Customer Reviews

Salome [VHS]

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4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Every review of this movie I've ever read has been negative. Yet I have never tired of watching it again and again- the truest test of greatness. The time for me to emerge from the celluloid "guilty pleasures" closet is here. Critical scorn be damned- I adore this movie! I concede that in the beginning of the film the glorious Rita Hayworth's performance is wooden- but how she comes alive at the finale justifies any wait. Once she emerges from behind a pillar in Herod's court concealed in a shimmering sheath of blue- and then slowly and sinuously lowers it to reveal to Herod the answer to his most hedonistic dream- the film becomes a cinematic feast "like no other." I suppose Laughton and Anderson ham it up- but watching these two incredibly talented actors pull out all the stops- ham was never more delicious! They are unforgettable. Alan Badel is hard to take, but even he has his moments- as when he offers the thoroughly decadent Herod a chance for personal redemption, or when he reveals the identity of the disguised-in-a-crowd Salome as the "daughter of Herodias" but commends her misguided fears for her mother's safety. One reviewer calls this movie "over-costumed." I say "Hail Jean Louis!" The story of Salome was meant to flaunt gorgeous clothes and I have never seen such a display of eye-popping fabrics and colors- they alone make it worth watching. I treasure motion pictures as a haven from harsh reality- and this movie's "matchless beauty" more than fits the bill.

Religious epics from the 50's ran the gamut from well-made and reverential films like "The Robe" and Academy Award-winning champ "Ben-Hur" to the camp entertainment of "The Ten Commandments" to downright awful productions like "The Silver Chalice"(Jack Palance at his overacting best).

Well, "Salome" falls somewhere in the middle. It is both historically inaccurate and captivatingly seductive while attempting to be as pious as audiences of the decade demanded in their Bible-based dramas.

This Rita Hayworth vehicle does well as a showcase for the actress/dancer whose natural beauty was enhanced in glorious Technicolor. As the daughter of King Herod, Hayworth's Salome is a study in contrasts: one that is torn between her duty to the monarchy and to the romantic advances of Christian-convert Stewart Granger.

Charles Laughton is somewhat hammy as Herod, but all great actors have their occasional over-the-top roles. Dame Judith Anderson adds another evil matriarch to her long line of "bad girls" as Heroditus, wife of Herod and chief catalyst behind the beheading of John the Baptist (Alan Badel).

Hey, the flick ain't Shakespeare, but it does hold the interest especially Hayworth's "Dance of the Seven Veils".

"Salome", has really come in for it's fair share of criticism in the years since it's 1953 release. Criticised for it's blatant altering of the New Testament story that depicts the beheading of John the Baptist, it has been called everything from a campy mess to an insult to scholars of the Bible. However I always just appreciate the film for it's many outstanding qualities that well and truly earn it a place in my personal pantheon of great 1950's Biblical Epics. Lacking the wide scope of for example "The Ten Commandments", "Salome", takes a short incident in the Bible and turns it into a highly entertaining and at times tragic story. It certainly succeeded in provided an eye filling showcase for actress Rita Hayworth, only recently arrived back in Hollywood after an unsuccessful marriage to Prince Aly Khan. Despite the break from Hollywood she has never been more alive and sensual as in this role and her justly famous rendition of the notorious "Dance of the Seven Veils", is the dramatic and indeed sensual climax of the film. If for nothing else Rita Hayworth will always be imprinted in viewers minds as the Princess Salome seductively performing this dance before an obviously besotted King Herod just prior to John the Baptist's head being brought into the room on a platter.

We have all read about John the Baptist as children and how Princess Salome agreed to do the "Dance of the Seven Veils", in return for the Baptist's head. Hollywood being Hollywood, has altered the story and Salome is now not the total wanton of the Bible story but a basically decent girl surrounded by total corrupting influences. This artistic licence aside the story is an affectivly told one and includes some terrific actors having the time of their lives with their colourful characters. The story opens with young Princess Salome residing in the Rome of the Emperor Tiberius (Cedric Hardwicke). She has been sent there by her mother Queen Herodias (Judith Anderson), who is intent on keeping her away from the incestuous attention of her step father King Herod (Charles Laughton). Salome however runs foul of the Emperor when she falls in love with Marcellus a relative of the Emperor. Refusing to allow his family to marry "barbarians", Salome is sent back to her parents in Galilea. On the journey over she is placed in the care of Roman Commander Claudius (Stewart Granger), and the two begin a definite love /hate relationship. Upon arriving back in her homeland Salome discovers all is not well as her mother Queen Herodias, who is trapped in a loveless marriage with Herod, has consuming ambitions for the throne and rather disturbingly King Herod takes an unwelcome and decidely unheathy interest in his beautiful step daughter. The kingdom is rife with unrest and John the Baptist is constantly speaking out against the corruption and godlessness of the ruler and his court. When he speaks out at the Queen as an adulteress Salome goes to find out more about this outspoken preacher and discovers that Claudius who she now realises she loves, is actually one of his followers. Queen Herodias makes plans to have the baptist assassinated however it fails and Herod takes him into his custody to keep him out of the way. The people meanwhile begin to rise up in protest at John's imprisonment and Salome learns the true nature of her evil mother when she asks her to perform the Dance of the Seven Veils, before Herod in return for the Bapist's head. Dancing before the King is simply another word for prostitution and Salome decides to leave the Palace. A visit with Claudius to the imprisoned John makes her see the power of what he is preaching about the Lord's word and she decides to save him by appeasing her father in law and performing the dance. However Herodias has her way and John is beheaded much to Salome's horror who now sets out on her own life as a Christian with Claudius.

