Written on the Wind (1956)
Directed by Douglas Sirk

Drama / Romance

Film Review

Abstract picture representing Written on the Wind (1956)
Douglas Sirk's second best film - after his superlative Imitation of Life (1959) - is one that contains possibly his most damning critique of the well-heeled American family.   With its trashy plot, kitsch design and exaggerated characterisation, Written on the Wind may resemble the primetime American soaps that would be made in the 1970s and '80s (Dallas, Dynasty, etc.), but if you look beneath the surface, a much darker, far more profound film becomes apparent.  This is a bitterly ironic depiction of how wealth, privilege and complacency can destroy our humanity and cause what is best in ourselves - our trust, compassion and integrity - to be consumed in a conflagration of baser passions.  The film is based on Robert Wilder's novel of the same title, which was inspired by a real-life scandal involving the tobacco heir Zachary Smith Reynolds and singer Libby Holman.

Written on the Wind's most obvious attraction is its stellar cast.  Rock Hudson and Lauren Bacall bring star quality to the film, but it is the contributions from Robert Stack and Dorothy Malone that make it so memorable.  Malone won an Oscar for her portrayal of the manipulative nymphomaniac sister Marylee, which made her the prototype for every conniving soap bitch since.  Stack gives the performance of his life, convincingly playing a man who is tortured by inner demons which, in the best tradition of Greek tragedy, drive him to an ignominious self-inflicted doom.  To quote one line in the film, what is there not to like?  Sirk brought the winning team of Hudson, Malone and Stack back together for a later film, The Tarnished Angels (1957).

Like much of Sirk's work, Written on the Wind is a film that requires at least two or three viewings for its subtle messages to have their full impact.  Even then, some viewers will find it hard to see beyond the slick surface artifice which Sirk uses with such a delicious sense of irony.  Here, Sirk is simultaneously capitalising on the enormous popularity of a genre of vacuous, lowbrow cinema (which he personally had little regard for) and exploiting its form to craft a merciless satire on the failings of a stratum of American society.  Was there ever a filmmaker for whom the phrase "there is more to this than meets the eye" is more appropriate?
© James Travers 2008
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Next Douglas Sirk film:
The Tarnished Angels (1958)

Film Synopsis

Kyle Hadley, the son of one of America's wealthiest oil magnates, is used to getting what he wants.  As soon as he meets Lucy Moore, the secretary of an advertising executive, he is determined to take her as his wife.  Lucy is at first suspicious of Kyle's motives but, after a whirlwind romance, they marry and, to the outside world, they appear to be the perfect wedded couple.  However, Lucy has another admirer - Kyle's friend and business partner Mitch Wayne.  Mitch is so in love with Lucy that he no longer has any interest in his childhood sweetheart, Kyle's sister Marylee.  The latter is obsessively attached to Mitch and is determined to win him at any price - even if it means destroying her own brother...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.


Film Credits

  • Director: Douglas Sirk
  • Script: George Zuckerman, Robert Wilder (novel)
  • Cinematographer: Russell Metty
  • Music: Frank Skinner
  • Cast: Rock Hudson (Mitch Wayne), Lauren Bacall (Lucy Moore Hadley), Robert Stack (Kyle Hadley), Dorothy Malone (Marylee Hadley), Robert Keith (Jasper Hadley), Grant Williams (Biff Miley), Robert J. Wilke (Dan Willis), Edward Platt (Dr. Paul Cochrane), Harry Shannon (Hoak Wayne), John Larch (Roy Carter), Joseph Granby (Judge R.J. Courtney), Roy Glenn (Sam), Maidie Norman (Bertha), William Schallert (Jack Williams (reporter)), Joanne Jordan (Brunette), Dani Crayne (Blonde), Dorothy Porter (Secretary), Gail Bonney (Hotel Floorlady), Paul Bradley (Maitre d'), Robert Brubaker (Hotel Manager)
  • Country: USA
  • Language: English
  • Support: Color
  • Runtime: 99 min

The greatest French film directors
sb-img-29
From Jean Renoir to François Truffaut, French cinema has no shortage of truly great filmmakers, each bringing a unique approach to the art of filmmaking.
The best of American film noir
sb-img-9
In the 1940s, the shadowy, skewed visual style of 1920s German expressionism was taken up by directors of American thrillers and psychological dramas, creating that distinctive film noir look.
The very best of French film comedy
sb-img-7
Thanks to comedy giants such as Louis de Funès, Fernandel, Bourvil and Pierre Richard, French cinema abounds with comedy classics of the first rank.
The greatest French Films of all time
sb-img-4
With so many great films to choose from, it's nigh on impossible to compile a short-list of the best 15 French films of all time - but here's our feeble attempt to do just that.
The very best French thrillers
sb-img-12
It was American film noir and pulp fiction that kick-started the craze for thrillers in 1950s France and made it one of the most popular and enduring genres.
 

Other things to look at


Copyright © filmsdefrance.com 1998-2024
All rights reserved



All content on this page is protected by copyright