Madame Curie (1943)

Despite himself, accomplished physicist and avowed bachelor Pierre Curie falls for brilliant student Marie, and together they embark on the discovery of radium.

Directors:

Mervyn LeRoy, Albert Lewin (uncredited)

Writers:

Paul Osborn (screen play), Hans Rameau (screen play) (as Paul H. Rameau)

Stars:

Greer Garson, Walter Pidgeon, Henry Travers

Nominated for 7 Oscars.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Greer Garson	...	Marie Curie
Walter Pidgeon	...	Pierre Curie
Henry Travers	...	Eugene Curie
Albert Bassermann	...	Professor Jean Perot
Robert Walker	...	David Le Gros
C. Aubrey Smith	...	Lord Kelvin
May Whitty	...	Madame Eugene Curie (as Dame May Whitty)
Victor Francen	...	President of University
Elsa Bassermann	...	Madame Perot
Reginald Owen	...	Dr. Becquerel
Van Johnson	...	Reporter
Margaret O'Brien	...	Irene Curie - Age 5
James Hilton	...	Narration Spoken By (voice)

Storyline

Biopic of the famed scientist and the work she did with her husband Pierre in the discovery of radium. Marie was a student at the Sorbonne studying for her Master's degree in physics when they first met. She received permission to use space in Professor Pierre Curie's laboratory. They soon fall in love and are married, working together on trying to isolate a radioactive substance Marie has identified as radium. Years of painstaking research and experimentation led to success and Marie and Pierre Curie shared the Nobel Prize in Physics. Sadly, Pierre was killed crossing the street in the rain when he was run over by a horse and wagon. Marie continued to work and make major contributions to science.

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Plot Keywords:

waterfall | radiation | discovery | younger version of character | sorbonne | 

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Taglines:

MR. and MRS. MINIVER together again

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

February 1944 (USA)

Also Known As:

Curie-Sklodowska

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

124 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The scene in which Pierre Curie proposes to Marie Sklodowska is one long continuous take. It lasts for more than two and a half minutes.

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Goofs

After Pierre's street accident, when the men come to tell Marie, she comes into the hallway and puts her hand on the dowel of the railing; in the next shot, her hand is down, and she puts it up on the dowel again.

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Quotes

Marie Curie: To catch a star on your fingertips.

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Connections

Featured in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Cheers: America's Most Inspiring Movies (2006)

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Soundtracks

Wedding March
(1843) (uncredited)
from "A Midsummer Night's Dream"
Written by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy
In the score as Pierre and Marie start on their honeymoon

User Reviews

Garson and Pidgeon discover radium...tasteful biography...

Here we have Greer Garson in the kind of role that would later inspire that wonderful sequence from 'Ziegfeld Follies' (the 'Madame Crematon' impersonation by Judy Garland, a rip-off of Greer in her great lady roles). But, surprisingly or not, Garson and Pidgeon are teamed in a very eloquent and moving biography, one of the more tasteful and dignified bios of the 1940s considering it deals with subject matter not conducive to popular taste.

Their long work in the laboratories finally leads to the discovery of radium--and this is the fascinating story of how they met and married and indulged in their lifelong pursuit of discovery. A young and rather miscast Robert Walker plays a fellow lab worker. Van Johnson has a few brief moments toward the end, as does Margaret O'Brien. But the focus is on Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon and they both deliver Oscar nominated performances.

This is one of the better screen biographies and one that has been sorely neglected over the years. Watch for my career article on GREER GARSON to appear in an upcoming issue of FILMS OF THE GOLDEN AGE.