{"id":43929,"date":"2019-06-20T10:59:16","date_gmt":"2019-06-20T17:59:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=43929"},"modified":"2021-01-13T23:01:49","modified_gmt":"2021-01-14T06:01:49","slug":"citadel-the-1938","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=43929","title":{"rendered":"Citadel, The (1938)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;Your work isn&#8217;t making money &#8212; it&#8217;s bettering humanity, and you know it.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Poster-200x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-43931\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Poster-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Poster-85x128.jpg 85w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Poster.jpg 666w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nAn earnest new doctor (Robert Donat) meets his wife (Rosalind Russell) when working and researching tuberculosis in a hard-scrabble Welsh mining town. With assistance from a friend (Rex Harrison), he soon finds himself living a more luxurious existence serving wealthier clients &#8212; but when his old friend (Ralph Richardson) suffers grave consequences from medical neglect, Donat begins to rethink his goals.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Do-Gooders<\/li>\n<li>Doctors and Nurses<\/li>\n<li>King Vidor Films<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Ralph Richardson Films<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Rex Harrison Films<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Robert Donat Films<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Rosalind Russell Films<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nKing Vidor&#8217;s adaptation of <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/The_Citadel_(novel)\">A.J. Cronin&#8217;s semi-autobiographical novel<\/a> tells a compelling tale of how easily youthful idealism can shift to settled complacency within the medical field. As noted in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/3217\/the-citadel#articles-reviews?articleId=87774\">TCM&#8217;s article<\/a>: <\/p>\n<blockquote><p>In many ways, <em>The Citadel<\/em> is the missing link between idealized medical biographies like <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=43709\"><em>The Story of Louis Pasteur<\/em> (1936) <\/a>and strong, socially conscious films like John Ford&#8217;s <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=32033\"><em>How Green Was My Valley<\/em> (1941)<\/a>. The only reason American doctors didn&#8217;t raise a fuss over the film&#8217;s often negative view of the medical profession is probably because the story takes place in England and not the United States. <\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>However, despite being very specifically about a doctor, <em>The Citadel&#8217;s<\/em> take-aways can easily be translated to countless other spheres. When faced with the choice between a hard-scrabble life fighting for social justice versus enjoying a career of ease and comfort, it&#8217;s hard to say how many would willingly pick the former. Donat imbues his complex role with authenticity and pathos, and Russell is admirably resolute as his loyal (and razor-sharp) wife. This one is worth a look. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Note:<\/strong> It&#8217;s impossible not to notice the parallels between this and the previous year&#8217;s Oscar-winning Best Picture, <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=43914\"><em>The Life of Emile Zola<\/em> (1937)<\/a>, also about tensions between the comforts of fame and fighting for what&#8217;s right. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Robert Donat as Dr. Manson<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Donat.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Donat.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-43934\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Donat.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Donat-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Donat-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Rosalind Russell as Donat&#8217;s supportive wife<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Russell.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Russell.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-43932\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Russell.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Russell-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Russell-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Fine cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Cinematography.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Cinematography.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-43933\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Cinematography.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Cinematography-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Citadel-Cinematography-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, for Donat and Russell&#8217;s performances. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Noteworthy Performance(s)<\/li>\n<li>Oscar Winner or Nominee<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0029995\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/3217\/the-citadel#articles-reviews?articleId=87774\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tvguide.com\/movies\/the-citadel\/review\/110932\/\">TV Guide Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Your work isn&#8217;t making money &#8212; it&#8217;s bettering humanity, and you know it.&#8221; Synopsis: An earnest new doctor (Robert Donat) meets his wife (Rosalind Russell) when working and researching tuberculosis in a hard-scrabble Welsh mining town. With assistance from a friend (Rex Harrison), he soon finds himself living a more luxurious existence serving wealthier clients &#8212; but when his old friend (Ralph Richardson) suffers grave consequences from medical neglect, Donat begins to rethink his goals. Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=43929\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43929","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43929","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=43929"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43929\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":63230,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43929\/revisions\/63230"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=43929"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=43929"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=43929"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}