Separate from table and bed

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Movie
German title Separate from table and bed
Original title Separate tables
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1958
length 100 minutes
Age rating FSK 12
Rod
Director Delbert man
script Terence Rattigan ,
John Gay
production Harold Hecht ,
Burt Lancaster ,
James Hill
music David Raksin
camera Charles Lang
cut Charles Ennis ,
Marjorie Fowler
occupation
synchronization

Separate from table and bed (original title: Separate Tables ) is a star-studded American drama by Delbert Mann from 1958. The play of the same name by Terence Rattigan served as a literary model . The film, which was produced by United Artists , received very good reviews at the time and was extremely successful at the box office. David Niven was awarded both an Oscar and a Golden Globe as one of the four leading actors .

action

In the small hotel "Beauregard" in the English seaside resort of Bournemouth , different people who seek refuge from loneliness meet during the winter season. Among them are the inconspicuous Sibyl and her dominant mother, Mrs. Railton-Bell, who forbids her daughter to interact with the aging Major Pollock. He has made friends with the shy Sibyl and never misses an opportunity to brag about his excellent schooling and military career. The former teacher Mr. Fowler is not convinced of Pollock's stories, but he and also the cynical loner Miss Meacham, who thinks more about horses than people, tolerate the major as a long-term hotel guest; so does the writer John Malcolm, who tries to drown his past in alcohol and has started a liaison with the patented hotel owner Miss Cooper.

One evening an exquisitely dressed woman arrives as a new guest. It's Ann Shankland, a former model and John's ex-wife. Miss Cooper suspects the reason for Ann's appearance, but willingly offers her a room. When John returns from one of his regular drinking bouts, he first meets Miss Cooper, who rebukes him for being concerned about his alcohol consumption and repeatedly draws his attention to the rules of the hotel. The other guests are not yet aware of their romance and Miss Cooper doubts his love for her. But John assures her that he will marry her as soon as possible. He then went to the dining room, where he met Ann again for the first time in five years. She claims that while she was in London, mutual friends told her about John's plight and that she decided to offer him financial help. Ann takes it easy that John bitterly accuses her of lying to him again and of having been responsible for the breakdown of their relationship. She tells him that she is happily engaged and that she just wishes him well.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Railton-Bell becomes suspicious when Major Pollock nervously flips through the evening papers, trying to hide a particular issue. Determined to fathom Pollock's strange behavior, she sends Sibyl to her room under a pretext and, together with her friend Lady Gladys Matheson, rummages through the said newspaper. Finally, you find an article describing a recent incident at a movie theater in which Major Pollock tried to touch a woman in an indecent way. In addition, it turns out that Pollock was not a major, but only a lieutenant, and his alleged heroic deeds during the war are not true. Mrs. Railton-Bell now sees her chance to get rid of Pollock once and for all and to throw him out of the hotel with the help of the article. To this end, she arranges a meeting of all hotel guests to vote on Pollock's whereabouts. When Sibyl returns, she insists on knowing the reason for the meeting and eventually reads the article that puts her in shock.

During the meeting, at which Ann is also present, Mrs. Railton-Bell tries to convince everyone of their opinion about Pollock. When John arrives and discovers Ann, he joins the discussion with passion. He finds Pollock's behavior embarrassing, but excuses it as human error and says that there are far worse traits, with his eyes focused on Ann. But Mrs. Railton-Bell ignores his explanations, evaluates Lady Matheson's reluctance to agree and also pulls Mr. Fowler on her side, while Miss Meacham is completely uninterested in the case and abstains from her voice. When John insists that Sibyl's voice should also gain weight, she fled to her room in a fit of hysteria.

