Heart in fever

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Movie
German title Heart in fever
Original title Torch song
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1953
length 90 minutes
Rod
Director Charles Walters
script John Michael Hayes ,
Jan Lustig
production Henry Berman ,
Sidney Franklin, Jr. for MGM
music Adolph German
camera Robert H. Planck
cut Albert Akst
occupation

Hearts in Fever (OT: Torch Song ) is an American film musical with Joan Crawford .

action

Jenny Stewart has been a fixed star on Broadway for decades. Her pulling power at the box office is just as legendary as her quick-tempered temperament and her cynical remarks to fellow men, preferably colleagues. During a rehearsal for her latest revue, she dominates her dance partner and accuses him of being unprofessional. She storms out of the theater and straight into her magnificent apartment on Central Park, where she gets drunk, goes to bed and loudly complains about her loneliness. Back in the theater, Jenny meets Tye Grahame, whom she initially insults for no reason, only to apologize when she learns that Tye has been blind since a war injury. Somehow the two come together, with Jenny being guided by pity at first. Tye tells Jenny repeats the opinion, which regularly leads to outbursts of temper in the moody diva. In the end, Jenny realizes how much she loves Tye and they both become happy.

background

Joan Crawford won the Oscar for best actress at the 1946 Academy Awards for her portrayal in Solange a Heart Beats, and the next films Humoresque and Unrestrained Love remained at the same high level. Since then there have been discussions with Louis B. Mayer about a return to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and in 1947 the suitable vehicle seemed to be found: Crawford was to appear alongside Clark Gable in a dramatic love story with the appropriate title Homecoming . In the end the plans came to nothing and it was not until 1953 before Crawford could return to her nest, so to speak. Over the years, however, the film industry had changed tremendously and MGM was no longer the unrivaled market leader. A failed studio policy and internal power struggles had weakened Mayer's position so much that he had to relinquish management of the studio in mid-1953. For Crawford, however, a heart's desire came true when she was offered the role of Jenny Stewart. However, the opportunity only arose after the actress decided to turn down the female lead in the film adaptation of the novel Doomed for Eternity due to artistic differences.

Heart in fever offered numerous references to Crawford's own career. The actress had appeared as a revue dancer on Broadway and had sung and danced in numerous films since 1928. The role of Mrs. Stewart, who, like the rest of the family, lives more than well at Jenny's expense, also had a parallel to Crawford's own domestic misery. For decades she supported her unemployed mother and her brother, who repeatedly came into conflict with the law. Crawford's return to the MGM studio site was staged by the press like the homecoming of a lost daughter. The studio door was adorned with flower garlands and a huge sign reading WELCOME BACK, JOAN , Joan Crawford was personally received by the entire management team and she was assigned the largest available cloakroom on the premises.

However, the problems with production began as soon as they arrived. The budget was cut drastically and the shooting time was limited to a maximum of 18 days. Thereupon there were disagreements with the co-star Michael Wilding . He and Crawford couldn't stand what affected the scenes together. It turned out that while Crawford was in very good physical shape, he didn't seem up to the dance demands of the role. In this respect, the actress' appearances were limited to simple steps and slight turns. Crawford's singing voice posed a further challenge, although it had a pleasant contraalt, but which had lost considerable volume over the years. All the songs were recorded by India Adams, while Crawford himself only moved his lips in the film.

The difficulties did not end there. Hearts in Fever was Crawford's first Technicolor film, save for short sequences in Dance on Ice from 1939 and a cameo in It's a Great Feeling 10 years later. The color film had very specific make-up requirements for the actors, but this did not prevent Crawford from insisting on their tried and tested make-up for the lighting and recording technology in a black and white film. On the screen, the actress' face was covered with make-up. At the same time she had dyed her hair bright red, which in contrast to the not very subtle make-up looked disadvantageous. Helen Rose's costumes were also not up to the standard customary for Joan Crawford, making the actress, who preferred otherwise strict lines and accentuated waists, look matronly. The designer also selected a color that contrasted beige and gray with strong green and yellow. Hearts in Fever was unanimously rejected by critics and the public. The plans for a second film at MGM came to nothing.

