Summary
Bitter Sweet is a British musical romance film directed by Herbert Wilcox and released by United Artists in 1933. It was the first film adaptation of Noël Coward's 1929 operetta Bitter Sweet. It starred Anna Neagle and Fernand Gravey, with Ivy St. Helier reviving her stage role as Manon. It was made at British and Dominion's Elstree Studios and was part of a boom in operetta films during the 1930s.
| Bitter Sweet | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Herbert Wilcox |
| Screenplay by | Lydia Hayward Monckton Hoffe Herbert Wilcox |
| Based on | Bitter Sweet 1929 operetta by Noël Coward |
| Produced by | Herbert Wilcox |
| Starring | Anna Neagle Fernand Gravey Esme Percy Clifford Heatherley Ivy St. Helier |
| Cinematography | Freddie Young |
| Edited by | Michael Hankinson |
| Music by | Roy Robertson |
| Distributed by | United Artists |
Release date | 31 August 1933 |
Running time | 93 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Box office | £500,000[1] |
It tells the story of Sarah Linden's romance. Sarah, now a gray-haired old woman, tells her story to a girl who is on the eve of marrying an obnoxious man when she is really in love with a musician.[2]
The operetta was remade in 1940 as a film of the same name with Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy; however, it was less faithful to the original story than the less censored 1933 version.[3]
Plot summary edit
Cast edit
- Anna Neagle as Sarah Millick / Sari Linden
- Fernand Gravey as Carl Linden
- Miles Mander as Captain Auguste Lutte
- Clifford Heatherley as Herr Schlick
- Esme Percy as Hugh Devon
- Ivy St. Helier as Manon la Crevette
- Gibb McLaughlin as The Footman
- Stuart Robertson as Lieutenant Tranisch
- Hugh Williams as Vincent
- Pat Paterson as Dolly
- Patrick Ludlow as Henry
- Kay Hammond as Gussi
- Miles Malleson as The Butler
- Norma Whalley as Mrs. Millick
- Al Bowlly as Singer
- Nat Gonella as Trumpeter
- Alan Napier as Lord Shayne
- Lew Stone as Bandleader
- Michael Wilding as Extra
Reception edit
According to Wilcox the film made no profits. He later wrote "it must have been my fault, for surely a better musical play has never been written... perhaps, however, the story is rather too sad for a film."[4]
References edit
- ^ Elstree Versus Hollywood Film Citadel Challenged By Recent British Productions The Times of India (1861-current) [New Delhi, India] 18 November 1933: pg 18.
- ^ Hall, Mordaunt (24 August 1933). "Movie Review – Bitter Sweet – Many Stars of the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Firmament In the Film Version of "Dinner at Eight"". Movies.nytimes.com. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
- ^ "Bitter Sweet (1940)". Jeanettemacdonaldandnelsoneddy.com. Archived from the original on 7 February 2012. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
- ^ Herbert Wilcox, Twenty Five Thousand Sunsets, 1967 p 96
External links edit
- Bitter Sweet at IMDb
- Bitter Sweet at the TCM Movie Database
- Bitter Sweet at AllMovie
- Bitter Sweet at the American Film Institute Catalog