Ann and John later meet on the hotel terrace. John continues to believe that their marriage was doomed from the start because they came from different classes and Ann was not ready to have children because of her character. She also almost drove him insane by denying him marital duties in the bedroom; he almost killed her and ended up in prison for it. When Ann reveals to him that he is the only person who really matters to her, John admits that he still considers her the most desirable woman he has ever seen. After a hug and a passionate kiss, Ann invites John to her room. When they return to the hotel, Miss Cooper informs Ann that a phone call is waiting for her. John tries to explain the situation to Miss Cooper, whereupon she reminds him that the only person who knows about their secret relationship is John's publisher, with whom Ann is talking on the phone at the moment. When John appears shortly afterwards in Ann's room and she is preparing to seduce him completely, he grabs her by the neck and forces her to tell him the truth. She tries to explain to him why she really wanted to see him and follows him as he storms out of the room angrily. On the stairs he slaps her on the face and hurries out of the hotel.

The next morning Ann is ready to leave the hotel, but not before she has seen John again, who had not returned to the hotel for the night. Meanwhile, Pollock greets the still disturbed Sibyl, who reveals to him that all guests have learned of his inclinations and lies. Embarrassed, he tries to explain his wrongdoing. He has always had a pathological fear of people, especially women. His made-up military stories would always have helped him gain self-confidence and respect. When he says that he and Sibyl are similar in their fear of life, she is horrified. But she secretly knows that he is right and that she continues to worry about him. Ann feels pity for Sibyl and tries to comfort her. When John returns, he immediately seeks out Miss Cooper to check on Ann's condition. She assures him that Ann is fine and that she is by no means as manipulative as John always described her. Fearing that she would grow old alone, Ann had only faked her engagement to win John back for herself. He is reluctant to show sympathy for Ann, but Miss Cooper finally makes him realize that all the years since his divorce he has been unhappy because he still loves Ann.

At breakfast, John sits down at Ann's table and apologizes for his behavior. She tearfully admits that she still loves him and needs him to cope with her life. Both realize that they don't want to live without each other. At that moment Pollock arrives to eat one last time in the hotel, which he then wants to leave. John greets him first, followed by Miss Meacham and Mr. Fowler. When Lady Matheson turns friendly to Pollock, Mrs. Railton-Bell asks Sibyl to leave the room with her. But contrary to expectations, Sibyl refuses and for the first time in her life defies her mother's will when she starts a conversation with Pollock. Encouraged by this donation, Pollock decides to stay at the hotel.

background

Terence Rattigan

Terence Rattigan's two-part stage play Separate Tables ( Separate Tables , 1954) had on London's West End and on New York's Broadway achieved great success. The two parts - Major Pollock / Sibyl and John Malcolm / Ann Shankland - were played in front of the same backdrop by Eric Portman and Margaret Leighton in different roles. In order to make a film out of it, Rattigan knew from the start that the two one-act plays had to be linked together. When Burt Lancaster secured the film rights for his production company Hecht-Hill-Lancaster together with his partners Harold Hecht and James Hill , Rattigan insisted on working on the script.

The original director was Laurence Olivier , who would also play the role of Major Pollock, while his wife Vivien Leigh had made herself available for the role of Ann Shankland. When Olivier wanted to cast Spencer Tracy in the role of John Malcolm, which Lancaster was planning for himself , it came to a break - Olivier dropped out and left the project with Vivien Leigh. Subsequently, the role of Ann went to Rita Hayworth , who was engaged to co-producer James Hill at the time and married him shortly afterwards. David Niven and Deborah Kerr then joined the project , while Delbert Mann was hired as a director. He later told:

“My first impression was that I was the wrong director, if only because I had never been to Bournemouth or experienced that typically British life in a small hotel; but Harold Hecht sent me there for research and within half a day I found prototypes for all the characters Terry [Rattigan] had described [...]. Our main problem, however, was to provide a script that combined the two original acts into a single story; we did about five tries with different writers, including Terry himself, before we got it right. But even then I had reservations about David [Niven]: the role of Major was so different from anything I'd ever seen him play. "