Glitzy hokum? Perhaps, but highly entertaining nevertheless. "Salome", was for a long time a project dear to the heart of Cecil B. DeMille who would have been in his element with such an exotic story. He envisioned using Rita Hayworth as the legendary Salome however it never came to be. It was finally up to Columbia chief Harry Cohn fifteeen years later to finally put this project into reality. No expenses was spared on talent both in front of and behind the camera and it shows in the final film. Luscious costumes designed by Jean Louis, breathtaking colour photography and the typical trademarks of 1950's Epics, lavish sets and intrigue are poured on thick in "Salome". Rita Hayworth despite not resembling a Princess native to the Holy Land does well in the role and in her famous dance shows off the skills that served her well as a dancer earlier in her career. Judith Anderson as the evil Queen steals every scene she is in in another classic nasty performance and Charles Laughton performs to his hammy best as the decadent King Herod. These two veteran performers by their colourful playing really bring "Salome", alive in their scenes. "Salome", benefits from some truly superb camerawork for both the palace scenes and also for the actual locations in the Holy Land which were used for the first time with this film. These locations give a rich and realistic look to many of the outdoor scenes in "Salome", recreating the times of the New Testament perfectly.

Being a huge fan of these lavish biblical epics produced in the 1950's I can still see the obvious holes in this film version of "Salome". Rather than seeing them as faults however one has to just take the film at face value, not take it too seriously and just enjoy it for the great production it is. It has romance, intrigue, gorgeous sets and costumes and enough action to satisfy most epic movie lovers. For a "refashioned", look at one of the Bible's more famous stories you are sure to love Columbia Studios lavish "Salome", starring the legendary Rita Hayworth.

When it comes to Bible epics there's always going to be criticism in the accuracy, so I only watch for entertainment value. In the case of Salome I could care less if it was accurate in the storytelling, I just enjoyed seeing Rita Hayworth light up the screen and She was simply magnificent as Princess Salome!!! As mentioned in other reviews the famous dance of the seven veils alone is worth seeing the film! What a Woman!!! There will never be another Rita Hayworth!!!

Everyone knows, or think that they know this story, the fact is that I always wondered what could be so impressive about taking off seven veils. Now I get it! Rita Hayworth is so beautiful in this movie that I couldn't take my eyes from her and I am a woman. Her dance of the seven veils was amazing and I thought that while the story was a bit contrived, it showed the other side of her. Its a good movie if you want to watch something to bring you to understanding the glory that was Hollywood in the '50's.

If there is one benchmark film that displays the timeless, ravishing beauty of Rita Hayworth then Salome is it. Salome serves more for its artistic as opposed to historical value, but what's wrong with that? (If you want to know the facts then read the Bible.)
The Dance of Seven Veils rivals any scene in filmdom for pure sensuality without need for gratuitous sex. (A close second might be the Holden and Novak dance in "Picnic".) Please treat yourself to an evening of lovliness.

Rita Hayworth was not an outstanding actress, but she was breathtakingly beautiful. And her Dance of the Seven Veils? It's one of the most erotic scenes I've ever witnessed in a mainstream film. Plus, Charles Laughton and Judith Anderson are always fun to watch.

OK, it's not "The Magnificent Ambersons." But it's certainly enjoyable viewing.

Biblical films have always been a staple of Hollywood even in the silent era - "Quo Vadis" (1912), "Judith of Bethulia" (1914), "The 10 Commandments" (1923), "Ben Hur" (1926), and "King of Kings" (1927) were among the more prominent. When sound films began, religious films quickly followed with DeMille's "Sign of the Cross" (1932) but the film didn't do well at the box office, and other genres (gangster, westerns, romance, historical epics) predominated in the 30s and 40s with few exceptions. But with the success of Samson and Delilah (1949) a whole new series of biblical epics appeared - "David and Bathsheba" (1951), "Quo Vadis" (1951), "The Robe" (1953), "Demetrious and the Gladiators" (1954), "The Egyptian" (1954), "The 10 Commandments" (1956) "Solomon and Sheba" (1959), and "Ben Hur" (1959). Although religious films would continue in the 60s, the 50s was the decade for religious epics.

