Gilda (1946)

The sinister boss of a South American casino finds that his right-hand man Johnny and his sensuous new wife Gilda already know each other.

Director:

Charles Vidor

Writers:

E.A. Ellington (story), Jo Eisinger (adaptation),

Stars:

Rita Hayworth, Glenn Ford, George Macready

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Rita Hayworth	...	Gilda Mundson Farrell
Glenn Ford	...	Johnny Farrell / Narrator
George Macready	...	Ballin Mundson
Joseph Calleia	...	Det. Maurice Obregon
Steven Geray	...	Uncle Pio
Joe Sawyer	...	Casey
Gerald Mohr	...	Capt. Delgado
Mark Roberts	...	Gabe Evans (as Robert Scott)
Ludwig Donath	...	German Cartel Member
Donald Douglas	...	Thomas Langford (as Don Douglas)

Storyline

Just arrived in Argentina, small-time crooked gambler Johnny Farrell is saved from a gunman by sinister Ballin Mundson, who later makes Johnny his right-hand man. But their friendship based on mutual lack of scruples is strained when Mundson returns from a trip with a wife: the supremely desirable Gilda, whom Johnny once knew and learned to hate. The relationship of Johnny and Gilda, a battlefield of warring emotions, becomes even more bizarre after Mundson disappears...

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Plot Keywords:

casino | argentina | hate | gambler | tungsten | 

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Taglines:

"I didn't think I'd be true to a man again as long as I lived..."

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Genres:

Drama | Film-Noir | Romance | Thriller

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish French German

Release Date:

15 March 1946 (USA)

Also Known As:

Djilda

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The photo of Johnny Farrell as a baby is a picture of Glenn Ford's real-life son, Peter Ford.

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Goofs

When Johnny is beaten up by Mundson's henchmen, his tie jumps out of his coat. Later, when he is talking to Mundson, his tie appears untidily held by his coat.

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Quotes

Johnny Farrell: Pardon me, but your husband is showing.

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Connections

Featured in The Fisher King (1991)

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Soundtracks

"Amado Mio"
by Allan Roberts and Doris Fisher
Sung by Rita Hayworth (dubbed by Anita Ellis) (uncredited)

User Reviews

Nothing from our era seems to compare

The 40s and 50s produced many alluring performances from beautiful and sexy actresses and Rita Hayworth's in Gilda is one of the most provocative of all. The film is good and quite deep, the male leads are better, but Hayworth's performance is simply stunning and unforgettable. She may not have been the most beautiful 40s actress (Gene Tierney and Veronica Lake were more classic beauties imo), but if you look closely her ability to show the sweet, the vulnerable, and especially the wanton, in women has not been bettered. Somehow her character gets under the male viewer's skin in the same way as it does to the male characters in the film.

Modern film femme fatales are a pale shadow by comparison, for example Linda Fiorentino or Sharon Stone. I'm not sure why. It could be either that nowadays allure is too much equated with sex or nudity (less tantalising than several dashes of suggestion) or maybe it's that present day equivalents are portrayed as hard as nails without the necessary mix of sadness and vulnerability.

Whatever, if you've never appreciated what the appeal of 40s noir is, this is definitely one to try.