- Delbert Mann

His concerns about the cast of Niven turned out to be a misjudgment when the actor received both good reviews and multiple awards for his portrayal of Major Pollock. May Hallatt was the only one in the cast who appeared in her role as Miss Meacham, both on stage and in film.

reception

publication

Separated from table and bed premiered simultaneously at the Astor Theater and the Trans-Lux Normandie Theater in New York on December 18, 1958 . The critics were consistently positive about the film and its cast. The film drama also proved to be a success at the US box office. Separate from the table and bed was one of the top 20 productions of the year in the United States, with grossing $ 3.1 million . At the Academy Awards in 1959 , the film was nominated for an Oscar in seven categories . In the categories of Best Film and Best Adapted Screenplay , Separated from Table and Bed, however, the film musical Gigi had to admit defeat. Leading actress Deborah Kerr, composer David Raksin and cameraman Charles Lang were also subject to the competition. David Niven and Wendy Hiller , on the other hand, were able to hold their own and were awarded Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress, respectively. Niven also won the Golden Globe for his performance .

In Germany, the film was released on February 27, 1959. It was first broadcast on German television on September 16, 1968. It was first released on DVD in 2005.

Reviews

According to Variety , the two parts of the play were "masterfully combined into an intelligent and compelling full-length film". David Niven delivers "one of the best performances of his career". Deborah Kerr is "excellent" in her role of the "inconspicuous, shy girl who is completely intimidated by her dominant and strong mother, who in turn is so well embodied by Gladys Cooper". Burt Lancaster shows "a nuanced idea" and Rita Hayworth is "as good as his former wife".

Bosley Crowther of the New York Times wrote of the film that “in an atmosphere of subliminal tension that director Delbert Mann so carefully develops and maintains as the defining mood of the film, […] these people's problems are interwoven, complicated, and ultimately resolved “Would. "Most brilliant and truest" among the actors is Deborah Kerr: She brings "the shy and sad young woman who has her eye on the major to life in a moving way". Wendy Hiller also shines as a “dignified, brave and strong hotel manager”.

Redbook Magazine said that being separated from the table and the bed "will be remembered for a long time" because of the "excellent character sketches and the great performances of the actors". David Niven delivers "a performance that is far above anything he has played so far". All representations, "down to the smallest role", are "unforgettable" and "every single character" is "so convincing and fascinating that interest in the film never fades". Cue Magazine found that the double drama "skillfully, stylishly and effectively" by Rattigan and John Gay had "been transformed into a unique and outstanding film", "which can be rated as one of the best of the year". The "great cast" contribute "outstanding performance". According to TV Guide, it was to be expected that Niven and Hiller would "play terrific". Therefore, one sees Rita Hayworth with "real surprise as the vulnerable, divorced woman who realizes that her beauty is slowly disappearing".

"The two actions [...] have merged into a dense image of the milieu and character in the form of a psychological chamber play", so the lexicon of the international film . The film is "[s] ensibly staged" and "impressive in its acting". For Cinema it was a "[high] carat character study", which could be considered a "[g] elite variant on people in the hotel ". “The fact that Separate from Table and Bed was such a good film was mainly thanks to its excellent cast,” wrote Prisma . Rita Hayworth, the "glamor star" par excellence, delivers "an impressive character study here".

Awards

Oscar

Won:

Nominated:

British Film Academy Award

Nominated:

Golden Globe

Won:

Nominated:

Laurel Awards

  • 2nd place, Best Actor - David Niven
  • 5th Place, Best Actress - Deborah Kerr
  • 4th place, Best Supporting Actress - Wendy Hiller

German version

The German dubbed version was created in Berlin in 1959.

