If you want a perfectly acted, sensitivity directed drama about a failing marriage you can't go wrong with this. Although a very different story, I found it had a similar feel to THE BEST YEARS OF YOUR LIFE which was also made by William Wyler a decade later. If you liked that then this will appeal to you too.
William Wyler was a genius - he made two of my favourite films - his over the top melodramatic WUTHERING HEIGHTS and the gushingly sentimental MRS MINIVER but this is so completely different. Those pictures were perfect for me, this subtle more naturalistic picture might be for you.
Whilst I can appreciate how good this is, it's not my sort of film so my low rating is probably much lower than it should be. I'd describe DODSWORTH as a beautifully made, surprisingly uplifting examination of how a happily married couple discover that they're not actually happily married. They've been cooped up in a small American city for twenty years then discover on a trip around Europe that there's more to life, that there's more to their lives, that they're not the people they thought they were.
It's not mushy, it's not sentimental or over-emotional (which is why people like me might not like this!), it's just authentic, believable characters experiencing real life. I've never seen Walter Huston in anything less than marvellous and although this is a bit too mundane and soapy for me, I have to admit he's again marvellous in this.
William Wyler was a genius - he made two of my favourite films - his over the top melodramatic WUTHERING HEIGHTS and the gushingly sentimental MRS MINIVER but this is so completely different. Those pictures were perfect for me, this subtle more naturalistic picture might be for you.
Whilst I can appreciate how good this is, it's not my sort of film so my low rating is probably much lower than it should be. I'd describe DODSWORTH as a beautifully made, surprisingly uplifting examination of how a happily married couple discover that they're not actually happily married. They've been cooped up in a small American city for twenty years then discover on a trip around Europe that there's more to life, that there's more to their lives, that they're not the people they thought they were.
It's not mushy, it's not sentimental or over-emotional (which is why people like me might not like this!), it's just authentic, believable characters experiencing real life. I've never seen Walter Huston in anything less than marvellous and although this is a bit too mundane and soapy for me, I have to admit he's again marvellous in this.