Anthony Adverse (1936)

In 18th-century Italy, an orphan's debt to the man who raised him threatens to separate him forever from the woman he loves.

Directors:

Mervyn LeRoy, Michael Curtiz (uncredited)

Writers:

Hervey Allen (by), Sheridan Gibney (screen play)

Stars:

Fredric March, Olivia de Havilland, Donald Woods

Won 4 Oscars. Another 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Fredric March	...	Anthony Adverse
Olivia de Havilland	...	Angela Guisseppi
Donald Woods	...	Vincent Nolte
Anita Louise	...	Maria
Edmund Gwenn	...	John Bonnyfeather
Claude Rains	...	Don Luis
Louis Hayward	...	Denis Moore
Gale Sondergaard	...	Faith
Steffi Duna	...	Neleta
Akim Tamiroff	...	Carlo Cibo
Ralph Morgan	...	Signore Debruille
Fritz Leiber	...	Ouvrard
Luis Alberni	...	Tony Guisseppi
Billy Mauch	...	Anthony Adverse - at Ten
Henry O'Neill	...	Father Xavier

Storyline

In late 18th century Italy, a beautiful young woman finds herself married to a rich but cruel older man. However, she is in love with another, younger man. When the husband finds out, he kills the lover in a swordfight, and takes his wife on a long trip throughout Europe. Months later, she dies giving birth to a son. The husband leaves the child at a convent, where he is raised until the age of 10; then he is apprenticed to a local merchant, who gives him the name "Anthony Adverse" because of the adversity in his life. But his adversity has only begun, as fate takes him to Cuba, Africa, and Paris.

---

Plot Keywords:

catholic orphanage | illegitimate son | slave trade | foundling | opera singer | 

---

Taglines:

Charging Across the Screen With Breath-Taking Sweep and Inspired Greatness...Comes the Most Impassioned Romance, Most Exciting Adventure Story In All Entertainment History! (Print Ad- Utica Observer-Dispatch, ((Utica, NY)) 4 September 1936)

---

Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Romance

---

Certificate:

Passed

Did You Know?

Trivia

The two leads in this movie, Fredric March and Olivia de Havilland would win one of their two Academy Awards in the same year in 1946. [Fredric March] won Best Actor for The Best Years of Our Lives (1946), and [Olivia de Havilland ]won Best Actress for To Each His Own (1946).

---

Goofs

I noticed an omission. There wasn't a 'goof' section. During the duel between Don Luis (Claude Rains) and Denis Moore (Louis Hayward) the sword wielded by Moore was "unbated", i.e., his fencing foil was blunted with a protective guard on the tip. As Osric, would say when Don Luis thrusts home, "a hit, a hit, a most palpable hit..."

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Marquis Don Luis: I dare say you wish you'd never left Versailles. You had a very pleasant time at court with those gallant young officers. With one in particular, I recall.

---

Connections

Referenced in Svengoolie: The Invisible Man (2008)

---

Soundtracks

I'll Wait For You My Love (Angela's Song)
(uncredited)
Composer: Erich Wolfgang Korngold
Lyrics by Howard Koch (uncredited)
Sung by Carol Ellis (uncredited)

User Reviews

Fredric March unsatisfactory in the lead...huge best-seller makes uneven historical romance...

Fredric March, usually such a fine actor, was unable to give more than a wooden performance in the title role of 'Anthony Adverse'. Warner Bros. would have been better off using their up-and-coming new star, Errol Flynn, for this one--giving us the chance to see him paired once again with Olivia de Havilland. There are no sparks between March and de Havilland--he seems too old for the role despite clever make-up attempts to make him look suitable. But aside from the fact that he is miscast, there is a lot to admire about the film itself. For one thing, Claude Rains and Gale Sondergaard make the most memorable pair of villains ever seen in a 1930s movie. The sequence where they cause a coach and driver to go off a cliff is given an extra punch by their dialog. "He was my favorite coachman," says Rains dryly. "The coach was rather handy too," quips Sondergaard. Giving other outstanding performances are Edmund Gwenn, Louis Hayward, Anita Louise, Donald Woods and Akim Tamiroff. Some of the acting styles seem dated, as are the titles that connect the time span. The best-seller was a bulky 1,200 pages from which the scriptwriter trimmed the story down considerably, excluding whole segments of the book and still ending up with a film well over two hours. Strange how the celebrated novel is barely remembered today. The opera scenes with Olivia de Havilland are interesting. She was a radiant young beauty at the time but could have used a better technique in her lip sync to the lyrics. Interesting historical drama of the Napoleonic era with Rains and Sondergaard giving the best performances. I've written articles on both of them for CLASSIC IMAGES, inspired by their performances in this film.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

29 August 1936 (USA)

Also Known As:

Anthony Adverse

Filming Locations:

Stage 14, Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,050,500 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

141 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1