All That Heaven Allows

Last updated

All That Heaven Allows
All That Heaven Allows (1955 poster).jpg
Theatrical release poster by Reynold Brown
Directed by Douglas Sirk
Screenplay by Peg Fenwick based on the novel by Edna L. Lee
Harry Lee
Produced by Ross Hunter
Starring Jane Wyman
Rock Hudson
Cinematography Russell Metty
Edited byFrank Gross
Music by Frank Skinner
Color process Technicolor
Production
company
Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release dates
  • August 25, 1955 (1955-08-25)(London)
[2]
  • December 25, 1955 (1955-12-25)(United States)
Running time
89 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$3.1 million (US) [3]

All That Heaven Allows is a 1955 American drama romance film directed by Douglas Sirk, produced by Ross Hunter, and adapted by Peg Fenwick from a novel by Edna L. Lee and Harry Lee. It stars Jane Wyman and Rock Hudson in a tale about the social complications that arise following the development of a romance between a well-to-do widow and a younger man, who owns a tree nursery. In 1995, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry. [4]

Contents

Plot

Original release trailer for the film All That Heaven Allows (1955)

Cary Scott is an affluent widow in the town of Stoningham, in suburban New England, whose social life revolves around the weekend visits of her college-age son and daughter, her best friend's country-club activities, and a few men vying for her affection. Feeling stuck in a rut, she becomes interested in Ron Kirby, her arborist. He is an intelligent, down-to-earth, and respectful, yet passionate, younger man, and she discovers he is content with his simple life outside the materialistic society in which they live. Ron introduces Cary to his friends, who seem to have no need for wealth or status, and their exuberance provides a welcome contrast to her staid existence.

Ron and Cary fall in love, and Ron proposes. Cary accepts, but she has concerns about the viability of their relationship, due to their different ages, classes, and lifestyles. These concerns are magnified when she tells her children and friends about the engagement and is met with a solid wall of disapproval, and, eventually, she breaks up with Ron. Particularly influential in her change of mind are her children's protestations against Cary's plan to sell the family home and move to Ron's tree nursery, as they will not want to visit her there.

After spending most of the Christmas season alone, Cary misses her life with Ron, but she thinks she has missed her opportunity for happiness because she mistakenly believes Ron is seeing another woman. On Christmas, her daughter announces she will be getting married soon and her son says that, since he is likely going to study abroad and then work overseas, they should start thinking about selling their house, which is too big for just Cary. She is overwhelmed by how pointless her sacrifice was, and her spirits are not lifted when her children give her a television set to fill her empty life.

Cary goes to see a doctor about recurrent headaches she has started having, and he suggests they are being caused by her body punishing her for ending her relationship with Ron. Leaving the appointment, she runs into one of Ron's friends, and in the course of their conversation she learns that Ron is still single. She goes to his property, but then changes her mind and leaves. Ron sees her from a precipice and excitedly, though unsuccessfully, tries to get her attention. The ground collapses out from under him, and he falls off the cliff.

That night, Ron's friend tells Cary about the accident, and she hurries over to his house. She decides she no longer wants to allow other people to dictate how she lives her life and settles in to nurse Ron back to health. When Ron regains consciousness, Cary tells him that she has come home.

Cast

Production

Screenplay

Screenwriter Peg Fenwick wrote the screenplay for All That Heaven Allows based on the 394-page novel of the same name by Edna L. and Harry Lee. Notations made on various pages of a copy of the original screenplay owned by the New York Public Library indicate that the script was written in August 1954.

Some scenes in the script differ from those in the finished film. For instance, in the screenplay Rock Hudson's character, Ron Kirby, lies on the grass eating his lunch, but in the final cut of the film, he has lunch with Jane Wyman's character, Cary Scott. [5]

Sirk considered having Hudson's character die at the end of the film, but Ross Hunter, the film's producer, would not allow it, because he wanted a more positive ending.

