The Barefoot Contessa (1954)

At Maria Vargas' funeral, several people recall who she was and the impact she had on them. Harry Dawes was a not very successful writer/director when he and movie producer Kirk Edwards ... See full summary »

Director:

Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Writer:

Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Stars:

Humphrey Bogart, Ava Gardner, Edmond O'Brien

Won 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Humphrey Bogart	...	Harry Dawes
Ava Gardner	...	Maria Vargas
Edmond O'Brien	...	Oscar Muldoon
Marius Goring	...	Alberto Bravano
Valentina Cortese	...	Eleanora Torlato-Favrini (as Valentina Cortesa)
Rossano Brazzi	...	Count Vincenzo Torlato-Favrini
Elizabeth Sellars	...	Jerry
Warren Stevens	...	Kirk Edwards
Franco Interlenghi	...	Pedro Vargas
Mari Aldon	...	Myrna
Alberto Rabagliati	...	Proprietor
Enzo Staiola	...	Busboy
Maria Zanoli	...	Maria's Mother
Renato Chiantoni	...	Maria's Father
Bill Fraser	...	J. Montague Brown

Storyline

At Maria Vargas' funeral, several people recall who she was and the impact she had on them. Harry Dawes was a not very successful writer/director when he and movie producer Kirk Edwards scouted her at a shabby nightclub where she worked as a flamenco dancer. He convinces her to take a chance on acting and her first film is a huge hit. PR man Oscar Muldoon remembers when Maria was in court supporting her father who was accused of murdering her mother. It was Maria's testimony that got him off and she was a bigger star than ever. Alberto Bravano, one of the richest men in South America, sets his sights on Maria and she goes off with him - as much to make Edwards angry as anything - but he treats her badly. When she meets Count Vincenzo Torlato-Favrini they fall deeply in love. They are married but theirs is not to be a happy life.

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Plot Keywords:

french riviera | producer | barefoot contessa | funeral in the rain | unhappy marriage | 

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Taglines:

A girl with many ideas . . . and a man for each !

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film's Italian production was part of the "Hollywood on the Tiber" phenomenon.

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Goofs

When Dawes is speaking to Maria about coming to America, her blouse first only has one button undone. About half-way through the scene, a second button is undone.

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Quotes

Drunken blonde: I don't even believe you're playing Pinochle.

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Connections

Referenced in Valley of the Dolls (1967)

User Reviews

Just couldn't care about the story or characters.

This movie sounded like a good idea. It's about the rise and fall of a female movie star and focuses on the upper-class society and the world of Hollywood but in truth and honesty the movie is just too much of a drag, due to the fact that the story just never seems to take off and the characters are not very compelling ones.

It probably foremost is the pace that makes this movie its story come across as slow and dull. It seemed like an interesting idea to tel the story of this actress from the viewpoint of several male characters she met throughout the entire movie. However this way of storytelling instead causes the story to feel like a messy one. I also just don't see how this movie is a good one as an inside-Hollywood movie or social commentary perhaps. The movie to me just seemed pretty pointless and it wasn't going anywhere. It all still could had worked out had the characters been better ones.

You can't really blame the actors for not letting the characters work out well enough for the movie. I mean when you have actors like Humphrey Bogart, Ava Gardner and Edmond O'Brien involved, you can hardly blame the acting can you?

The movie is just too much talking and not enough drama or romance involved. I didn't very much liked watching this movie and didn't feel involved with it enough but nevertheless I also couldn't hate it. After all, it certainly ain't no bad movie but it still is one that comes across as being uninteresting and pretty pointless overall.

6/10

http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

Details

Country:

Italy USA

Language:

English Spanish Italian

Release Date:

30 September 1954 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Barefoot Contessa

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$17,018

Company Credits

Production Co:

Transoceanic Film, Figaro

Technical Specs

Runtime:

128 min 130 min (dvd release) (TCM print)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Perspecta Sound encoding) (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.75 : 1