Anna Lucasta (1958)

A young woman struggling with a sordid past finds that her biggest enemy had larger demons than she did.

Director:

Arnold Laven

Writer:

Philip Yordan (screenplay by)

Stars:

Eartha Kitt, Frederick O'Neal, Henry Scott

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Eartha Kitt	...	Anna Lucasta
Frederick O'Neal	...	Frank
Henry Scott	...	Rudolph Slocum
Rex Ingram	...	Joe Lucasta
James Edwards	...	Eddie
Isabel Cooley	...	Katie
Rosetta LeNoire	...	Stella (as Rosetta Le Noire)
Georgia Burke	...	Theresa
Claire Leyba	...	Blanche
Alvin Childress	...	Noah
John Proctor	...	Stanley
Charles Swain	...	Lester
Ike Jones	...	Policeman (as Isaac Jones)
Wallace Earl Laven	...	Secretary (as Eileen Harley)
Sammy Davis Jr.	...	Danny

Storyline

When wild child Anna Lucasta (Kitt) is banished from the family home by her self-righteous father, she falls into a life of prostitution and into the arms of of streetwise sailor Danny Johnson (Davis). But after she shocks them all by finally finding true love with a well-heeled young suitor, her unforgiving father sets a vengeful plan in motion to remind his daughter of her sordid past and destroy her future forever.

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Plot Keywords:

pregnant sister | runaway bride | father daughter relationship | wedding veil | bridal veil | 

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Taglines:

Meet Anna - whose father threw her out because she was a tramp!

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Passed

Did You Know?

Trivia

The Black cast toured Europe in 1944. There was also a revival that performed in London in 1947. An all white cast (originally it was written for a Polish-American family) starring Paulette Goddard, also went to Paris.

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Goofs

When Joe dies, his head drops to the right. When shown from another angle, he is facing left.

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Quotes

Danny Johnson: You and me, we're real people, Anna. We're the real stuff. Many's the time we set the Earth on fire. You stick with me and we'll burn it up!

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Connections

Version of Anna Lucasta (1949)

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Soundtracks

That's Anna
(Title song)
Lyrics by Sammy Cahn
Music by Elmer Bernstein
Sung by Sammy Davis Jr.

User Reviews

Watch it for its cast

At the core of Anna Lucasta is a creaky plot that isn't seen often today -- the decent man who falls in love with the irresistible prostitute (see also The World of Susie Wong, Breakfast at Tiffany's, The Owl and the Pussycat, etc.). However, instead of focusing on the man's dilemma, Anna Lucasta focuses on the prostitute's family and friends. The screenplay is by a distinguished playwright and screenwriter, Philip Yordan, who based it on his own Broadway play, so it does have its moments -- an occasional good line, striking monologue, or clever exchange of dialogue. But it remains stagy, and the director's infrequent attempts to "open up" the play with cinematic devices don't work well.

However, the movie is valuable because it preserves performances by prominent black stage actors who for the most part rarely appeared on screen, certainly not in major, non-stereotypical roles. Nearly every actor and actress in the film is given a moment to shine, and they all acquit themselves well, with the possible exception of the great actor Rex Ingram, who sometimes chews the scenery as Anna's drunken and vengeful father. The beautiful Isabel Cooley, in a small role as Anna's sister, is a revelation here.

Eartha Kitt always plays Eartha, but her Anna more than adequately shows many facets -- on the edge of hard-bitten, but still yearning to be accepted as innocent and sweet, attracted to the fast life, but hurt and wounded and feeling unloved. And Sammy Davis' performance is much better than the reviews he received when the movie was released or on IMDb. He plays Anna's other suitor, who loves her in his own fashion, but who wants her as a companion for good times and partying, not as a wife. He's shallow, but he has a core of decency and concern for Anna, and Davis portrays both sides well. (Think of Sammy as Sportin' Life in Porgy and Bess, whom he would portray in the same year, but with depth.)

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 January 1959 (Sweden)

Also Known As:

Ana Lucasta

Filming Locations:

Samuel Goldwyn Studios - 7200 Santa Monica Boulevard, West Hollywood, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Longridge Enterprises

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1