Suez (1938)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Allan Dwan

Writers:

Sam Duncan (story)
Philip Dunne (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

28 October 1938 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History | Romance

Tagline:

A man of two loves and one mighty deed !

Plot:

Ferdinand de Lesseps, disappointed in love, is sent as a junior diplomat to the Isthmus of Suez, and realizes it's just the place for a canal.

Plot Keywords:

Canal | Suez Canal | Diplomat | Dancing | Award

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars.

Cast

Tyrone Power	...	Ferdinand de Lesseps
Loretta Young	...	Countess Eugenie de Montijo
Annabella	...	Toni Pellerin
J. Edward Bromberg	...	Prince Said
Joseph Schildkraut	...	Vicomte Rene De Latour
Henry Stephenson	...	Count Mathieu de Lesseps
Sidney Blackmer	...	Marquis Du Brey
Maurice Moscovitch	...	Mohammed Ali (as Maurice Moscovich)
Sig Ruman	...	Sergeant Pellerin (as Sig Rumann)
Nigel Bruce	...	Sir Malcolm Cameron
Miles Mander	...	Benjamin Disraeli
George Zucco	...	Prime Minister
Leon Ames	...	Napoleon III - Emperor of France
Rafaela Ottiano	...	Maria De Teba
Victor Varconi	...	Victor Hugo

Runtime:

USA:98 min (FMC Library Print) | 104 min (copyright length)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French

Color:

Black and White (Sepiatone)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #4281) | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | West Germany:12 | Finland:S

Filming Locations:

Corona, California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

In an interview in the late 1970s, director Allan Dwan talked of the censorship battle he had with the Hays Office over the wet-shirt scene, in which Annabella's erect nipples are on prominent display. "I wanted them to show," he said. His argument with the Hays Office was, "Have you ever seen a nude woman? Ever seen your wife nude? There was nothing there that wasn't positively true to life ... you knew she was going to be sexy ... that's why you picked her. The audience knows. This is my idea of giving it to them. All women are alike - they can go to the mirror and see that anytime." The matter was dropped as re-shooting the scene would have cost too much as the studio would have had to rebuild the entire set. Dwan said that his nemesis, studio boss Darryl F. Zanuck, was pleased with the picture.

Quotes:

Toni Pellerin: Look! A rainbow! Oh, Grandfather says there's a pot of gold at the end.
Ferdinand de Lesseps: One end in the Mediterranean and the other in the Red Sea. What a pot of gold for the world if they could be joined: the Red Sea and the Mediterranean. Look, Toni! That water in the old gulf. Just as it was centuries ago, when the Phoenicians sailed through. Can you imagine ships sailing right through here where we're standing?
Toni Pellerin: Ships?
Ferdinand de Lesseps: Yes. Not ancient galleys but modern ships, steamers, sailing a short trade route to the East. It could be done: no elevations, no rock formations, just a simple sand... ditch. (Heh heh heh. And I was told I was going to dig ditches.) There's fate in this...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The James Dean Story (1957)

Soundtrack:

La Marseillaise

Ty builds the Suez Canal

Tyrone Power plays the beleaguered Ferdinand de Lesseps in this big-budget retelling of the building of the Suez canal, appropriately called "Suez." Power, a huge star, was so often involved in these big budget films, truly the "Airport"-type movies of their day, that the poor man ended up taking part in the Chicago fire, the Suez sandstorm, and an Indian earthquake! Loretta Young is again his costar, this time as Eugenie, and she is her usual gorgeous self in magnificent gowns. The two made a ravishing couple - and in real life, he once called her on a Saturday night, lamenting that despite their big stardoms, they were dateless on date night, and asked her to a movie in Westwood.

The third prong of the love triangle is Annabella, a marvelous actress who became Power's first wife - and they were most definitely the Brangelina of their day! Unfortunately, Zanuck was so furious that his star broke the hearts of millions of women by marrying, that Annabella was blackballed. It's a shame, because on a radio retelling of "Rage of Manhattan" with Power, her fabulous acting is evident. Pity there were not more opportunities for her.

"Suez" is a little slow-going and nobody ages except for the touch of gray given Power, but the windstorm is magnificent. Power, who was only 23-24 at the time of filming, does a wonderful job, and is certainly up to his dramatic scenes. The later one with Annabella is most touching. The next to final shot of him receiving his award from Eugenie is memorable, as he walks, in a half bow, down the stairs backwards. Finally, the "Queen Christina" type close-up of Power's amazing face must last three minutes, but I could have stared at it for another hour.

All in all and despite the fact that it is probably the most historically inaccurate real-life story ever filmed, "Suez" is worth the watch, especially for the effects, done without computer generation and blue screens.