"Salome" is one of the lesser examples of the 50s religious epics. It had an all star cast with Rita Hayworth (Salome), Charles Laughton (King Herod), Stewart Granger, Judith Anderson (Queen Herodias) and Cedric Hardwicke (Tiberius). Alan Badel plays John the Baptist and Basil Sydney plays Pontius Pilate.

Beautiful and sexy Rita Hayworth (1918-87) appeared in more than 60 films. At first she stressed her Latin background and her skills as a dancer (which are on display in this film). After several forgettable films she made her mark in Howard Hawks' "Only Angels Have Wings" (1939) and then went on to more acclaim in "The Strawberry Blonde" (1941) with Jimmy Cagney and "Blood and Sand" (1941) with Tyrone Power. She was a major cover girl in WW2 and is best remembered for her role as "Sadie Thompson" (1953).

Charles Laughton (1899-1962) is arguably the most capable actor in Hollywood's golden era. His performances in films such as "Mutiny on the Bounty" (1936) and "Witness for the Prosecution " (1958) are peerless, and when you consider he received best actor nominations for both films, separated by more than 20 years, this by itself speaks volumes. He won the best actor award for his portrayal in "The Private Life of Henry VIII" (1933) and gave unforgettable performances as Quasimodo in "The Hunchback of Norte Dame" (1939) and Inspector Javert in "Les Miserables" (1935).

Handsome Stewart Granger (1913-93) was a popular film star in the 40s and 50s in costume dramas and swashbuckling roles like "The Magic Bow" (1948), "King Solomon's Mines" (1950), and "The Prisoner of Zenda" (1952). I liked him best in "Scaramouche" (1952).

Judith Anderson (1898-1992) was nominated for an Oscar for her role in "Rebecca" (1940) and 8 times for an Emmy, winning twice. In 1960 she was awarded the title "Dame" by Britain's Queen, and is usually called Dame Judith Anderson. Anderson made only a dozen films as she specialized in theatre.

Sir Cedric Hardwicke's (1893-1964) strong voice and stony appearance graced nearly 100 films. He played the evil bishop in "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" (1939), Dr. Livingstone in "Stanley and Livingstone" (1939), and King Arthur in "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court" (1949). I remember him best as the Pharaoh in "The Ten Commandments" (1956). Hardwicke is good as usual.

The film is directed by William Dieterle (1893-1972). Dieterle was trained in the German expressionist film schools and emigrated to the U.S. in 1930 where he made several well received historical epics and was nominated for an Oscar for "The Life of Emile Zola" (1937). Among his best known works are "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" (1939), "The Devil and Daniel Webster" (1941), "Duel in the Sun" (1946), and "Portrait of Jennie" (1948).

1953 was a good year for film. The top grossing films were "Peter Pan", "The Robe", "From Here to Eternity", "Shane", and "How to Marry a Millionaire". The big Oscar winner was "From Here to Eternity" (Picture, Director, Supporting Actor and Actress). Other notable films that year were "Stalag 17", "The Wild One", "Titanic", the 3-D classic "House of Wax", "Roman Holiday", "The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms", "The Desert Rats", and "Niagara".

The NY Times' Bosley Crowther called the film "a flamboyant, Technicolored romance, based vaguely on a Biblical tale" and "a lush conglomeration of historical pretenses and make-believe, pseudo-religious ostentation and just plain insinuated sex." Nonetheless it came in at #8 at the box office.

This is not a bad film, but there are so many better biblical films from this era, it's hard to recommend it strongly. The performances are good, perhaps a little hammy but not overly so, and of course, Rita Hayworth is delicious.

I LOVE this movie for Rita! She's gorgeous, a good actress and spectacular dancer. LOVE the Jean Louis costumes too, some of the most beautiful I've seen in movies! And Rita's 'Dance of the 7 Veils' is fabulous!
Wonderful sets, good character actors, and well edited too. Rather preachy biblical story with a mad-eyed John the Baptist, but still manages to be wonderful entertainment.

* I purchased my VHS version here and it looks great. :-D Emjoy

I bought this as a Christmas gift for a friend She called me as soon as it arrived and was joyous to have it Told me in detail how much she enjoyed the acting, costumes, etc. It compleated a set she had been collecting