham story, Rain.

Gable’s Verne is a thief being released after sixteen months in solitary confinement for his fifth escape attempt in three years. He seems incorrigible, and destined not to make it out of the penal colony alive. But Grideau (Frederic Worcock), the head of the island’s prison, sees something worth redeeming in Verne. Allowed to work outside the prison walls down on the wharf, Verne runs into Julie (Joan Crawford) and they begin the first of many salty exchanges which caused the film to be condemned at the time by the Legion of Decency. It also is what kept viewers entertained as a much deeper and more spiritual story began taking hold. Though it seems ludicrous today, it would be this aspect of the film that tipped the scales against it in the eyes of the Legion of Decency.

When Verne sneaks out to get a load of Julie dressed up — “Grief ain't what I came after, Baby” — and she promptly turns him in, the sparks between them almost burn up the screen. But suddenly a mysterious bible-carrying prisoner no one remembers ever having seen before shows up to replace Verne for the returning head count. Fans of Borzage know in that exact moment there’s much more going on here than a terribly racy late 1930s romance. What follows is a unique blend of entertainment, a racy romance and a spiritual message which finally and inevitably collide, leaving the viewer mesmerized by what they’ve just seen.

There is plenty of action and conflict, with a jungle and an ocean between Verne and freedom. Paul Lukas, Albert Dekker, Howard Bromberg, and Eduardo Cianelli are a few of his fellow escapees. But it is Ian Hunter’s Cambreau who seems to always know what’s going to happen, and how to get there. While Gable and Crawford spar, he helps those who might not make it find peace before their light dims, and seems to know what’s in their hearts.

Crawford is marvelous here as Julie, struggling against believing but knows it must be so when Cambreau is the only one who knows she’s been saying silent prayers for them all. Verne may be the toughest nut to crack, however, as only in a storm on a boat does he realize he may have just thrown his salvation, and future, overboard.

Peter Lorre plays to perfection the lovelorn M’sieu Pig, whom Crawford’s Julie could never sink low enough to touch. Franz Waxman’s score nicely complements the photography of Robert Plack and art direction of MGM’s Cedric Gibbons to create an atmospheric film pleasing on all fronts.

Gable and Crawford were always good together and are fantastic here, their back-and-forth containing a rare edge. It is the spiritual tone and message of the film, however, which creates a one-of-a-kind movie experience. Another truly great film by a true master of both nitrate and celluloid, Frank Borzage.
… (mais)
 
Marcado
Matt_Ransom | Dec 9, 2023 |
This endearing film from director Frank Borzage is filled with the warmth and charm of its star, Deanna Durbin. An original screenplay fashioned for Deanna by Samuel Hoffenstein and Beth Reinhardt and a glossy production from Universal really make this one of Deanna's best films. A great cast which includes Franchot Tone, Pat O'Brien, Akim Tamiroff and Elsa Janssen lend sparkling support to Deanna's joyous performance as Ann Carter.

Ann is on her way from Indiana to New York by train to live with her rich half-brother while she tries to become a broadway musical star. She wants to sing for composer Charles Gerard (Franchot Tone) and just misses her chance when she finds out he is on her train. When her half-brother Martin (Pat O'Brien) turns out to be only a butler, her hopes sink low until she discovers he is the butler in the swanky New York penthouse of you know who!

Martin plays the ponies more than he works but since his main job is keeping away girls who want to sing for Charles Gerard, he has his hands full. It gets even more complicated when Gerard mistakes Ann for the new maid and she is right under Gerard's nose and Martin's feet! Elsa Janssen is wonderful as the housekeeper Severena, who takes a shine to the sweet Ann. She isn't the only one, however, taken with Ann's smile and effervescence.

Some very funny moments are given birth from Ann's effect on every butler in the building. They are all enamored of her and do everything they can to compete for her affections. Akim Tamiroff is foremost of these as Martin's Russian pal Popoff. Ann of course, begins to fall for her boss Gerard who is about to dump his latest work and run off to Maine with his society girlfriend Elizabeth Campbell (Evelyn Ankers).

Tone is excellent as the wealthy but down to earth Gerard and Deanna simply glows in fashions by Adrian. A walk home holding hands and a kiss goodnight are filled with romance and magic, as is this film. There are, of course, some wonderful musical interludes, including "Nessun Dorma" from Puccini's "Turnadot" and the beautiful "In the Spirit of the Moment."

