A Farewell to Arms (1957)

An English nurse and an American soldier on the Italian front during World War I fall in love, but the horrors surrounding them test their romance to the limit.

Directors:

Charles Vidor, John Huston (uncredited)

Writers:

Ben Hecht (screenplay), Ernest Hemingway (novel)

Stars:

Rock Hudson, Jennifer Jones, Vittorio De Sica

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Rock Hudson	...	Lt. Frederick Henry
Jennifer Jones	...	Catherine Barkley
Vittorio De Sica	...	Major Alessandro Rinaldi
Oskar Homolka	...	Dr. Emerich (as Oscar Homolka)
Mercedes McCambridge	...	Miss Van Campen
Elaine Stritch	...	Helen Ferguson
Kurt Kasznar	...	Bonello
Victor Francen	...	Colonel Valentini
Franco Interlenghi	...	Aymo
Leopoldo Trieste	...	Passini
José Nieto	...	Major Stampi (as Jose Nieto)
Georges Bréhat	...	Captain Bassi (as Georges Brehat)
Johanna Hofer	...	Mrs. Zimmerman
Eduard Linkers	...	Lieutenant Zimmerman
Eva Kotthaus	...	Delivery Room Nurse

Storyline

Frederick Henry, an American serving as a volunteer ambulance driver with the Italian forces in the First World War, is wounded and falls in love with his attending nurse, the British Catherine Barkley. In the midst of war and some intrigue, the pair struggles to stay together and to survive the horrors around them.

---

Plot Keywords:

italian army | world war one | based on novel | bare chested male | soldier | 

---

Taglines:

One of the great love stories of all time !

---

Genres:

Drama | Romance | War

---

Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

An amazing number of people left the films or were fired by Selznick: John Huston, the unit production manager, one cinematographer, three art directors, one visual effects supervisor and all of the staff working in the villa hired by David O. Selznick and Jennifer Jones in Rome.

---

Goofs

When Hudson and Jones are in the hotel bedroom he gives her a glass of wine. The amount of wine in her glass varies between shots.

---

Quotes

Major Alessandro Rinaldi: She's very strange, very moody, who knows she might even prefer you to me.

---

Crazy Credits

Producer David O. Selznick tries to imitate the opening credits of his classic film, "Gone With The Wind", by having the letters of the title "A Farewell to Arms" sweep slowly across the screen from right to left.

---

Connections

Referenced in Hollywood Hist-o-Rama: Harold Lloyd (1962)

User Reviews

Knowing The Score

The Gary Cooper/Helen Hayes version of A Farewell To Arms, well acted for the time it was made, seems dated now. The 1957 version of Hemingway's great romantic novel is, like The Sun Also Rises, another adaptation of one of Papa's masterpieces, pretty to look at, expensively made, and wooden in all other respects.

In this version Hudson is earnest but bland, Jones too old, De Sica in the wrong movie and Stritch, well, her acid nurse is one of the film's only bright spots.

But the real reason to see the film is the ravishing musical score by Mario Nasciembe. Talk about romantic! Talk about lush! Talk about unforgettable! Had the film been as good as it's musical score it would have been a classic; what A Farewell To Arms ultimately is though, is an overstuffed period piece and a tepid finale to the great David Selznick's career. (By the way should you want to skip the film, the soundtrack is currently available on CD.)

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Latin

Release Date:

14 December 1957 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Farewell to Arms

Filming Locations:

Bassano del Grappa, 36061 Province of Vicenza, Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$4,353,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Selznick International Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

152 min

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1