A long-winded, and decidedly dull disappointment.

JohnHowardReid

Producer: Darryl F. Zanuck. Copyright 17 September 1952 by 20th Century-Fox Film Corp. New York opening at the Rivoli: 18 September 1952. U.S. release: July 1953 (sic). U.K. release: 2 February 1953. Australian release: 18 December 1952. Sydney Opening at the Regent. 114 minutes.

SYNOPSIS: Harry Street, an amazingly successful novelist, is near death at the foot of Kilimanjaro. Reviewing his life, particularly his thwarted romances with Cynthia and Liz, he decides to mend his ways, settle down with his third love, Helen, and even write something worthwhile.

NOTES: Nominated for Academy Awards for Color Cinematography (won by The Quiet Man), and Color Art Direction (won by Moulin Rouge).

Aided by a lavishly mounted publicity campaign which stressed the non-existent salacious qualities of the tedious script, the movie came in 3rd at the domestic box-office with a gross rentals take of $6½ million.

Number 5 on the National Board of Review's American Ten Best of 1952.
Best Actress of 1952, Susan Hayward (principally for her acting in With a Song In My Heart, but her performance in this one also influenced the voters) - Photoplay Gold Medal Award.

COMMENT: Casey Robinson has reduced Hemingway to a wordy, sluggishly paced bore, hammily acted by Susan Hayward who is absolutely ridiculous as the distraught wife. Peck is likewise totally unbelievable and the other players are forced into an unequal struggle with their impossible characters.

Leon Shamroy has tried to give the film a bit of atmospheric sheen and gloss (indeed the lighting is the film's best feature) but the plodding music score and Henry King's elephantine direction do not help. A bit of location footage (the stars stay firmly in the studio) helps but generally this is an overlong, long-winded, and decidedly dull disappointment.

score 5/10

JohnHowardReid 7 June 2018

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw4193527/