Film Review
7th Heaven is the film that
made Janet Gaynor an overnight star and further cemented Frank
Borzage's reputation as one of Hollywood's greatest directing
talents. Gaynor had previously played the female lead in F.W. Murnau's
Sunrise,
but this was released a few months after Borzage's film.
7th Heaven was the first of twelve
films in which the actress starred opposite another icon of the silent
era, Charles Farrell, making one of the most popular screen pairings in
cinema history.
The film was based on Austin Strong's hit Broadway play, first
performed in October 1922, and was itself a major success, grossing
$2.5 million, a figure that was exceeded by only twelve other films in
the silent era. It was also lauded at the first ever Academy
Awards ceremony in 1929. In addition to Gaynor's Best Actress win
(which rewarded her for her performances in this film,
Sunrise and Borzage's next film
Street Angel), the film garnered
Oscars for Best Director (the first of two wins for Borzage) and Best
Writing (Adaptation). The film was also nominated in the Best
Picture and Best Art Direction categories. It was remade by Henry
King in 1937 as
Seventh Heaven,
starring Simone Simon and James Stewart.
7th Heaven typifies Frank
Borzage's distinctive brand of cinema, both stylistically and
thematically. Heavily influenced by his contemporary Murnau,
Borzage uses expressionistic design and lighting to create mood and
camera motion (including some very long tracking shots) to help make
the spectator an active participant in the drama. These perfectly
honed techniques lend the film its beguiling mix of romanticism and
modernity, making it far more accessible to a modern audience than most
films of this era. Visually, this is one of Borzage's more
striking films, achieving an epic quality through its authentic
recreation of 1910s Paris and some harrowingly realistic WWI battle
sequences.
The central theme of this film is one that recurs in much of Borzage's
work, namely the power of love to transform lives for the better.
Here, it is love that elevates a cynical sewer worker and a downtrodden
prostitute from the lower depths in which they had previously wallowed
to a state of being that is as close to Heaven as mortal man may
get. The staircase (another Borzage motif) which takes the young
lovers up to Chico's attic room symbolises not only their inescapable
sexual union but also the spiritual ennobling which comes from the love
that they have awakened in each other. Here, love is not just an
emotion or an adjunct to animal lust, but a force of nature that is as
tangible as gravity, with the power to change lives and provide the
means by which men and women may confront and defeat future
adversities. Borzage would also have us believe that love is the
truest manifestation of God's will, a medium through which telepathic
communication between individuals is possible, although mercifully he
does not labour the point.
Given that film's source is a horribly contrived piece of
melodrama, Borzage achieves a small miracle in refashioning it as a
believable and exquisitely poignant piece of cinema. Even when
things stray perilously close towards mawkishness in the final reel,
the characters and their situation are still anchored solidly in
reality and we cannot help but be profoundly moved by their
story. Few films convey the redeeming power of love as eloquently
and with such warmth and sincerity as this sensitively crafted
drama from one of the true masters of cinema.
© James Travers 2009
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Next Frank Borzage film:
Street Angel (1928)
Film Synopsis
Paris, 1914. Chico, an atheistic loner, has grown tired of
toiling in the sewers and hopes that one day he will become a street
washer like his neighbour Gobin. Meanwhile, sisters Diane and
Nana receive an unexpected visit from their wealthy relatives, who
offer them the prospect of a better life. When Diane admits to
being a prostitute, her relatives turn their back on her and her
sister. Infuriated, Nana chases Diane into the street and begins
to beat her. Chico comes to the unfortunate woman's rescue.
When a policeman threatens to take Diane into custody, Chico saves her
a second time by saying that she is his wife. Knowing that the
police will later call at his home to confirm this, Chico allows Diane
to stay with him in his humble seventh floor lodgings. Initially,
Chico feigns disinterest in his houseguest and warns her that once the
police have called she must go on her way. But Diane's heart has
been moved by Chico's kindness and she soon discovers that she is in
love with him. It is not long before Chico becomes aware of his
true feelings for Diane and they agree to marry. But before they
can do so, war is declared and Chico realises that he has no choice but
to enlist in the French army...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.