Customer Reviews

Dark Victory [VHS]

5 star:		(46)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

In one the the best remembered films of the thirties,Bette Davis gives beautifully modulated performance as Judith Traherne, the dying wealthy Long Island playgirl. Geraldine Fitzgerald is superb as Judith's friend and secretary, Ann King,a character written especially for the movie. Humphrey Bogart plays Michael O'Leary, an Irish horse trainer with somewhat less conviction, although George Brent gives his finest performance as Dr. Frederick Steele (whom Judy eventually marries.) Ronald Reagan (in a role he reportedly despised) plays the weak, drunken Alex, one of Davis's swains. Davis is magnificent throughout; her Judy is wild, spoiled and cheeky in the beginning and her amazing metamorphisis to a vibrantly happy and humbled young married woman is fascinating to observe on film. Legendary columnist Hedda Hopper claimed Davis always gave her best performances when she was in love and here it was apparent (the object of her affections was George Brent!).The famous planting scene in the garden had to be re-shot many times; Davis felt such empathy for her character that she would be reduced to tears. Tallulah Bankhead flopped when she played Judith Traherne on stage in 1934. Highly recommended as a prime example of just why people rave about this legendary first lady of the silver screen!

"Dark Victory" is atypical for a Hollywood movie made in 1939 [or for that matter, for one made today] because it deals with terminal illness and it doesn't have a happy ending. The medical profession back then was less honest about the subject. A common procedure was to assure the patient that they were doing fine, even when the prognosis was negative. This deceptive practice and other factors date the movie, but Bette Davis' stunning performance as Judith Traherne always has and always will define the movie. For that reason alone, it is still eminently watchable.

Judith is a vivacious, carefree member of Long Island society. Her passions are parties, her friends and her horses. After being thrown from her favorite horse, she admits to her best friend, Ann [Geraldine Fitzgerald] that the cause of the accident was a sudden blurring of her vision. This, she admits, is not the first time she's had this problem. After much cajoling of the stubborn, frightened Judith, Ann gets her to a specialist, Dr. Frederick Steel [George Brent], who diagnosis her as having a rare illness. An operation, which is unsuccessful, ensues, but the truth is withheld from Judith. During all this, patient and doctor fall in love with each other. Both the illness and Steel's well intended but deceitful way of dealing with it led to serious complications.

Fitzgerald is excellent as Ann, George Brent [a matinee idol in his time] is adequate, but Humphrey Bogart, whose stardom was sill several years away, is wasted as Michael, Judith's horse trainer. His Irish accent is not at all good. You'll hardly notice, though, because your thoughts and eyes will always be on Davis. She displays virtually every human emotion, seemingly without effort. One of her great scenes is the one in which Dr. Steele is examining her for the first time. Her voice is bright and gay as she makes light about her problem, but her eyes and hands are telling us something completely different - fear to the point of terror.

Reams have been written about how difficult Davis was to work with. In "Dark Victory", one can see part of the reason. She was so gifted that finding someone who could successfully play opposite her must have been a nearly impossible task. She made movies in which, I suspect, she was so angry and/or depressed that, consciously or not, she played a parody of herself. These movies created Davis the caricature. "Dark Victory" is not one of them. Here, Davis brilliantly plays an ordinary woman dealing with her own mortality. Highly recommended for this reason alone.

Tour de force camp fest for Bette Davis and her legions of fans. Almost every cliche that has become fodder for Davis impersonators (from Carol Burnett to Charles Pierce) are in this one...the swagger, the clipped speech, the cigarette holder and chronic/constant puffing, the one-line jabs and popping eyes. This one is elevated from mere melodrama by an admirable supporting cast and top notch production values. But if the genre isn't your cuppa, it will be a long 104 minutes.

This DVD print is wonderful. Crystal clear...looks and sounds terrific and the real reason to include this one in your library of classics. The commentary track, unfortunately, is virtually worthless..the two film afficianadoes offer little more than their own ooh'ing and aah'ing. Better off calling it an "opinion" track.

