Another Time, Another Place

I'm still trying to figure out exactly what is the most ridiculous thing about this 1958 Paramount melodrama - the notion of Lana Turner as an ace war correspondent, or Sean Connery's eyebrows. Turner plays Sara Scott, one of those movie journalists who remains gainfully employed despite never letting work get in the way of their personal life. She swans around wartime London in a fur coat, perfectly coiffed and oblivious to the realities of modern warfare although, to be fair, it's not difficult for her not to notice when director Lewis Allen has chosen to mostly omit it from the mise-en-scene. Other than a sequence showing sappers defusing an unexploded V2 rocket, and Scott's hired help making a passing reference to rationing, there's no indication that this is a city that's been at war for nearly 6 years. There's no bombed out buildings, no indication of food, gas or clothing shortages, and barely anyone in uniform on the streets. As a peroxide blonde society lady who spends her time lunching, loving and shopping on 5th Avenue, Turner is entirely convincing. As a highly rated journalist ready to fly off at a moment's notice to whichever battle front her editor deems her presence and writing talents to be essential, she's somewhat less plausible than Steven Seagal tackling Shakespeare. Which brings us to Mr Connery's eyebrows. They are both a wonder and a mystery and put Robert Pattinson's brow hair to shame. His are wider but inexpressive and just sit there above his eyes. Connery's, in contrast, are longer and undulate like two strips of dark brown deep shag carpeting strapped to the back of a couple of adult earthworms. They're so impressive they actually distract attention from his luxuriant head of hair which to anyone used to the older, more follically challenged Connery, is a talking point in itself. ANOTHER TIME ANOTHER PLACE was not the 28 year old's first movie but it was the first time his name had been billed in such close proximity to the film's stars, and clearly no one had considered that a little personal grooming might be in order to reflect his new status as love interest to a bona fide Hollywood star. His agent might also have found a tactful way to suggest that having Connery's character, with his distinct Scottish accent, wax lyrical at great length about his idyllic home town on the coast of Cornwall, might not be the most convincing. But even shifting location and pruning his eyebrows would not have prevented this turgid drama from dissolving into a pool of smelly sludge. Nothing about it rings true and no one does anything to evince our interest or sympathy. It's just a bust. Check out more of my reviews at http://thefilmivejustseen.blogspot.com/

It's a wartime story, although it was released in 1958! Starring... and produced by lana turner! A young sean connery, in an early role, before his james bond films. Glynis johns. When sara and mark meet, it was a quick, war-time romance. They were sure it was going to last forever, but for many reasons, it was not to be! How will they deal with everything that comes their way? It's pretty good! This was way after lana did postman. Lana turner's actual love life was even more complicated... check it out on wikipedia dot org. And connery would win his oscar for the untouchables thirty years after this film. Turner was oscar nominated for peyton place, which had just been released the year before.

In 1945, while in a temporary assignment in London, the "The New York Standard" journalist Sara Scott (Lana Turner) has a torrid love affair with the reporter of BBC Mark Trevor (Sean Connery) and she falls in love for him. Just before the end of the war, they cover a sapper disassembling a bomb and Sara is informed that her boss and fiancé Carter Reynolds (Barry Sullivan) is coming to London to meet her. When she tells the news to Mark, he surprisingly discloses to her after three months of relationship that he is married and has a son in St. Giles, Cornwall, and he loves and will stay with his family. Mark leaves Sara and travels to Paris with his assistant Alan Thompson (Terence Longdon), but the plane crashes and he dies. The grieving Sara has a nervous breakdown and is interned in the Headway Nursing Home for treatment. Six weeks later, Carter buys a ship trip to her from Plymouth to New York; however, Sara decides to visit St. Giles by train before returning to her country. When she meets Mark's wife Kay Trevor (Glynis Johns) and his son Brian (Martin Stephens), she is invited by Kay to stay with them until the next morning. During the night, Sara has a crisis, faints and Kay invites her to stay at her home during for recovering.

The silly "Another Time, Another Place" is an unconvincing romance, with a laughable screenplay. The story begins without a previous development of characters, but sooner the viewer understands that Sara is an experienced American correspondent that writes a column for her newspaper and is engaged of her boss. Mark is a married man that broadcasts news about the war and is having an affair with Sara, and disapproved by his friend and assistant Alan. When Sara tells that her fiancé is coming to London, Mark decides to end his affair since he loves his family. This revelation, associated to the shock of the death of Mark lead Sara to a breakdown. Up to this point, the story is convincing and I have no remarks. However, the decision of Sara to travel to St. Giles is the beginning of an unthinkable attitude of an experienced woman living overseas. The rest of this forgettable movie is pure crap with a corny conclusion, despite the good performance of Glynis Johns and the magnificent locations in Cornwall. My vote is four.

Title (Brazil): "Vítima de uma Paixão" ("Victim of a Passion")

I had heard a lot about this film. I like Lana Turner and I have always thought that Glynis Johns is one of the loveliest British actresses who ever went to Hollywood - our loss, their gain. She seemed to steal every scene that she was in.

I thought this was just going to be another love story with a wartime background, but it was more than that. It turned out to be a very touching and human story.

The scenes of Cornwall were beautiful. It would have been great in colour, and the film had the loveliest ending that I have ever seen in any film of this genre.

Lana Turner never won an Oscar, but I am surprised that she was not, at least, nominated for an Academy Award for this picture. She was always good at playing this sort of role, lighting up the screen as her performance developed.

I am not usually a fan of love stories, but there was just something about this film that made me keep watching it. I do not know what it was. Maybe it was just Lana Turner's performance and the beautiful scenes of Cornwall. I have recorded it on Talking Pictures. I might even watch it again.

I have also enjoyed watching Sean Connery in one of his early roles. He is always good, no matter what film he is in. However, I should imagine that British audiences must have sat in the cinema wondering how a Scotsman could have been born in Cornwall.

Set in Cornwall (not that you'd know from the accents, least of all Connery's) in 1945 (not that you'd know from Lana Turner's chic fifties wardrobe). The title is apt, as it belongs to a very specific moment in 1957 when Sid James was still playing Americans, Lana's film career was simply treading water (just before the publicity resulting from the Stompanato scandal revived it again) and Sean Connery - suffering yet another false start - cost next to nothing. Likewise it completely lacks the glossy high contrast colour photography by Russell Metty and mellow piano music by Frank Skinner (rather than the noisy score here by Douglas Gamley) that became a hallmark of her vehicles for Ross Hunter.

Turner's penchant for Bad Boys showed both in her offscreen liason with Johnny Stompanato and her onscreen one with a Connery still sporting his original bushy eyebrows. But it's really about Lana's relationship with Connery's wife Glynis Johns.