The Wedding Night

Last updated
The Wedding Night
The Wedding Night poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by King Vidor
Screenplay by Edith Fitzgerald
Story by Edwin H. Knopf
Produced by Samuel Goldwyn
Starring
Cinematography Gregg Toland
Edited by Stuart Heisler
Music by Alfred Newman
Production
company
Distributed by United Artists
Release date
  • March 8, 1935 (1935-03-08)(US)
Running time
83 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$174,081

The Wedding Night is a 1935 American romantic drama film directed by King Vidor and starring Gary Cooper and Anna Sten. Written by Edith Fitzgerald and based on a story by Edwin H. Knopf, the film is about a financially strapped novelist who returns to his country home in Connecticut looking for inspiration for his next novel and becomes involved with a beautiful young Polish woman and her family. The film was produced by Samuel Goldwyn and filmed at Samuel Goldwyn Studios from early November to early December 1934. It was released in the United States on March 8, 1935.

Contents

The film received generally positive reviews, with The New York Times calling it "both pictorially and dramatically striking". Despite the reviews, the film did poorly at the box office, earning only $174,081. King Vidor won the Volpi Cup for Best Director at the Venice Film Festival in 1935. The Wedding Night was released in DVD format by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment on May 22, 2007. In February 2020, the film was shown at the 70th Berlin International Film Festival, as part of a retrospective dedicated to King Vidor's career. [1]

Plot

New York novelist Tony Barrett (Gary Cooper) and his wife Dora (Helen Vinson) have accumulated serious debts as a result of their fast and affluent lifestyle in the big city. When Tony approaches his publisher expecting an advance on his newest novel, he is told that success has gone to his head and the novel is unpublishable. With few options available, Tony and Dora move to his family's run-down farm in Connecticut, where they meet his neighbors: a Polish farmer, Jan Novak (Sig Ruman), and his beautiful daughter, Manya (Anna Sten). Looking to expand his own property, Mr. Novak offers Tony $5,000 for a field bordering the Novak farm, and the author eagerly accepts. With their finances replenished, Dora returns to New York, leaving Tony at the farm, where he intends to write a new novel inspired by the Novaks and their friends.

Sometime later, Tony and Manya are at his house discussing her betrothal to Fredrik (Ralph Bellamy), the young man chosen by her father to be her husband. A drunken Tony tells Manya that she is not in love with the young man, and makes suggestive remarks that anger her. The following day, Tony apologizes to Manya and the two begin a close friendship. After Tony's servant leaves to return to New York, Manya begins spending more time at Tony's farm and the two fall in love, just like the characters in his new novel, Stephen and Sonya. Fredrik soon learns that Manya has been seeing Tony at his farm, and he and her father forbid her from seeing Tony again. Ignoring their orders, Manya continues to spend time with the novelist at his house. One evening, a snow storm prevents Manya from returning home. The next morning, Mr. Novak angrily confronts Tony at his farm. Later, he demands that Manya marry Fredrik the following Monday. When Manya tells him that she will not spend her life being an unpaid servant like her mother, Novak slaps her.

Later that day, Dora arrives back at the farm, telling her husband that she missed him terribly during their separation. Dora hears stories about the previous night, and hopes that they mean nothing. When she reads his new manuscript, however, she suspects that the love affair between the characters of Stephen and Sonya reflect her husband's own feelings for Manya. On the night before her wedding, Manya goes to see Tony, but finds Dora instead. The two speak about Tony's new novel and how it will end—both realizing that they are really speaking about their own lives. Dora tells Manya that she is sure that Stephen's wife will not give up her husband, but that she would feel sorry for Sonya. Manya tells her about the upcoming wedding, and then leaves.

When Tony returns home, he asks Dora for a divorce, but she refuses, telling him that his novel should end with Sonya marrying her Polish fiancé. The next day, after learning that Manya and Fredrik are getting married, Tony goes to the wedding party and dances with Manya. Later, a drunken Fredrik, angered by his fiancé's lack of passion and interest on their wedding night, storms out of their bedroom and goes to Tony's house to confront the man he suspects is to blame. Manya follows him to Tony's house, where she attempts to stop Fredrik from fighting with Tony on the stairs. During the struggle, Manya falls down the stairs and is seriously injured. Tony carries her to the parlor, where he tells her he loves her, just before she dies. Later, Dora tells Tony that he can now see Manya privately. Gazing out the window, Tony tells her about how full of life Manya was and imagines that she is waving to him.