Bette Davis is outstanding as Judy Traherne, a Long Island rich girl with a fatal brain tumor. For a time Judy believes that she's been cured, a myth supported by her doctor (George Brent)who is starting to fall in love with her. Cameos by Ronald Reagan and Humphrey Bogart are welcomed inclusions that enhance the film's dramatic appeal.
Unfortunately, Warner acquired this title from a tired, worn print in the MGM library. The print is full of grain, chips, scratches, inconsistant shadow and contrast delineation and digital grit. There are several occasions where the entire image within the frame wobbles up and down, due to worn out sprocket holes. The visual experience during such instances is akin to riding a canoe through choppy seas. The audio is strident and scratchy. Overall this is a disappointing visual experience and one that Warner needs to rectify soon, before we lose this great classic forever to the ravages of time.

This film is one of Davis's best, and she definitely would've taken home the Oscar the year this film was made (1939) if not for Vivien Leigh coming along and spoiling things with "Gone With the Wind." Bette plays Judith Traherne (another role which originated on the stage with Tallulah Bankhead . . unfortunately there, unlike here, it was a flop), one of her strongest protagonists outside of Margo Channing in "All About Eve": a spoiled, carefree girl whose life is endangered by a brain tumor. George Brent plays the doctor who operates on her and eventually becomes her husband; he's adequate, but Davis's performance makes up for Brent's rather cardboard portrayal of the doctor (she talks at about twice the speed he does). There's also a couple early performances by Ronald Reagan (as a rich friend of Davis's) and Humphrey Bogart (as her stablehand . . he also has a tiny crush on our heroine). One of the nicest surprises about this movie is the terrific performance by Geraldine Fitzgerald, as Davis's best friend Ann . . their final scene together is just tremendous. Bigtime Davis fans (like me) may chuckle just a bit at Davis's Judith as she progresses through the "bitterness" stage of her grief (one scene in particular is when she's ordering in the restaurant: "I'd like a healthy dose of . . PROGNOSIS NEGATIVE!") An outstanding film from an actress who could do worlds better with a bad script than most actors could do with good ones.

It always amazes me that my fellow campy queens who run around quoting Bette Davis lines ("Fasten your seat belts..." blah blah blah what a dump blah blah blah) don't have any quotes from this particular show of Betteness. Running around like a well-oiled piston from room to room with excitement and verve as headstrong socialite Judith Traherne, Davis looks like she's begging on her knees to be satirized. But she's also wonderful (of course), and though the film is dated and somewhat cornball (movies from this period up until The Three Faces of Eve that deal with medical subject matter tend to be so) it's always a very enjoyable tearjerker. Judith learns that her brain operation wasn't a success and that she has a lethal brain tumour and will go blind before she dies. How does she deal with it? Sporting the latest fashions, of course! Davis had seen the play with Tallulah Bankhead (she filmed another Bankhead vehicle play a year later when she did The Little Foxes and told Jack L. Warner it would make a great vehicle for her. His response, now famous: "Who wants to see a dame go blind?" He was wrong, though, and the film became one of Davis' biggest hits. Lots of fun for such a sad movie.

"Dark Victory" stars the legendary Bette Davis as wealthy socialite Judith Traherne. She leads a life of non-stop fun and partying until a life-threatening disease begins to affect her. The supporting cast includes George Brent as surgeon Frederick Steele and Humphrey Bogart as Judith's horse trainer.

The film has a "soap opera" feeling throughout, and I found some of the plot elements to be hard to believe. But aside from those flaws, this is one classic film that is still compelling and entertaining. Davis is the center of the film, and her performance is wonderful. She brings fire and strength, as well as vulnerability and serenity, to this memorable character. The supporting cast is up to the high standard set by Davis. It's particularly fun to see a young Ronald Reagan as one of Judith's party set. Unfortunately, Bogart's character seems to be neglected by the time the film is over.

The opulent set and costume design make the film a real pleasure to watch, and are superbly enhanced by the film's glorious black-and-white cinematography. Max Steiner's appropriately melodramatic musical score also fits well into the mix. If you love classic movies, I recommend this film highly.

