The Heiress (1949)

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Movie
German title The heiress
Original title The Heiress
The Heiress (1949) poster.jpg
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1949
length 114 minutes
Age rating FSK 12
Rod
Director William Wyler
script Ruth Goetz ,
Augustus Goetz
production William Wyler,
Lester Koenig ,
Robert Wyler for
Paramount Pictures
music Aaron Copland
camera Leo Tover
cut William Hornbeck
occupation
synchronization

The Heiress (Original title: The Heiress ) is an American film drama from 1949 by director William Wyler . It is based on the play The Heiress by Ruth and Augustus Goetz, which in turn goes back to the Roman Washington Square by Henry James . The film won a total of four Academy Awards, including one for lead actress Olivia de Havilland . Main roles are occupied by Montgomery Clift , Ralph Richardson and Miriam Hopkins .

action

New York , mid-19th century: young Catherine Sloper, only child of wealthy doctor Dr. Austin Sloper, lives an inconspicuous existence in her father's house and is particularly shy around strangers. She has a considerable fortune from the late mother's estate and will also receive his father's inheritance after the death of her father. Dr. Sloper still can't get over his wife's death. In his grief he compares his daughter Catherine again and again with his idealized image of her mother, who was always admired for her beauty and grace. In his opinion, Catherine lacks these qualities, he sees his daughter as an ugly duckling. Since Dr. Sloper fears that she will not get a husband if he brings his widowed sister Lavinia to him, who is supposed to educate and support Catherine in women's matters.

At her cousin Marian's wedding party with Arthur Townsend, Catherine meets the handsome and articulate Morris Townsend, who pays her a lot of attention. Catherine falls in love with the young idler, who has no job and who has spent his little inheritance on a trip to Europe, and feels the happiness of love for the first time. Her father is not at all enthusiastic about the connection with Morris, not only because he has no assets, but above all because he sees in him a dowry hunter who is only after his daughter's money. Aunt Lavinia, on the other hand, values ​​Morris and says that the young man, even if he is mainly interested in Catherine because of her wealth, could give her pleasure as a husband with his charming nature.

Her father tries to distract Catherine with a long trip to Europe, but she remains stuck in her love for Morris even after returning. In an open argument with her father, whom she had always respectfully respected, the latter throws at her that she has no other attractive qualities besides her wealth. Catherine is ready to turn against her father after realizing that he doesn't love her. She wants to flee together with Morris, even if in this case she would be disinherited by her father, which she tells Morris in her honesty and innocence. But at the agreed time of the nightly escape, Morris does not appear and the waiting Catherine is devastated. Soon after, Dr. Sloper, without being able to reconcile with his daughter, and leaves all his fortune to Catherine.

A few years later, a burnt and unsuccessful Morris, who in the meantime wanted to make his fortune in California, reappears in front of Catherine's house. He confesses his love to her again, and Catherine seems to agree. He returns to the Slopers' house that same evening to finally marry Catherine. But now Catherine, who has become self-confident and realistic, but at the same time aloof at the same time, is taking revenge and cold-bloodedly closes the door to the man she had promised marriage that afternoon. While his shouts and knocks penetrate the door, Catherine's Aunt Lavinia asks her how she could be so cruel. Catherine replied that she was "taught this by true masters."

background

The novel Washington Square by Henry James had appeared in the 1881st Closely based on the original text of the novel, the married couple Ruth and Augustus Goetz wrote the play The Heiress in 1947 . This was successful for over a year on Broadway with Wendy Hiller as Catherine and Basil Rathbone as Dr. Sloper listed. Olivia de Havilland had seen the play and suggested that William Wyler produce a film version with her in the lead role. Ruth and Augustus Goetz were also commissioned to write the script. For the role of Dr. Sloper was hired by British theater star Ralph Richardson, who had previously played this role at the London theater. Betty Linley from the original Broadway cast of The Heiress also played her role as Morris' sister Mrs. Montgomery in the film.

The shooting was not without annoyance between the actors. Montgomery Clift was a staunch method actor (one of the first of its kind in Hollywood) and rated the acting skills of his classically trained fellow actors as low. For a scene in the film in which he sings the classic song Plaisir d'amour by Jean-Paul-Égide Martini , he even learned to play the piano. In the end, Clift was still dissatisfied with his performance and bitterly stormed out of the cinema premiere. For the scene after Catherine had waited in vain for Morris at night and then climbed the stairs with heavy stride, director Wyler packed books into the suitcase that Catherine was carrying with him. This inevitably made it difficult for De Havilland to walk in this scene, which should underline the disappointment and dejection of her character.

In 1997, The Heiress of Washington Square , directed by Agnieszka Holland, was another film adaptation of the novel by Henry James. In the early 1990s, Tom Cruise and Mike Nichols had already thought about a film adaptation of the novel. However, when they saw the film adaptation from 1949, they decided against a remake : Wyler's film was so perfect that it could not have been improved.

synchronization

The German-language dubbed version was created for the cinema premiere in 1950 at Elite Film Franz Schroeder GmbH under the direction of Peter Elsholtz .

role actor German Dubbing voice
Catherine Sloper Olivia de Havilland Antje Weisgerber
Morris Townsend Montgomery Clift Paul Edwin Roth
Dr. Austin Sloper Ralph Richardson Siegfried Schürenberg
Aunt Lavinia Penniman Miriam Hopkins Tatiana Sais

Today, however, mostly the dubbed version made in 1979 for ZDF is used, which is also included on the 2006 DVD. De Havilland was dubbed by Ingrid Andree , Montgomery Clift by Christoph Bantzer . Paul Edwin Roth was also there again. This time, however, he did not speak for Clift, but was used for Ralph Richardson.

publication

The film premiered on October 6, 1949 in New York City, on October 20, 1949 in Los Angeles and on December 28, 1949 in the United States in general. The following year it was published in Australia, Sweden, Mexico, France, Argentina, London in the United Kingdom, Finland, Denmark, Japan and Italy. In the Federal Republic of Germany it was published on May 19, 1950, in Austria on November 10, 1950.

In 1951 there was a publication in Turkey, Portugal and Spain (Barcelona and Madrid). In France, the film was re-released in a restored form on November 9, 2016. The film was also released in Brazil, Bulgaria, China, Greece, Hungary, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, the Soviet Union, Switzerland, Taiwan, Ukraine and Yugoslavia.

Reviews

Although The Heiress received brilliant reviews, the film was not a box office success at the time. Today it is undisputedly rated positively by critics and is considered a masterpiece.

"Intelligent and tasteful adaptation of the novel, in which (in addition to adequate partners) Olivia de Havilland offers a sharply contoured, deeply felt psychological character study."

"With psychological urgency, the film depicts the fate of a rich but outwardly almost ugly girl who threatens to perish inwardly from the coldness of her father and the disappointment of a great love."

Awards

Oscar 1950

Golden Globe Award 1950

Library of Congress

Home publications

Soundtrack

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ The Heiress - Production Biltmore Theater in the IBDB
  2. a b c The Heiress - Trivia in the IMDb
  3. a b c The heiress at TCM
  4. a b The Erbin In: Synchrondatenbank.de
  5. The Heiress (1949) - IMDb. Retrieved August 4, 2020 .
  6. The Heiress at Rotten Tomatoes
  7. The heiress. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed January 15, 2017 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used 
  8. Evangelical Press Association Munich, Critique No. 153/1950