Cast

Gary Cooper and Anna Sten publicity photo for The Wedding Night Gary Cooper and Anna Sten in The Wedding Night 1935.jpg
Gary Cooper and Anna Sten publicity photo for The Wedding Night

Production

Anna Sten came to the attention of American movie mogul Samuel Goldwyn in early 1932 while the actress was still making films in Germany. [5] Born in Kiev in 1908, Anjuschka Stenski began her career making films for Mezhrabpom-Russ film studio, becoming the protege of director Fedor Ozep, who became her husband. [5] They moved to Berlin and began making films there. [5] Goldwyn had been looking for a foreign-born actress that he could build up as the rival of Greta Garbo, and possible successor to Vilma Bánky, with whom Goldwyn had great success in the silent era. [6] He brought her to America and signed her to a four-year contract, spending the next year having his new star tutored in English and teaching her Hollywood screen acting methods. [7] He poured a great deal of time and money into her first American film, Nana (1934), a somewhat homogenized version of Émile Zola's scandalous nineteenth century novel. [8] However, the film was not successful at the box office, [9] nor was her subsequent Goldwyn film, We Live Again (1934). [6] Goldwyn decided to pair her with Gary Cooper for her third American film. [6]

The Wedding Night was filmed at Samuel Goldwyn Studios in West Hollywood, California from early November to early December 1934. [2] The film was originally titled Broken Soil. [10] When director King Vidor began filming scenes with Cooper, he was initially disappointed and the actor's apparent "mumbling and stumbling" style. [11] When he viewed footage from that first day, however, the director was surprised to see "a performance that overflowed with charm and personality ... a highly complex and fascinating inner personality revealed itself on the projection room screen". [11]

This was the second of eight films in which both Cooper and Brennan appeared.

Release

The Wedding Night was released in the United States on March 8, 1935. [4]

Critical response

In his review in The New York Times, Andre Sennwald praised the film for its "uncommonly adult style", calling it "both pictorially and dramatically striking". [12] Sennwald also noted the "uniformly expert" performances by Cooper who "continues to reveal a refreshing sense of humor in his work", the "highly talented" Sten, and Vinson who is "excellently right as the wife, playing the part with such intelligence and sympathy that she contributes definitely to the power of the climax". [12] Sennwald concludes:

The Wedding Night displays an unusual regard for the truth and it is courageous enough to allow an affair which is obviously doomed to end logically in tragedy. Although its materials are too conventional to result in great screen drama, the film is handsomely arresting, and it represents a satisfying compromise between Mr. Vidor, the realist, and Mr. Goldwyn, the romantic. [12]

The Wedding Night has received generally favorable reviews from recent film critics. In his review for the Immortal Ephemera website, Cliff Aliperti gave the film eight out of ten stars, calling it a "frank romance" with "standout performances" by Gary Cooper, Anna Sten, and Helen Vinson. [13] Aliperti praises Cooper's "quiet intensity, his lovable clumsiness at close quarters, and his strong sense of will power". [13] He rejects contemporary views of Sten as "Goldwyn's Folly" noting that she is "at her best in the more universal silent moments, where she can really emote". He also called Vinson's portrayal of Dora "the best performance I've ever seen [her] give". [13] Aliperti is equally impressed with Vidor's direction, observing that it "adds an impressive slice of Americana to an overall output that forever captures the America of his time". [13] Aliperti concludes: "The Wedding Night is well-acted, touching, shocking in a few spots, and mature, with interesting visuals provided especially by the Polish ceremony of the title. An exciting movie to view for the first time." [13]

TV Guide gave the film three out of five stars, noting, "Although the film has a great deal of artistic merit—Goldwyn's influence, Vidor's directorial skill, and Toland's sharp photography—it fell victim to indifference on the part of moviegoers ... [and] just didn't make much of an impression on the Depression-era audiences." [14] Jeremy Heilman on the MovieMartyr website called the film "a satisfying, if unexceptional, melodrama buoyed by its performances". [15]

Box office

Despite the critical praise, the movie was not a box-office success.

The film earned a box office gross of only $174,081 (equivalent to $3,715,700in 2022). [16] The film became known around Hollywood as "Goldwyn's Last Sten". [17] After the public failed to embrace his Ukrainian actress, Goldwyn informed Sten that he was suspending her contract. [17]

Accolades

Home media

The Wedding Night was released in DVD format by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment on May 22, 2007. [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gary Cooper</span> American actor (1901–1961)

Gary Cooper was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, as well as an Academy Honorary Award in 1961 for his career achievements. He was one of the top-10 film personalities for 23 consecutive years and one of the top money-making stars for 18 years. The American Film Institute (AFI) ranked Cooper at number 11 on its list of the 25 greatest male stars of classic Hollywood cinema.

