Carrie (1952)

Carrie boards the train to Chicago with big ambitions. She gets a job stitching shoes and her sister's husband takes almost all of her pay for room and board. Then she injures a finger and ... See full summary »

Director:

William Wyler

Writers:

Theodore Dreiser (novel), Ruth Goetz,

Stars:

Laurence Olivier, Jennifer Jones, Miriam Hopkins

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Laurence Olivier	...	George Hurstwood
Jennifer Jones	...	Carrie Meeber
Miriam Hopkins	...	Julie Hurstwood
Eddie Albert	...	Charles Drouet
Basil Ruysdael	...	Mr. Fitzgerald
Ray Teal	...	Allen - Bondsman
Barry Kelley	...	Slawson
Sara Berner	...	Mrs. Oransky
William Reynolds	...	George Hurstwood, Jr. (as William Regnolds)
Mary Murphy	...	Jessica Hurstwood
Harry Hayden	...	O'Brien
Charles Halton	...	Factory Foreman
Walter Baldwin	...	Mr. Meeber - Carrie's Father
Dorothy Adams	...	Mrs. Meeber - Carrie's Mother
Jacqueline deWit	...	Carrie's Sister Minnie (as Jacqueline de Witt)

Storyline

Carrie boards the train to Chicago with big ambitions. She gets a job stitching shoes and her sister's husband takes almost all of her pay for room and board. Then she injures a finger and is fired. This is the 1890s. Charles Drouet, a salesman she met on the train, comes to her rescue, invites her to dine at Fitzgerald's where the manager George Hurstwood sends over a bottle of champagne. Stay in Drouet's apartment. He will be on the road 10 days. When she leaves the apartment many months later -- on a train bound for New York -- her traveling companion is Hurstwood. Why is he in such a hurry?

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Plot Keywords:

train | restaurant | salesman | love | factory | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 October 1952 (Finland)

Also Known As:

Destino de dos vidas

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min 117 min (DVD)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Though based on Theodore Dreiser's novel "Sister Carrie," the movie was released simply as "Carrie" because the studio feared audiences would think "Sister Carrie" was the story of a nun.

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Quotes

George Hurstwood: I've got to eat or I'll die.
Unidentified Vagrant: Who are you talking to, me or God?

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Connections

Edited into Histoire(s) du cinéma: Seul le cinéma (1997)

User Reviews

Cruel Classic Romance

In Columbia Clay, Missouri, the young and naive Carrie Meeber (Jennifer Jones) boards the train expecting to meet her older sister in Chicago and have a better life in the big city. While traveling in the train, she meets the fabric salesman Charles Drouet (Eddie Albert), who gives her his card. Once in Chicago, she finds a simple job in a shoe factory sewing shoes, but when she injures a finger, she is fired. Unable to find another job, she looks for Charles, and he invites her to have dinner at the Fitzgerald's, the most expensive restaurant of Chicago, where she meets the elegant middle-age manager George Hurstwood (Laurence Olivier). Carrie moves to Charles' apartment and becomes her lover due to the lack of options, and later George falls in love for her. Pressed by his wife and by the owner of the restaurant to forget Carrie, George leaves all his possessions behind and embezzles a fortune from the restaurant, traveling with Carrie to New York expecting to rebuild his life, but the shadows of his past are cruel with him. Meanwhile, Carrie matures and becomes successful in her business.

"Carrie" is a cruel classic romance, with a stunning performance of the great British actor Laurence Olivier, who surprisingly was not nominated as Best Lead Actor to the Oscar. I am really impressed with his acting in this movie, being perfect either as an elegant upper class man or as a beggar. The direction of William Wiler is brilliant and stylist as usual, supported by magnificent costumes and decorations. Jennifer Jones, Eddie Albert and Miriam Hopkins give credibility to their characters with their great performances. The romantic and dramatic story does not have the usual commercial happy end of Hollywood movies, but a credible and realistic conclusion, and maybe that is why I loved this film. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "Perdição Por Amor" ("Perdition for Love")