Development

After the success of Magnificent Obsession in 1954, Universal-International Pictures wanted Sirk to make another film starring Wyman and Hudson. He found the screenplay for All That Heaven Allows "rather impossible", but was able to restructure it and use the big budget to film and edit the work exactly the way he wanted. [6]

Wyman was 38 when she played the film's "older woman", who scandalizes society and her grown-up children by becoming engaged to a younger man. Hudson, "the younger man", was 29 at the time.

Filming

Some exteriors for the film were shot on "Colonial Street", a studio backlot built by Paramount Pictures on the property of Universal Studios four years earlier and used in the film The Desperate Hours . [7] The set was re-designed to mimic an upper-middle class New England town. The film contains only one visible crane shot, when the camera scans over the fictional town of Stoningham during the opening credits. Tracking and dollying shots were used frequently for interior shots. The set was later featured on the television series Leave It to Beaver . [7]

Music

The music that recurs throughout the film is Consolation No. 3 in D-flat major by Franz Liszt, along with frequent snatches of the finale to Brahms's First Symphony, the latter re-scored and sometimes elaborated. [8] Also heard intermittently is "Warum?" (German for "Why?") by Robert Schumann, from the Fantasiestücke, Op. 12.

Release

The film was released in Great Britain on August 25, 1955, several months ahead of its US premiere. In the United States, it opened in Los Angeles on Christmas Day 1955, and in New York City on February 28, 1956. The US release followed an extensive advertising campaign focusing on popular women's magazines such as McCall's , Family Circle , Woman's Day , and Redbook, which referred to the film as a "woman's picture". [9]

Motion Picture Daily reported that the film earned $16,000 on its opening day and did “above average” business in areas like Atlanta, Miami, New Orleans, and Jacksonville. [10]

Reception

The film press compared the movie favorably to Magnificent Obsession (1954), which also starred Wyman and Hudson and was directed by Sirk. A review in Motion Picture Daily was generally positive and praised Sirk for his use of color and mise en scène, saying: "In a print by Technicolor, the exterior shots and the interior settings are so beautifully photographed that they point up the action of the story with telling effect." [11]

Although Sirk's reputation waned in the 1960s—as he was dismissed as a director of dated and insubstantial Hollywood melodramas—it was revived in the 1970s due to the praise of New German Cinema directors like Rainer Werner Fassbinder and the publication of Jon Halliday's Sirk on Sirk (1971), in which the filmmaker describes his aesthetic and (often-subversive) social perspective. [12] His reputation, and that of All That Heaven Allows, has grown since then, with critic Richard Brody describing him as a master of both melodrama and comedy, and the film as remarkable for its use of Henry David Thoreau's Walden as a homegrown American philosophy depicted as a "vital and ongoing experience." [13]

On Rotten Tomatoes, All That Heaven Allows has an approval rating of 91% based on 32 reviews, with an average rating of 7.7/10. The consensus summarizes: "Big heart, big drama, and even bigger colors, All That Heaven Allows is tip top Douglas Sirk." [14]

Awards and honors

In 1995, the film was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the Library of Congress, and was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry. [15]

References in other films

All That Heaven Allows inspired Fassbinder's Ali: Fear Eats the Soul (1974), [16] in which a mature woman falls in love with an Arab man. It was spoofed by John Waters with his film Polyester (1981). [17] Todd Haynes' Far from Heaven (2002) is an homage to Sirk's work, in particular All That Heaven Allows and Imitation of Life (1959). [18] François Ozon's 8 Women (8 Femmes, 2002) features winter scenes and deer reminiscent of this film. [19]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rainer Werner Fassbinder</span> German filmmaker (1945–1982)

Rainer Werner Fassbinder, sometimes credited as R. W. Fassbinder, was a German filmmaker, actor, and dramatist. He is widely regarded as one of the major figures and catalysts of the New German Cinema movement. Versatile and prolific, his over 40 films span a variety of genres, most frequently blending elements of Hollywood melodrama with social criticism and avant-garde techniques. His films, according to him, explored "the exploitability of feelings". His work was deeply rooted in post-war German culture: the aftermath of Nazism, the German economic miracle, and the terror of the Red Army Faction. He worked with a company of actors and technicians who frequently appeared in his projects.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Douglas Sirk</span> German film director (1897–1987)