<i>David Copperfield</i> (1935 film) 1935 film by George Cukor

David Copperfield is a 1935 American film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer based upon Charles Dickens' 1850 novel The Personal History, Adventures, Experience, & Observation of David Copperfield the Younger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King Vidor</span> American screenwriter and film director

King Wallis Vidor was an American film director, film producer, and screenwriter whose 67-year film-making career successfully spanned the silent and sound eras. His works are distinguished by a vivid, humane, and sympathetic depiction of contemporary social issues. Considered an auteur director, Vidor approached multiple genres and allowed the subject matter to determine the style, often pressing the limits of film-making conventions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gladys Cooper</span> British actress

Dame Gladys Constance Cooper, was an English actress, theatrical manager and producer, whose career spanned seven decades on stage, in films and on television.

<i>Come and Get It</i> (1936 film) 1936 American drama film directed by Howard Hawks and William Wyler

Come and Get It is a 1936 American lumberjack drama film directed by Howard Hawks and William Wyler. The screenplay by Jane Murfin and Jules Furthman is based on the 1935 novel of the same title by Edna Ferber.

<i>The Westerner</i> (1940 film) 1940 film by William Wyler

The Westerner is a 1940 American Western film directed by William Wyler and starring Gary Cooper, Walter Brennan and Doris Davenport. Written by Niven Busch and Jo Swerling, the film concerns a self-appointed hanging judge in Vinegaroon, Texas, who befriends a saddle tramp who opposes the judge's policy against homesteaders. The film is remembered for Walter Brennan's performance as Judge Roy Bean, for which he won his record-setting third Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. James Basevi and Stuart N. Lake also received Academy Award nominations for Best Art Direction, Black and White and Best Story, respectively. The supporting cast features Dana Andrews, Chill Wills and Forrest Tucker.

<i>The Fountainhead</i> (film) 1949 film

The Fountainhead is a 1949 American black-and-white drama film produced by Henry Blanke, directed by King Vidor, and starring Gary Cooper, Patricia Neal, Raymond Massey, Robert Douglas and Kent Smith. The film is based on the bestselling 1943 novel of the same name by Ayn Rand, who also wrote the adaptation. Although Rand's screenplay was used with minimal alterations, she later criticized the editing, production design and acting.

<i>Reckless</i> (1935 film) 1935 American musical film directed by Victor Fleming

Reckless is a 1935 American musical film directed by Victor Fleming and starring Jean Harlow, William Powell, Franchot Tone, and May Robson. David O. Selznick wrote the story, using the pseudonym Oliver Jeffries, basing it loosely on the scandal of the 1931 marriage between torch singer Libby Holman and tobacco heir Zachary Smith Reynolds, and his death by a gunshot wound to the head.

<i>Barbary Coast</i> (film) 1935 film

Barbary Coast is a 1935 American historical Western film directed by Howard Hawks. Shot in black-and-white and set in San Francisco's so-called Barbary Coast during the California Gold Rush, the film combines elements of the Western genre with those of crime, melodrama and adventure. It features a wide range of actors, from hero Joel McCrea to villain Edward G. Robinson, and stars Miriam Hopkins in the leading role as Mary 'Swan' Rutledge. In an early, uncredited appearance, David Niven plays a drunken sailor being thrown out of a bar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helen Vinson</span> American actress (1907–1999)

Helen Vinson was an American film actress who appeared in 40 films between 1932 and 1945.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anna Sten</span> Ukrainian-born American actress

Anna Sten was a Ukrainian-born American actress. She began her career in stage plays and films in the Soviet Union, then traveled to Germany, where she starred in several films. Her performances were noticed by film producer Samuel Goldwyn, who brought her to the United States with the aim of creating a screen personality to rival Greta Garbo. After a few unsuccessful films, Goldwyn released her from her contract. She continued to act occasionally until her final film appearance in 1962.

<i>Peter Ibbetson</i> 1935 film by Henry Hathaway

Peter Ibbetson is a 1935 American black-and-white drama/fantasy film directed by Henry Hathaway and starring Gary Cooper and Ann Harding. The film is loosely based on the 1891 novel of the same name by George du Maurier. A tale of a love that transcends all obstacles, it relates the story of two youngsters who are separated in childhood and then drawn together by destiny years later. Even though they are separated in real life because Peter is unjustly convicted of murder, they discover they can dream themselves into each other's consciousness while asleep. In this way, they live out their lives together. The transitions between reality and fantasy are captured by the cinematography of Charles Lang, as discussed in the documentary Visions of Light (1992).

