Confession (1937)

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Movie
Original title Confession
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1937
length 87 minutes
Rod
Director Joe May
script Julius J. Epstein ,
Margaret P. Levino
production Warner Brothers
music Peter Kreuder
camera Sid Hickox
cut James Gibbon
occupation

Confession is a 1937 American film directed by Joe May, starring Kay Francis . It is a remake of the 1935 film Mazurka with Pola Negri .

action

The story begins in a night club. The well-known pianist Michael Michailow comes with the young Lisa Kowalska and both spend an evening in the utmost confidentiality. They are watched by the old and embittered cabaret singer Vera Kowalska. When leaving, Vera grabs a gun and shoots Michael. The rest of the story tells the story that led to the act. Vera Kowalska, it turns out, is the mother of Lisa Kowalska and was seduced and abandoned by Michael a few decades ago. She sinks deeper and deeper and in the end even has to send her beloved daughter to boarding school. The end of the film promises hope for Vera for a better future.

background

Kay Francis made $ 227,000 in 1936 and her income for 1937 was $ 209,000, making her the highest paid female star at the Warner Brothers studio . Her box office success was based on her ability to play even sentimental and implausible stories with confidence and integrity. In addition, she had a reputation for being one of the best-dressed women in America. In 1936 she was awarded the title Best Dressed Woman in Movies , which she won against competition from Marlene Dietrich , Joan Crawford , Norma Shearer and Carole Lombard . After the failure as Florence Nightingale in The White Angel , Francis' status as a star was in jeopardy, and the studio did everything in 1937 to bring the actress back to their fans.

The remake of Mazurka , which was based on a true story from 1930, seemed an ideal choice, as the story had only helped Pola Negri make a spectacular comeback in Germany last year . The story contained all the elements that the female fans expected from Francis: dramatic entanglements, unhappy love, motherhood and emotional moments. The shooting was affected by numerous changes. Originally, William Dieterle was to take over the direction before the studio hired director Joe May . Fredric March , who had played with Francis several times in the past, was initially planned as the man at Francis' side . However, due to delays in the shooting schedule of Denen is Nothing Sacred by Carole Lombard's side, March was indispensable and the role went to Basil Rathbone .

Then an attempt was made to realize the entire project with Bette Davis and Warner Baxter in the leading roles. The title also went through some changes: after Mazurka and then One Hour of Romance were planned in the meantime , producer Hal B. Wallis finally decided that the title Confession would be better suited to a Kay Francis film. The shooting took place in early 1937 and was overshadowed by great tensions between the director, the actors and the head of production. May, who was so enthusiastic about the original film, sometimes stood next to the set with the stopwatch in order to get an exact copy. Kay Francis in particular suffered from the draconian regime of Joe May and she wrote in her diary on March 9, 1937:

"For the first time in nine years I refused to work"

In the end, critics felt that Francis delivered one of their best dramatic performances. However, the box office results were not as high as expected. One of the reasons was an oversupply of comparable films. Shortly before, Gladys George in The Second Mother and Barbara Stanwyck in Stella Dallas had already delivered comparable studies of female self-abandonment and thus made a lot of money at the box office.

criticism

In Variety , the success of the film was seen as crucial to the further development of Francis' career:

"Confession" is a well-produced showpiece for Kay Francis and a film that will underscore her credibility as a dramatic actress. [...] The responsibility for commercial success rests solely on Miss Francis' shoulders. Despite having some very good supporting actors, this is just her film ... it's her most important production in years and the ideal subject for any dramatic actress. "

Theatrical release

The production cost was $ 513,000, which was the budget for a typical Kay Francis film of the time. At the box office, the film proved to be unpopular, grossing just $ 457,000 in the US, to which only a mere $ 187,000 came from foreign markets. The end result was a total of $ 644,000.

Web links

Footnotes

  1. ^ Confession (1937). In: Kay Francis Films. Archived from the original on April 5, 2014 ; accessed on November 11, 2018 .
  2. ^ For first time in nine years refused to work.
  3. ^ "Confession" is a finely produced vehicle for Kay Francis, and a picture that is likely to put her forward in favor as a dramatic actress. [...] Responsibility for the commercial career of the picture is tossed right into Miss Francis's lap. Despite some very fine supporting acting, the picture is all hers. It is her most important production in several years, and is ideal material for any dramatic star.