An only in the movies mix-up, Ann’s brother feeling threatened by his sister’s effect on everyone, including his boss, and his doubt concerning Gerard’s true intentions, bring about plans for Maine that might fall through if true love prevails.

A terrific cast and Durbin’s magic make this sweet fable of "the day before yesterday" as it calls itself is a must for Deanna's fans and a fine film in its own right. A real gem from the last rose of summer, Deanna Durbin.
… (mais)
 
Marcado
Matt_Ransom | Nov 19, 2023 |
A romantic glow hangs over this beautiful picture like a San Francisco fog rolling across the Golden Gate Bridge. The story is based on the fine literary novel by Erich Maria Remarque, and was adapted to the screen by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Frank Borzage was the perfect choice as director for this story of three German WWI expatriates who have bonded for life and the tubercular waif they all love in varying ways. It has all the great romanticism Borzage was famous for bringing to his art, and this marvelous adaptation of Remarques masterpiece concluded his trilogy of otherworldly love intruded upon by war: Seventh Heaven, A Farewell to Arms, and Three Comrades. A sense of impending tragedy even during the happier scenes creates what one might call romantic noir, even though no crime has been committed.

Robert Taylor portrays Erich, the younger and more innocent of the three comrades. Robert Young is Gottfried, an idealist angry at the post-war rise of fascism. And Franchot Tone, in one of his finest roles, is Otto, the world-weary pragmatist. Their lives are changed forever when they meet up with fragile Margaret Sullavan, who gave the finest performance of her career as the sweet and courages Pat. Pat is dying of tuberculosis, but has just enough time left for Taylor to fall in love with her, and to touch the lives of his two friends.

Each of the comrades falls in love with her in other ways, the threesome becoming a foursome; a makeshift family trying to keep fate at bay just a little while longer. The luminous performance by Sullavan is one you will always remember. Director Frank Borzage creates a sense of doom underneath every light and happy moment the comrades share together, the romantic glow growing a little dimmer as destiny looms like a storm cloud just over the next hill.

You will rarely see a film so full of love, as Sullavan imparts to each of the comrades what they need, and in turn receives two friends who love and cherish her — and one who loves her even more. Tone gives his weary character considerable depth. Taylor's Erich is likable as the young brash member of friends, somewhat lost after the war is over and still a bit naive. Robert Young gives another solid performance as he captures the anger and restlessness of a world that has just come out of a war, yet finds itself moving in that direction again.

This was Remarque and Fitzgerald at their best, two great writers complementing each other. Director Frank Borzage brought a sensitivity and romanticism to his art few have ever matched. Margaret Sullavan gives the greatest performance of her career, her own life as fragile as Pat's, ending tragically years later. The final shot of Three Comrades is not one easily forgotten. Though elements of Remarque’s novel were softened due to the time period in which this film was made, it still resonates.

If you love the magic of film, and enjoy the romanticism only film can bring to our hearts, you’ll be moved by Three Comrades. An enduring masterwork.
… (mais)
 
Marcado
Matt_Ransom | Nov 19, 2023 |
Clark is quite good as the son of a man who was hanged and has been bullied from childhood to adulthood, particularly by a character played by Lloyd Bridges. He is prone to fits of anger and is deeply in love with a girl who is engaged to marry Bridges' character. I won't go further into the plot, which would spoil things, but this is an interesting noir with some flaws. The Virginia setting is certainly unusual, but really isn't believable. Rex Ingram, who plays a pivotal role, is the only black face to be seen. The philosophical sheriff seems more than a bit out of place. Mostly, this film makes me want to see more of Clark's performances.… (mais)
 
Marcado
datrappert | Nov 10, 2021 |

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Associated Authors

Benjamin Glazer Screenwriter
Oliver H.P. Garrett Screenwriter
Delmer Daves Screenwriter
Claudine West Screenwriter
George Froeschel Screenwriter
Andersen Ellis Screenwriter
Frank Capra Director
Edwin Justus Mayer Screenwriter
F. Scott Fitzgerald Screenwriter
Charles Haas Screenwriter
David Burton Director
Jane Murfin Screenwriter
Jo Swerling Screenwriter
Lewis Sailer Director
Leonore J. Coffee Screenwriter
Ernest Hemingway Original story
Peggy Lee Vocal
Doris Day Vocal
Phyllis Bottome Original book
Erich Maria Remarque Based on the book by
Viña Delmar Original book

Estatísticas

Obras
42
Also by
2
Membros
324
Popularidade
#73,085
Avaliação
½ 3.6
Resenhas
14
ISBNs
35
Idiomas
1

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