A Rage to Live

Last updated
A Rage to Live
RageToLive.jpg
Original film poster by Renato Fratini
Directed by Walter Grauman
Screenplay byJohn T. Kelley
Based on A Rage to Live
by John O'Hara
Produced by Lewis J. Rachmil
Starring Suzanne Pleshette
Bradford Dillman
Ben Gazzara
CinematographyCharles Lawton Jr.
Edited by Stuart Gilmore
Music by Nelson Riddle
Production
company
Distributed by United Artists
Release date
  • October 20, 1965 (1965-10-20)
(New York City)
Running time
101 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

A Rage to Live is a 1965 American drama film directed by Walter Grauman and starring Suzanne Pleshette as a woman whose passions wreak havoc on her life. The screenplay by John T. Kelley is based on the 1949 novel of the same name by John O'Hara.

Contents

Plot

The sexual voraciousness of newspaper heiress Grace Caldwell threatens to destroy the reputation of her wealthy Pennsylvania family. As a precocious teenager, she is assaulted in her room in her own house by her older brother Brock's friend Charlie Jay, to whom she finally yields willingly, the first of a long series of lovers. Grace understands her weakness but goes on in her path of seduction, until she meets San Francisco real estate broker Sidney Tate at a Christmas party. The two fall in love and he proposes marriage. Grace confesses her past but despite being taken aback, Sidney marries her and she commits herself to a relationship, a pledge she keeps for the first few years of their union, which produces a son and a seemingly idyllic life on a farm.

Problems ensue when lusty contractor Roger Bannon, the son of one of her mother's former servants, confesses to Grace he's been in love with her for years. An affair ensues and when she eventually ends it, he becomes enraged, gets drunk, and accidentally crashes his truck, killing himself. Reports of his death include details about his tryst with Grace, rumors which reach her husband. Under pressure, Grace admits her guilt to him and swears it will never happen again. At this point, however, the alcoholic wife of newspaper editor Jack Hollister, who is also in love with Grace, makes a scene during a charity ball accusing Grace of seducing her husband. Sidney, who witnesses the scene, is once more convinced that his wife has lied to him and goes away. Grace runs after him, swearing she had nothing with Jack Hollister. Still, Sidney departs, leaving her behind in a state of despair.

Cast

Original novel

The novel was O'Hara's fourth book and his first in eleven years. The New York Times called it "his most ambitious book. It is by no means entirely successful, but it does express a vibrant vitality." [1]

O'Hara said his earlier books "were special books about specialised people; but this is the big one, the over-all one." [2]

The novel was a best seller. [3]

Text displayed after credits

At the end of the film, these lines of an Alexander Pope poem are displayed:

Wise Wretch! with Pleasures too refin'd to please,
With too much Spirit to be e'er at ease,
With too much Quickness ever to be taught,
With too much Thinking to have common Thought:
You purchase Pain with all that Joy can give,
And die of nothing but a Rage to live. [4]

Production

Film rights were bought by the Mirisch Corporation in 1959; the Mirisches had a deal with United Artists. The sale was on similar terms to O'Hara's From the Terrace – instead of selling the book for a flat price of $500,000 they had a five-year lease to make the film, with a down payment of $100,000 and O'Hara got 25% of the profits. [5] [6]

The novel was one of a series of properties the Mirisches bought around this time, others including Hawaii, West Side Story and Two for the Seesaw . [7]

In July 1963 John T Kelly was reported as working on the script. [8]

By May 1964 Lewis J Rachmill was assigned to produce, Walter Graumann was the director and Suzanne Pleshette had been cast in the lead. Graumann had just made 633 Squadron for the Mirisches. [9] Ben Gazzara was given a male lead; it was his first film since finishing Arrest and Trial . [10] Bradford Dillman played the other male lead.

Filming started 1 June 1964.

Grauman later signed to do three more films with the Mirisches. [11]

Critical reception

Variety said, "In this banal transfer from tome to film, the characters in John O'Hara's A Rage to Live have retained their two-dimensional unreality ... Nympho heroine goes from man to man amidst corny dialog and inept direction which combine to smother all thesps." [12]

TV Guide rates it 1+1⁄2 out of a possible four stars and adds, "In the transfer from novel to screen, O'Hara's characters have been transformed from vital, living personalities into stiff, unmotivated soap opera fodder." [13]

Awards and nominations

Howard Shoup was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Costume Design, Black and White but lost to Julie Harris for Darling .

