{"id":48863,"date":"2020-05-23T12:42:38","date_gmt":"2020-05-23T19:42:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=48863"},"modified":"2021-02-05T20:32:22","modified_gmt":"2021-02-06T03:32:22","slug":"madame-bovary-1949","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=48863","title":{"rendered":"Madame Bovary (1949)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;Is it a crime to want things to be beautiful?&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Poster-200x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-48864\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Poster-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Poster-85x128.jpg 85w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Poster.jpg 666w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nGustave Flaubert (James Mason) defends his novel <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Madame_Bovary\"><em>Madame Bovary<\/em><\/a>, about a farm girl named Emma (Jennifer Jones) who marries a local doctor (Van Heflin), but is quickly disappointed that her status hasn&#8217;t risen sufficiently. Jones racks up debts with a local lender (Frank Allenby) while flirting with a clerk (Alf Kjellin) and eventually having an affair with a shiftless playboy (Louis Jourdan). How will kind Dr. Bovary respond when he learns about the depths of his wife&#8217;s deceit?\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>Doctors and Nurses<\/li>\n<li>Historical Drama<\/li>\n<li>Infidelity<\/li>\n<li>James Mason Films<\/li>\n<li>Jennifer Jones Films<\/li>\n<li>Louis Jourdan Films<\/li>\n<li>Morality Police<\/li>\n<li>Social Climbers<\/li>\n<li>Van Heflin Films<\/li>\n<li>Vincente Minnelli Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nVincente Minnelli directed this lavish MGM adaptation of Gustave Flaubert&#8217;s &#8220;obscene&#8221; novel about infidelity, social aspirations, and personal ruin. It&#8217;s undeniably challenging to sympathize with Jones&#8217;s Emma Bovary &#8212; especially given how selfless and kind her husband (Heflin) comes across &#8212; which makes it especially hard to watch her continued self-destruction. Her pursuit of attention and &#8220;fine things&#8221; leads to not only her own downfall, but the ruin of her marriage and an inability to effectively parent her young daughter. The cinematography, sets, and costumes are all top-notch (particularly during the acclaimed &#8220;waltz sequence&#8221;, which shows Emma at the height of her self-perceived desirability) but viewers may find themselves simply dreading the inevitable outcome. The narrative book-ending of Flaubert defending his novel in court is a unique way to share the historical infamy of this work, but doesn&#8217;t do much to actually shift our impressions one way or another.  <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Robert Plancke&#8217;s cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Cinematography2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Cinematography2-1024x668.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"418\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-48871\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Cinematography2-1024x668.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Cinematography2-300x196.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Cinematography2-128x84.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Cinematography2-768x501.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Cinematography2-1536x1002.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Cinematography2.png 1563w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Cinematography.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Cinematography-1024x636.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"398\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-48870\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Cinematography-1024x636.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Cinematography-300x186.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Cinematography-128x79.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Cinematography-768x477.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Cinematography-1536x954.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Cinematography.png 1641w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>The expertly crafted waltz sequence<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Waltz4.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Waltz4-1024x605.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"378\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-48876\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Waltz4-1024x605.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Waltz4-300x177.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Waltz4-128x76.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Waltz4-768x454.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Waltz4-1536x908.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Waltz4.png 1711w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Waltz.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Waltz-1024x626.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"391\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-48875\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Waltz-1024x626.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Waltz-300x183.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Waltz-128x78.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Waltz-768x470.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Waltz-1536x939.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Waltz.png 1693w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Fine sets and costumes<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Gown.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Gown-1024x645.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"403\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-48872\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Gown-1024x645.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Gown-300x189.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Gown-128x81.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Gown-768x484.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Gown-1536x967.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Gown.png 1609w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Gown2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Gown2-1024x660.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"413\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-48873\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Gown2-1024x660.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Gown2-300x193.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Gown2-128x83.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Gown2-768x495.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Gown2-1536x991.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Madame-Bovary-Gown2.png 1583w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Miklos Rozsa&#8217;s score<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nNo, though it&#8217;s worth a one-time look. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0041615\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/2366\/madame-bovary\/#articles-reviews?articleId=60068\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dvdtalk.com\/dvdsavant\/s2239lit.html\">DVD Savant Review (scroll down to third review)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1949\/08\/26\/archives\/madame-bovary-based-on-novel-by-flaubert-at-capitol-jennifer-jones.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Is it a crime to want things to be beautiful?&#8221; Synopsis: Gustave Flaubert (James Mason) defends his novel Madame Bovary, about a farm girl named Emma (Jennifer Jones) who marries a local doctor (Van Heflin), but is quickly disappointed that her status hasn&#8217;t risen sufficiently. Jones racks up debts with a local lender (Frank Allenby) while flirting with a clerk (Alf Kjellin) and eventually having an affair with a shiftless playboy (Louis Jourdan). How will kind Dr. Bovary respond when&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=48863\"> 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-48863","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\/48863","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=48863"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48863\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":69120,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48863\/revisions\/69120"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=48863"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=48863"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=48863"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}