Douglas Sirk was a German film director best known for his work in Hollywood melodramas of the 1950s. However, he also directed comedies, westerns, and war films. Sirk started his career in Germany as a stage and screen director, but he left for Hollywood in 1937 after his Jewish wife was persecuted by the Nazis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jane Wyman</span> American actress (1917–2007)

Jane Wyman was an American actress. She received an Academy Award (1948), four Golden Globe Awards and nominations for two Primetime Emmy Awards.

<i>The Blue Veil</i> (1951 film) 1951 American drama film

The Blue Veil is a 1951 American historical drama film directed by Curtis Bernhardt and starring Jane Wyman, Charles Laughton and Joan Blondell. It tells the story of a woman who spends her life caring for other people’s children, beginning just after World War I. The title refers to the headdresses once worn by governesses and nannies, colored blue to distinguish them from the white veils worn by medical nurses. The screenplay by Norman Corwin is based on a story by François Campaux, adapted for the French-language film Le Voile Bleu in 1942.

Lloyd Cassel Douglas was an American minister and author.

<i>Far from Heaven</i> 2002 American-French film by Todd Haynes

Far from Heaven is a 2002 historical romantic drama film written and directed by Todd Haynes, and starring Julianne Moore, Dennis Quaid, Dennis Haysbert, and Patricia Clarkson. It premiered at the Venice Film Festival, where Moore won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress, and cinematographer Edward Lachman won a prize for Outstanding Individual Contribution.

<i>Written on the Wind</i> 1956 film by Douglas Sirk

Written on the Wind is a 1956 American Southern Gothic melodrama film directed by Douglas Sirk and starring Rock Hudson, Lauren Bacall, Robert Stack, and Dorothy Malone. It follows the dysfunctional family members of a Texas oil dynasty, including the complicated relationships among its alcoholic heir: his wife, a former secretary for the family company, his childhood best friend, and his ruthless, self-destructive sister.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Riskin</span> American screenwriter (1897-1955)

Robert Riskin was an American screenwriter. He is best known for his collaborations with Frank Capra.

<i>Ali: Fear Eats the Soul</i> 1974 film

Ali: Fear Eats the Soul is a 1974 West German drama film written and directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, starring Brigitte Mira and El Hedi ben Salem. The film won the International Federation of Film Critics award for best in-competition movie and the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury at the 1974 Cannes Film Festival. It is considered to be one of Fassbinder's most powerful works and is hailed by many as a masterpiece.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ross Hunter</span> American actor

Ross Hunter was an American film and television producer and actor. He is best known for producing light comedies such as Pillow Talk (1959), and the glamorous melodramas Magnificent Obsession (1954), Imitation of Life (1959), and Back Street (1961).

<i>Mother Küsters Trip to Heaven</i> 1975 film by Rainer Werner Fassbinder

Mother Küsters' Trip to Heaven is a 1975 German film written and directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder. It stars Brigitte Mira, Ingrid Caven, Karlheinz Böhm and Margit Carstensen. The film was shot over 20 days between February and March 1975 in Frankfurt am Main. The film drew on both Sirk-style melodramas and Weimar era workers' films to tell a political coming of age story.

<i>Magnificent Obsession</i> (1954 film) 1954 film by Douglas Sirk

Magnificent Obsession is a 1954 American romantic drama film directed by Douglas Sirk starring Jane Wyman and Rock Hudson. It is a remake of the 1935 film by the same name, starring Irene Dunne and Robert Taylor. Both are based on the 1929 novel Magnificent Obsession by Lloyd C. Douglas.

<i>Magnificent Obsession</i> (1935 film) 1935 film by John M. Stahl

Magnificent Obsession is a 1935 drama film based on the 1929 novel of the same name by Lloyd C. Douglas. The film was adapted by Sarah Y. Mason, Victor Heerman, and George O'Neil, directed by John M. Stahl, and stars Irene Dunne, Robert Taylor, Charles Butterworth, and Betty Furness.