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John O'Hara</span> American journalist (1905–1970)

John Henry O'Hara was one of America's most prolific writers of short stories, credited with helping to invent The New Yorker magazine short story style. He became a best-selling novelist before the age of 30 with Appointment in Samarra and BUtterfield 8. While O'Hara's legacy as a writer is debated, his champions rank him highly among the under-appreciated and unjustly neglected major American writers of the 20th century. Few college students educated after O'Hara's death in 1970 have discovered him, chiefly because he refused to allow his work to be reprinted in anthologies used to teach literature at the college level.

<i>Young Bess</i> 1953 film by George Sidney

Young Bess is a 1953 Technicolor biographical film made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer about the early life of Elizabeth I, from her turbulent childhood to the eve of her accession to the throne of England. It stars Jean Simmons as Elizabeth and Stewart Granger as Thomas Seymour, with Charles Laughton as Elizabeth's father, Henry VIII, a part he had played 20 years before in The Private Life of Henry VIII. The film was directed by George Sidney and produced by Sidney Franklin, from a screenplay by Jan Lustig and Arthur Wimperis based on the novel of the same title by Margaret Irwin (1944).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suzanne Pleshette</span> American actress (1937–2008)

Suzanne Pleshette was an American theatre, film, television, and voice actress. Pleshette started her career in the theatre and began appearing in films in the late 1950s and later appeared in prominent films such as Rome Adventure (1962), Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds (1963), and Spirited Away (2001). She later appeared in various television productions, often in guest roles, and played Emily Hartley on The Bob Newhart Show from 1972 until 1978, receiving several Emmy Award nominations for her work.

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

Charles Vidor was a Hungarian film director. Among his film successes are The Bridge (1929), The Tuttles of Tahiti (1942), The Desperadoes (1943), Cover Girl (1944), Together Again (1944), A Song to Remember (1945), Over 21 (1945), Gilda (1946), The Loves of Carmen (1948), Rhapsody (1954), Love Me or Leave Me (1955), The Swan (1956), The Joker Is Wild (1957), and A Farewell to Arms (1957).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sid Grauman</span> American showman (1879–1950)

Sidney Patrick Grauman was an American showman who created two of Hollywood's most recognizable and visited landmarks, the Chinese Theatre and the Egyptian Theatre.

<i>Eye of the Devil</i> 1966 British film by J. Lee Thompson

Eye of the Devil, also known by its working title 13 or Thirteen, is a 1966 British mystery horror film directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Deborah Kerr, David Niven, Donald Pleasence, Sharon Tate and David Hemmings. Based on the 1964 novel Day of the Arrow by Robin Estridge, the movie is set in rural France. It was shot at the Château de Hautefort and in England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bradford Dillman</span> American actor

Bradford Dillman was an American actor and author.

<i>Kitten with a Whip</i> 1964 US crime drama film by Douglas Heyes

Kitten with a Whip is a 1964 American crime drama film directed by Douglas Heyes, who co-wrote the screenplay with Whit Masterson, a pseudonym for writers Robert Allison “Bob” Wade and H. Bill Miller, who also wrote the novel on which the film is based under the name Wade Miller. The film stars John Forsythe, Ann-Margret, Peter Brown, Patricia Barry and Richard Anderson.

<i>Bloodline</i> (1979 film) 1979 thriller film directed by Terence Young

Bloodline is a 1979 thriller film directed by Terence Young from a screenplay by Laird Koenig, based on the 1977 novel of the same name by Sidney Sheldon. It was the only R-rated film ever made by its star, Audrey Hepburn.

<i>Rome Adventure</i> 1962 film by Delmer Daves

Rome Adventure, also known as Lovers Must Learn, is a 1962 romantic drama film, based on the 1932 novel Lovers Must Learn by Irving Fineman. It was directed by Delmer Daves and stars Troy Donahue, Angie Dickinson, and Suzanne Pleshette.

<i>In Love and War</i> (1958 film) 1958 film by Philip Dunne

In Love and War is a 1958 American CinemaScope and DeLuxe Color film set in World War II, directed by Philip Dunne. It is based on the 1957 novel The Big War by Anton Myrer. Myrer was a former Marine wounded during the Second Battle of Guam in 1944.