When you see grade z movies being issued with beautiful transfers and 1 to 2 extra discs of extras, you would think one of the great screen classics would receive similar respect. No way. I was appalled by the dismal, speckled, grainy pictute you receive on this lousy DVD. "Dark Victory" was among the five pictures in l939 nominated by the Academy Award as The Best. Not only was it nominated for best musical score by the great Max Steiner, but its luscious black and white photography was also up for Best of the Year. My VHS tape of this classic shows a beautiful black and white beauty. Whoever was responsible for approving this truly dismal disc of one of Hollywood's greatest classics should be fired. And oh yeah, as for great extras, you do actually get one tiny little preview. This shows you what type of respect the creators of this DVD had for this masterpiece, starring America's greatest movie actress!

Dark Victory is classic Bette Davis. I can't believe this tendency to call everything dated. That's like saying "David Copperfield" is dated. A great film or any other work of art is a treasure forever. They couldn't get this right today; it's 24-karat fun. Melodramatic schmaltz is transformed into grand -- and moving-- entertainment by the divine Davis, frenetic mannerisms (note the clenching hands), flashing eyes and halting speech patterns notwithstanding. Every minute Davis is onscreen, our eyes are kept riveted to her, resulting in, as Pauline Kael aptly put it, shameless entertainment. Class, nobility and movie stars of the caliber of Davis are sadly missing from films today.

Davis plays Judith Traherne, a wealthy, fast-living Long Island socialite, and here she is young and rather attractive with chic clothes and a hairstyle that would be popular in the 1940's. When she tells best friend Ann (Geraldine Fitzgerald) that she is having headaches and vision problems, Ann whisks her away to a specialist Frederick Steel (George Brent) where it is discovered that she has a brain disorder requiring surgery. Brent is as wooden as my favorite B actor, Lon Chaney, Jr., but it doesn't matter. The movie belongs to powerhouse Davis. Witness her so full of life! so gay! so young! as she believes her operation has been a success, while best friend, doctor and the entire audience know she "doesn't stand a chance." When Davis finds out the truth and confronts Ann and Steel (now her boyfriend) in a restaurant with their duplicity by ordering a "big helping of prognosis negative," sparks fly. It's all pure, delicious fun and yes, kitsch. But grand entertainment of the first order!

Humphrey Bogart appears as an Irish stable hand with a terrible accent and Ronald Reagan has a minor role as one of Judith's "chums" or as she puts it, "the kids." Davis is in a class by herself in film history. Highly recommended!

Davis performances don't get any better than her classic portrayal of Judy Traherne, the lively, irresponsible 23 year-old Long Island heiress who finds inner peace before her untimely death via a brain tumour. Because this classic film is quite possibly the most famous of all vintage tear-jerkers, it is best to leave out plot details so as not to ruin the experience for first-time viewers. Just know that this was Davis's favourite film because it contained the performance she was the most satisfied with. Granted, to modern day viewers, Bette's highly charged, kinetic energy - particularly in the early scenes - may appear eccentric, almost laughable, because it's the likes of which actors don't display nowadays......But keep watching.....Bette's metamorphasis into a fully contented, married woman with an inner glow about her is astounding to observe and you may later understand the underlying cleverness of Davis's contrasting moods. It's a vivid, multi-faceted performance which contains many elements of genuine human emotions: selfishness, hedonism, love, vulnerability, anger, self-pity, compassion & maturity thru inner peace. Very beneficial to the film is the character of Ann King, Judy's best friend and secretary. Not in the original play, director Edmund Goulding created her as a kind of Greek Chorus, so that Judith wouldn't have to complain about the inevitable. Geraldine Fitzgerald gives superb support: Davis always praised her Irish-born co-star (in her American debut) commenting in her memoirs that Ann was "so beautifully played by Fitsie". If ever a movie held the honour of selling more Kleenex than any other, it would have to take notes from this 1939 Bette Davis vehicle, because it's a 24K gold-plated Cadillac with few peers. The famed hyacinth planting scene - during which one feels an almost spiritual jolt - the pleading, sincere inquiry to her doctor husband George Brent - whom she sends away to a convention - "Have I been a good wife?", and the final fade-out - complete with a heavenly choir of Angels singing - still leaves viewers in helpless tears. Now, THAT'S acting!!