Salome (1953)
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | Salome |
| Original title | Salome |
| Country of production | United States |
| original language | English |
| Publishing year | 1953 |
| length | 103 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 12 |
| Rod | |
| Director | William Dieterle |
| script |
Jesse L. Lasky Jr. , Harry Kleiner |
| production | Buddy eagle |
| music | George Duning |
| camera | Charles Lang |
| cut | Viola Lawrence |
| occupation | |
| |
Salome is a 1953 American monumental film directed by William Dieterle and starring Rita Hayworth , Stewart Granger and Charles Laughton . Oscar Wilde's drama Salomé (1891) served as a literary model .
action
In the Roman province of Galilee , King Herod Antipas rules in 30 AD together with Queen Herodias , who was once married to his brother, but has changed to brother-in-law out of lust for power. At this time, John the Baptist in the Holy Land announced the arrival of the Messiah to the people and at the same time railed against the shameless and extravagant ruling couple. Herodias fears that the prophet could stir up the population against them and overthrow them from the throne. She therefore asks Herod to have John executed. Herod, however, does not want to submit to her wish, as he was once prophesied that the prophet's murderer would die in agony.
Far away in imperial Rome , Princess Salome , the daughter of Herodias from her first marriage, has lived since childhood . In the Eternal City she has matured into a beautiful woman with numerous admirers. She herself loves the Roman aristocrat Marcellus Fabius. But when Salome asks Emperor Tiberius for permission to marry Marcellus, she is found unworthy of the Roman as a barbarian and banished to Galilee. Now she is supposed to start the journey home on a ship on which the Roman commander Claudius is also located, who as proconsul wants to stand by the prefect Pontius Pilate in the Holy Land. The striking beauty of Salome fascinates Claudius. But too proud to give her heart to a Roman again, Salome initially refuses any advances.
When Salome and Claudius arrive at Herod's palace, he is immediately taken with his stepdaughter's charm. Aware of her husband's lustful desires, Herodias then tries to harness Salome to her plans against John the Baptist. Since Salome worriedly believes her mother's pleading words, she tries to persuade Claudius to take the Baptist prisoner. Claudius, however, refuses to put her request into practice. He was once converted by John and is in his debt. When Herodias realizes that she is not getting any closer to her goal, she orders her servant Micah to murder Johannes from behind. But the plan failed. Herod then decides to take John into protective custody, whereupon the prophet's followers rebel and begin to occupy the palace gates.
Since Herodias now sees her own life threatened, she desperately resorts to the last resort. Your daughter should dance in front of the king and demand the head of John. Dismayed by this proposal - after all, a woman who dances in front of the king inevitably becomes his lover - Salome seeks consolation from Claudius. He takes them to John in the dungeon, where the prophet tells them about the miracles of the Messiah. Fearing that Herod could actually have John executed if he learns that it is not John but the Messiah who is the real savior of the faithful, Salome decides to perform the dance of the seven veils at the celebrations for Herod's birthday. She hopes that this will secure the release of John.
Herod looks spellbound at his stepdaughter when she begins to strip off her veil to the beat of the drums. Herodias notices the desire in his eyes and sees their chance come. When he declares that he will give up half his kingdom for one night with Salome, Herodias demands the head of the Baptist. Overcome with desire, Herod finally agrees. As Salome prepares to drop her last veil, a scream of horror escapes her at the sight of Johannes' head on a silver platter. While Herodias is satisfied, Salome fled weeping into Claudius' arms. Together they leave the palace and become faithful followers of Jesus Christ .
background
William Dieterle's Salome was the first Hollywood Bible adaptation for which the outdoor shots were filmed on original locations in and around Jerusalem . In addition to the Bible, Oscar Wilde's drama Salomé (1891), which was banned by censorship in England and was only premiered in Paris in 1894 with Sarah Bernhardt in the title role, served as a literary model .
In order not to endanger the image of his greatest star Rita Hayworth , Harry Cohn , the studio boss of Columbia Pictures , had the biblical story about the Jewish Princess Salome and John the Baptist rewritten. At the end of the film, Salome performs the legendary “Dance of the Seven Veils”, not to demand the head of John on a silver platter as in Wilde's drama, but to save the life of the prophet. A detail of the backdrop is also historically incorrect. In one scene of the film the Dome of the Rock can be seen, which, however, was only built a good 600 years after the reign of Herod.
In Salome's “Dance of the Seven Veils” Rita Hayworth strips off six of her seven veils. First a black and gold, then a blue with silver decorations, followed by veils in purple, red, orange and yellow. The seventh veil is skin-colored and suggests a certain nudity of Hayworth. Columbia's chief designer Jean Louis created this costume and invented the body tights made of skin-colored nylon . The dance itself was choreographed by Valerie Bettis , who was one of the few female choreographers in Hollywood in the 1950s and had already worked with Hayworth in 1952 for the dances in Affair in Trinidad .