role actor Voice actor
Sybil Railton-Bell Deborah Kerr Gudrun Genest
Ann Shankland Rita Hayworth Tilly Lauenstein
Major Pollock David Niven Friedrich Schoenfelder
Pat Cooper Wendy Hiller Elisabeth Ried
John Malcolm Burt Lancaster Heinz Engelmann
Mrs. Maude Railton-Bell Gladys Cooper Roma train
Lady Gladys Matheson Cathleen Nesbitt Elf tailors
Mr. Fowler Felix Aylmer Siegfried Schürenberg
Miss Meacham May Hallatt Ursula War
Charles Rod Taylor Wolfgang Arps

literature

Further film adaptations of the play

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Gene Ringgold: The Films of Rita Hayworth . Citadel Press, Secaucus 1974, p. 211.
  2. ↑ “My first instinct was that I was quite the wrong kind of director, and I'd never even been to Bournemouth or experienced that totally British small-hotel life; but Harold Hecht sent me there to research it, and within half a day I'd found prototypes of all the characters that Terry had written about […]. Our main problem was getting a screenplay which would turn the two original plays into just one narrative line, and we had about five attempts with different writers, including Terry himself, before we finally got it right. Even then I still had great reservations about David: the role of the major was so different from anything I'd seen him do before. " Delbert Mann quote. based on Sheridan Morley: The Other Side of the Moon: The Life of David Niven . HarperCollins, 1985.
  3. ↑ Bosley Crowther : Screen: Rattigan Play; 'Separate Tables' Has Dual Premiere Here . In: The New York Times . December 19, 1958.
  4. ↑ cf. boxofficereport.com ( Memento from June 24, 2006 in the Internet Archive )
  5. ^ "Rattigan and John Gay have masterfully blended the two playlets into one literate and absorbing full-length film. [...] David Niven gives one of the best performances of his career. Deborah Kerr is excellent as a plain, shy girl completely cowed by a domineering and strong mother, finely portrayed by Gladys Cooper. […] Lancaster turns into a shaded performance. Hayworth is equally good as his former wife. " See separate tables . In. Variety , 1958.
  6. ↑ “In an atmosphere of latent tension, which Delbert Mann, the director, carefully generates and maintains as the significant mood of the film, the troubles of these people are entangled, complicated and resolved, so that the paltriness, shabbiness and pathos of theirs little backwater and self-centered existences are harrowingly exposed. [...] Most brilliant and true of the performers is Deborah Kerr: She makes the shy and sad young woman who eyes the major come poignantly alive. And after her is Wendy Hiller, who is dignified, valiant and strong as the manager of the hotel. " Bosley Crowther: Screen: Rattigan Play; 'Separate Tables' Has Dual Premiere Here . In: The New York Times. December 19, 1958.
  7. ↑ “ Separate tables will long be remembered for its excellent characterizations and magnificent acting. David Niven gives a performance far above anything he's ever done before. All the portrayals, even to the smallest part, are memorable and each character is so convincing and so fascinating that interest in the film never drops. " Redbook Magazine quoted. after Gene Ringgold: The Films of Rita Hayworth . Citadel Press, Secaucus 1974, p. 213.
  8. ↑ “Terence Rattigan's duet of dramas which had so successful a run on Broadway two years ago, has been skillfully, tastefully and effectively joined by the playwright and his collaborator, John Gay, into a single and quite superlative motion picture - to be rated among the best of the year. [...] a splendid cast contributes outstanding performances. " Cue Magazine quote. after Gene Ringgold: The Films of Rita Hayworth . Citadel Press, Secaucus 1974, p. 213.
  9. ↑ “That Niven and Hiller are sublime is almost to be expected. But one watches Hayworth with genuine surprise, as the poignant divorcee watching her beauty slip away. " See separate tables: Review on tvguide.com
  10. ↑ Separate from table and bed. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed February 2, 2020 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used 
  11. ↑ cf. cinema.de
  12. ↑ cf. prisma.de
  13. ↑ cf. synchrondatenbank.de
  14. ↑ Separate from table and bed. In: synchronkartei.de. German dubbing file , accessed on February 2, 2020 .