<i>Black Fury</i> (film) 1935 film by Michael Curtiz

Black Fury is a 1935 American crime film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Paul Muni, Karen Morley, and William Gargan. It was adapted by Abem Finkel and Carl Erickson from the short story "Jan Volkanik" by Judge Michael A. Musmanno and the play Bohunk by Harry R. Irving. The plot is based on a historic incident during a Pennsylvania walk-out in 1929, in which John Barkowski, a striking coal miner, was beaten to death by private company police.

Public Hero ﹟1 is a 1935 American crime film starring Lionel Barrymore, Jean Arthur, Chester Morris and Joseph Calleia. The Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer production was directed by J. Walter Ruben.

<i>We Live Again</i> 1934 film by Rouben Mamoulian

We Live Again is a 1934 American film directed by Rouben Mamoulian and starring Anna Sten and Fredric March. The film is an adaptation of Leo Tolstoy's 1899 novel Resurrection (Voskraeseniye). The screenplay was written by Maxwell Anderson with contributions from a number of writers, including Preston Sturges and Thornton Wilder.

<i>Jewel Robbery</i> 1932 film

Jewel Robbery is a 1932 American pre-Code romantic comedy heist film, directed by William Dieterle and starring William Powell and Kay Francis. It is based on the 1931 Hungarian play Ékszerrablás a Váci-utcában by Ladislas Fodor and its subsequent English adaptation, Jewel Robbery by Bertram Bloch.

<i>A Lost Lady</i> (1934 film) 1934 film by Alfred E. Green, Phil Rosen

A Lost Lady is a 1934 American drama film directed by Alfred E. Green and starring by Barbara Stanwyck, Frank Morgan, and Ricardo Cortez. Based on the 1923 novel A Lost Lady by Willa Cather, with a screenplay by Gene Markey and Kathryn Scola, the film is about a woman whose fiancé is murdered by his mistress' husband two days before their wedding. Her uncle sends her away to the mountains, where she meets a man who looks after her and eventually proposes. She accepts even though she does not love him.

<i>Exile Express</i> 1939 film by Otis Garrett

Exile Express is a 1939 American drama film directed by Otis Garrett and starring Anna Sten, Alan Marshal and Jerome Cowan.

Nana is a 1934 American pre-Code film, produced by Samuel Goldwyn, released through United Artists, starring Anna Sten. and directed by Dorothy Arzner and George Fitzmaurice.

<i>Doomsday</i> (1928 film) 1928 film

Doomsday is a 1928 American romance drama silent film directed by Rowland V. Lee and starring Florence Vidor and Gary Cooper. Written by Julian Johnson, Donald W. Lee, and Doris Anderson, based on the 1927 novel Doomsday by Warwick Deeping, the film is about a woman who marries a wealthy landowner to escape her life of poverty, leaving behind the handsome farmer she truly loves. Produced by Jesse L. Lasky, Rowland V. Lee, Hector Turnbull, and Adolph Zukor for Paramount Pictures, Doomsday was released on February 18, 1928 in the United States.

References

Citations

  1. ↑ "Berlinale 2020: Retrospective "King Vidor"". Berlinale. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  2. 1 2 "The Wedding Night". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 Wiener, Tom. "The Wedding Night". AllMovie. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  4. 1 2 "The Wedding Night". American Film Institute. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  5. 1 2 3 Berg 1989, p. 233.
  6. 1 2 3 Berg 1989, p. 242.
  7. ↑ Berg 1989, pp. 234–238.
  8. ↑ Berg 1989, p. 235.
  9. ↑ Berg 1989, pp. 239–240.
  10. ↑ "The Wedding Night: Notes". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  11. 1 2 Landazuri, Margarita. "The Wedding Night (1935)". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  12. 1 2 3 Sennwald, Andre (March 16, 1935). "The Wedding Night (1935)". The New York Times. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 Aliperti, Cliff (June 5, 2015). "The Wedding Night (1935)". Immortal Ephemera. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  14. ↑ "The Wedding Night (1935)". TV Guide. June 5, 2015. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  15. ↑ Heilman, Jeremy (August 8, 2009). "The Wedding Night (King Vidor, 1935)". MovieMartyr. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  16. ↑ "The Wedding Night: Money". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  17. 1 2 Berg 1989, p. 244.

Sources

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.