The exterior shots were taken in Israel from March to April 1952, the interior shots from June 20 to August 29, 1952 in Columbia Studios Los Angeles. Salome premiered on February 13, 1953 in the United States , where the Bible drama was subsequently one of the ten most successful films of the year. However, the critics were not very enthusiastic. Leading actress Rita Hayworth is said to have been little taken with the film, mainly because of the poor script. In Germany, Salome was first shown in cinemas on August 20, 1953 in the Universum Stuttgart. In 2009 the film was released on DVD.
Reviews
"Artistically below-average monumental film that throws together biblical motifs and characters at will to create an invented, tiring story," was the verdict of the lexicon of international films . For Gerald Peary, Salome was in Rita Hayworth. Her films - her life "the Bible à la Hollywood, lard and lazy magic, with actors who have to keep their faces under control while they hop through the action in silly costumes". According to Cinema , it is "[f] extremely funny how the bloody Bible legend is turned into moral Hollywood kitsch: the cruel babe who has Johannes' head served on a silver platter becomes an angel of charity here". The conclusion was therefore: "Without Rita's brisk dance performance, the film would have long been forgotten."
Bosley Crowther of the New York Times called the film at the time "a lavish accumulation of historical half-truths and falsifications, pseudo-religious boasting and just vaguely implied sex". Rita Hayworth is the "object" in the center of attention and "the moment of her greatest glory" is her dance for the king, "a kind of discrete striptease version of the 'Dance of the Seven Veils'". Hayworth shows "a vivid idea - at least more vivid than what it offers before in the film".
Craig Butler of the All Movie Guide retrospectively found that Hayworth and Salome were “made for each other” and “it doesn't matter” “how much silly dialogue or inconceivable Hollywood kitsch you have to go through while the 'Dance of the Seven Veils' does it again makes up for ". For Hayworth it is worth watching, especially since she also “handles the rest of her interpretation skillfully”. Also are "the oily, greasy and delicious Charles Laughton and the devious, malicious and equally delicious Judith Anderson [...] profitable in their exaggerated game". However, William Dieterle's directing is “cumbersome”, which, according to Butler, “is understandable under the circumstances”, but “still benefited from more imagination”. Thanks to the “pleasantly bright color”, the film is “a celebration in the end, even if it is far from high art”.
German version
The German dubbed version was made in 1953.
| role | actor | Voice actor |
|---|---|---|
| Salome | Rita Hayworth | Eleanor Noelle |
| Commander Claudius | Stewart Granger | Curt Ackermann |
| King Herod | Charles Laughton | Bum Kruger |
| Emperor Tiberius | Cedric Hardwicke | Werner Hinz |
| John the Baptist | Alan Badel | Wolfgang Buettner |
| Pontius Pilate | Basil Sydney | Hans Hinrich |
| Marcellus Fabius | Rex Reason | Arnold Marquis |
| Captain Quintus | Michael Granger | Erik Jelde |
Web links
- Salome in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Salome at Turner Classic Movies (English)
- Pictures of the film on cinema.de
Individual evidence
- ^ Wilhelm (William) Dieterle - actor, director . In: CineGraph - Lexikon zum Deutschsprachigen Film , Lg. 22, F 40
- ↑ cf. boxofficereport.com ( Memento from February 11, 2008 in the Internet Archive )
- ^ Salome. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed January 13, 2019 .
- ↑ Gerald Peary: Rita Hayworth. Your films - your life . Heyne Filmbibliothek, Munich 1981, p. 148.
- ↑ cf. cinema.de
- ↑ “Columbia's Salome […] is a lush conglomeration of historical pretenses and make-believe, pseudo-religious ostentation and just plain insinuated sex. […] [Rita Hayworth] is the object of all eyes. [...] her moment of greatest magnificence comes when she dances for the King, in a sort of discreet striptease version of the 'Dance of the Seven Veils'. In this latter performance, Miss Hayworth does give a lively show - more lively, at least, than the posturing that she does in the earlier parts of the film. " Bosley Crowther : 'Salome,' at Rivoli, Stars Rita Hayworth as Enchantress of the Biblical Story . In: The New York Times , March 25, 1953.
- ↑ “Hayworth and Salome were meant for each other, and it doesn't matter how much ridiculous dialogue or outrageous Hollywood plot changes one has to wade through, as long as the climactic 'Dance of the Seven Veils' is worth the trip. Hayworth makes it worth the trip and more; as an added bonus, she handles the rest of her characterization skillfully as well. [...] The oily, unctuous, and delicious Charles Laughton and the conniving, malicious, and equally delicious Judith Anderson also make an asset out of over-the-top acting [...]. William Dieterle's direction is heavy-handed, understandable under the circumstances, but it could have benefited from greater imagination. Filled with delightfully lurid color, Salome is a fun wallow, even if it's far from great art. " Craig Butler, cf. omovie.com
- ↑ cf. synchrondatenbank.de ( Memento of the original dated February 12, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
