Ann Vickers (film)
| Ann Vickers | |
|---|---|
| Directed by |
John Cromwell Tommy Atkins (assistant) |
| Produced by | Pandro S. Berman |
| Written by | Jane Murfin |
| Based on |
novel Ann Vickers by Sinclair Lewis |
| Starring |
Irene Dunne Walter Huston |
| Edited by | George Nicholls, Jr. |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | RKO Radio Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 76 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Ann Vickers is a 1933 American Pre-Code romantic drama, starring Irene Dunne and Walter Huston. It is based on the novel of the same name by Sinclair Lewis.
Plot
After a military officer (Bruce Cabot) gets Ann Vickers (Irene Dunne) pregnant and leaves her, her baby dies during birth. Feeling stunned, Ann devotes herself to social work, taking a job in a women's prison. However, when she tries to improve the conditions there, she loses her job. She instead writes a book about the harsh realities of the prison and begins a romance with a married judge, Barney Dolphin (Walter Huston). This helps her career but frustrates her wish for a family.
Cast
- Irene Dunne as Ann Vickers
- Walter Huston as Barney Dolphin
- Conrad Nagel as Lindsey Atwell
- Bruce Cabot as Captain Resnick
- Edna May Oliver as Malvina Wormser
- Sam Hardy as Russell Spaulding
- Mitchell Lewis as Captain Waldo
- Murray Kinnell as Dr. Slenk
- Helen Eby-Rock as Kitty Cognac
- Gertrude Michael as Mona Dolphin
- J. Carrol Naish as Dr. Sorelle (as J. Carroll Naish)
- Sarah Padden as Lil
- Reginald Barlow as Chaplain
- Rafaela Ottiano as Mrs. Feldermans (as Rafaella Ottiano)
Controversy
In the novel, Ann Vickers is a birth control advocate and reformer who has an extramarital affair. The screenplay for the 1933 film was approved by the Production Code only when RKO Radio Pictures agreed to make Vickers an unmarried woman at the time of her affair, thus eliminating the issue of adultery.
The reaction of leading American Roman Catholics to the content in this film and The Sign of the Cross led to the formation in 1934 of the Catholic Legion of Decency, an organization dedicated to identifying and combating what it viewed as objectionable content in films, usually by threatening a boycott.[1]
References
- ↑ Black, Gregory D. (1996). Hollywood Censored: Morality Codes, Catholics, and the Movies. Cambridge University Press. pp. 162–164. ISBN 0-521-56592-8.
External links
- Ann Vickers at the Internet Movie Database
- Ann Vickers at the TCM Movie Database
- Ann Vickers at AllMovie