<i>The Young Doctors</i> (film) 1961 film by Phil Karlson

The Young Doctors is a 1961 drama film directed by Phil Karlson and starring Ben Gazzara, Fredric March, Dick Clark, Ina Balin, Eddie Albert, Phyllis Love, Aline MacMahon, George Segal, and Dolph Sweet.

Seton Ingersoll Miller was an American screenwriter and producer. During his career, he worked with film directors such as Howard Hawks and Michael Curtiz. Miller received two Oscar nominations and won once for Best Screenplay for fantasy romantic comedy film Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941) along with Sidney Buchman.

<i>Lady in a Cage</i> 1964 film by Walter Grauman

Lady in a Cage is a 1964 American psychological thriller film directed by Walter Grauman, written and produced by Luther Davis, and starring Olivia de Havilland and James Caan. The film was released by Paramount Pictures.

<i>Moment to Moment</i> 1966 film by Mervyn LeRoy

Moment to Moment is a 1966 American neo-noir psychological thriller film directed by Mervyn LeRoy and starring Jean Seberg, Honor Blackman and Sean Garrison.

<i>Women in the Wind</i> 1939 film directed by John Farrow

Women in the Wind is a 1939 film directed by John Farrow and starring Kay Francis, William Gargan and Victor Jory. The plot concerns women pilots competing in the so-called "Powder Puff Derby", an annual transcontinental air race solely for women.

<i>Youngblood Hawke</i> (film) 1964 film by Delmer Daves

Youngblood Hawke is a 1964 American drama film directed by Delmer Daves and starring James Franciscus, Suzanne Pleshette, and Geneviève Page. It was adapted from Herman Wouk's 1962 novel of the same name, which was loosely based on the life of Thomas Wolfe.

<i>The San Francisco Story</i> 1952 film by Robert Parrish

The San Francisco Story is a 1952 American Western film directed by Robert Parrish and starring Joel McCrea and Yvonne De Carlo. The rough and tumble Barbary Coast of San Francisco is recreated with attention to detail, including Florence Bates as a saloon keeper Shanghaiing the unwary. Noir elements include many shadows, a discordant musical score, snappy dialogue, a disabused hero who resists the good fight, and a femme fatale. A schematic but insightful rendering of political corruption, the film is essentially about standing up to bullies.

<i>Saint Jack</i> (film) 1979 film by Peter Bogdanovich

Saint Jack is a 1979 American drama film directed by Peter Bogdanovich based on the 1973 novel Saint Jack. Ben Gazzara stars as Flowers in the film. The film also features Denholm Elliott and Lisa Lu.

Crowhaven Farm is a 1970 American made-for-television supernatural horror film and folk horror film directed by Walter Grauman and starring Hope Lange, Paul Burke and John Carradine. It originally aired as the ABC Movie of the Week on November 24, 1970.

References

  1. ↑ O. P. (Aug 16, 1949). "Books of the times". New York Times. ProQuest   105720339.
  2. ↑ H. B. (Sep 4, 1949). "Talk with john O'hara". New York Times. ProQuest   105875797.
  3. ↑ Leaders, F. (Aug 28, 1949). "BEST SELLERS". Los Angeles Times. ProQuest   165957968.
  4. ↑ Pope, Alexander (1743). "EPISTLE II. To a Lady. Of the Characters of WOMEN". University of Pennsylvania (poem). Retrieved 2021-02-17.
  5. ↑ THOMAS M PRYOR Special to The New,York Times. (Feb 2, 1959). "SPIEGEL NEARING A PACT ON MOVIE". New York Times. ProQuest   114710497.
  6. ↑ THOMAS M PRYOR Special to The New,York Times. (Mar 11, 1959). "M-G-M PLANS FILM OF 'BUTTERFIELD 8'". New York Times. ProQuest   114674511.
  7. ↑ A. W. W. (Aug 30, 1959). "BY WAY OF REPORT". New York Times. ProQuest   114665738.
  8. ↑ Scheuer, P. K. (Jul 30, 1963). "'Molly' surrounded by solid citizens". Los Angeles Times. ProQuest   168380991.
  9. ↑ "John wilkes booth story to be filmed". Los Angeles Times. May 2, 1964. ProQuest   168587326.
  10. ↑ Hopper, H. (May 5, 1964). "Gazzara quits TV for stage, films". Los Angeles Times. ProQuest   168593872.
  11. ↑ "Director's pact". Los Angeles Times. Aug 22, 1964. ProQuest   154971414.
  12. ↑ Variety review
  13. ↑ TV Guide review
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.