The song Two-Faced Woman was originally written by India Adams for Cyd Charisse in the musical Curtain Up! recorded, but cut out of the final version.

Joan Crawford's assessment a few decades later was guided more by her sentimental feelings towards MGM than by the actual quality of the film.

"Good heavens, back to Metro, after all these years ... it was like coming home and half the people on the set, the craftsmen and assistants ... everyone remembered me and I remembered them. I loved working on the film. I had the chance to dance again, pretend to sing and show real feelings and all in color! [...] It was a wonderful opportunity for an actress, especially when she reached a certain age. You just don't write films like this anymore, do you? "

Theatrical release

At a cost of $ 1,029,000, Hearts in Fever was a comparatively inexpensive production. The film proved to be unpopular at the box office, bringing it to just 1,135,000 US dollars in the US, to which there was further income of 533,000 US dollars from abroad. With a cumulative total of only $ 1,668,000, the studio ended up losing $ 260,000.

Reviews

The film was not received very warmly by contemporary critics.

AW wrote rather reluctantly in the New York Times :

"Torch Song" [...] emphasizes Joan Crawford's well-known charm with Technicolor [...]. Miss Crawford, you have to be fair, never looked better, but "Torch Song" is not necessarily particularly innovative as a film. "

Otis L. Guernsey, Jr, an avowed supporter of the actress, commented comparatively positively in the New York Herald Tribune :

“Joan Crawford has one of her star roles again [...]. She dances, she pretends to sing, she graciously allows her wide mouth and expressive eyes to be received in Technicolor [...]. Here Joan Crawford is all-embracing on the screen, always mistress of the position, in love and in color, a real movie star in a one-woman show carefully tailored to her. "

Decades later, MonsterHunter.com made a rather cynical assessment:

“This film leaves you in doubt as to what MGM was thinking of bringing her back from exile at Warner Brothers. It's as unappealing and exaggerated as Joan's make-up (which she even wears in bed). "

Awards

The film went into the 1954 Academy Awards with a nomination in the category

  • Best Supporting Actress - Marjorie Rambeau

literature

  • Roy Newquist (Ed.): Conversations with Joan Crawford . Citadel Press, Secaucus, NJ 1980, ISBN 0-8065-0720-9 .
  • Lawrence J. Quirk : The Complete Films of Joan Crawford . Citadel Press, Secaucus, NJ 1988, ISBN 0-8065-1078-1 .
  • Lawrence J. Quirk, William Schoell: Joan Crawford. The Essential Biography . University Press, Lexington, KY. 2002, ISBN 0-8131-2254-6 .
  • Alexander Walker: Joan Crawford. The Ultimate Star . Weidenfeld & Nicolson, London 1983, ISBN 0-297-78216-9 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ My God, back at Metro, after all those years ... it was like a homecoming, and half the people on the set, the prop men and the grips ... they remembered me and I remembered them. I loved doing that film. It gave me a chance to dance again, to pretend to sing, to emote all over the place, and in color, yet! If I hadn't brought it off I'd have only myself to blame because all the right elements were there. It was a field day for an actress, particularly one who'd reached a certain age. They don't write pictures like this anymore, do they?
  2. ↑ In "Torch Song" [...] Joan Crawford's obvious charms are enhanced by Technicolor [...]. Miss Crawford, it is only fair to state, never looked lovelier, and it might be indicated also that "Torch Song" is not precisely a bright new kind of story.
  3. ↑ Joan Crawford has another of her star-sized roles [...]. She dances; she pretends to sing; she graciously permits her wide mouth and snappish eyes to be photographed in Technicolor [...]. Here is Joan Crawford all over the screen, in command, in love and in color, a real movie star in what amounts to a carefully produced one -woman show.
  4. ↑ [T] his movie really makes you wonder what MGM was thinking when they brought back her from her exile at Warner Brothers to do this movie. It is as unpleasant and gaudy as the make up Joan wore (even to bed) in this film.