<i>Imitation of Life</i> (1959 film) 1959 film directed by Douglas Sirk

Imitation of Life is a 1959 American drama film directed by Douglas Sirk, produced by Ross Hunter and released by Universal International. It was Sirk's final Hollywood film and dealt with issues of race, class and gender. Imitation of Life is the second film adaptation of Fannie Hurst's 1933 novel of the same name; the first, directed by John M. Stahl, was released in 1934.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">30th Academy Awards</span> Award ceremony for films of 1957

The 30th Academy Awards ceremony was held on March 26, 1958, to honor the best films of 1957.

<i>Shockproof</i> 1949 film by Douglas Sirk

Shockproof is a 1949 American crime film noir directed by Douglas Sirk and starring Patricia Knight and Cornel Wilde. Wilde and Knight were husband and wife during filming. They divorced in 1951.

<i>Lili Marleen</i> (film) 1980 film

Lili Marleen is a 1981 West German drama film directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder that stars Hanna Schygulla, Giancarlo Giannini, and Mel Ferrer. Set in the time of the Third Reich, the film recounts the love affair between a German singer who becomes the darling of the nation, based on Lale Andersen, and a Swiss conductor, based on Rolf Liebermann, who is active in saving his fellow Jews. Though the screenplay uses the autobiographical novel Der Himmel hat viele Farben by Lale Andersen, her last husband, Arthur Beul, said the film bears little relation to her real life.

<i>Three Guys Named Mike</i> 1951 film by Charles Walters

Three Guys Named Mike is a 1951 American romantic comedy film directed by Charles Walters and starring Jane Wyman, Van Johnson, Howard Keel, and Barry Sullivan. It was released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

<i>Five Guns West</i> 1955 American film

Five Guns West is a 1955 Western film set during the American Civil War directed by Roger Corman. It was Corman's first film as director although he had already made two as producer. It was the second film released by the American Releasing Company, which later became American International Pictures.

<i>Interlude</i> (1957 film) 1957 film by Douglas Sirk

Interlude is a 1957 American CinemaScope drama romance film directed by Douglas Sirk and starring June Allyson and Rossano Brazzi.

References

  1. ↑ All That Heaven Allows at the American Film Institute Catalog
  2. ↑ "All That Heaven Allows". Kinematograph Weekly. London, England. August 18, 1955. p. 12 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  3. ↑ "The Top Box-Office Hits of 1956". Weekly Variety . January 2, 1957.
  4. ↑ "Complete National Film Registry Listing". Library of Congress. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
  5. ↑ Crowther, Bosley (February 29, 1956). "Screen: Doleful Domestic Drama; Mayfair Offering 'All That Heaven Allows' Jane Wyman and Rock Hudson Teamed Again". The New York Times .
  6. ↑ Mulvey, Laura (June 18, 2001). "All That Heaven Allows: An Articulate Screen". The Criterion Collection . Retrieved November 2, 2012.
  7. 1 2 Cowan, Jared (March 4, 2019). "Take a Stroll Down Colonial Street, Film and TV's Most Iconic Suburban Set". Los Angeles Magazine . Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  8. ↑ Steffen, James (May 24, 2004). "All That Heaven Allows". Turner Classic Movies . Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  9. ↑ "January-March 1955". Motion Picture Daily. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  10. ↑ "'Heaven' Sets Record". Motion Picture Daily . Vol. January–March 1956. p. 7. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  11. ↑ Steen, Al. "All That Heaven Allows". Motion Picture Daily. Vol. October–December 1955. p. 7. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  12. ↑ Betancourt, Manuel (December 22, 2015). "Douglas Sirk: From the Archives". Film Comment .
  13. ↑ Brody, Richard (December 21, 2015). "Douglas Sirk's Glorious Cinema of Outsiders". The New Yorker .
  14. ↑ "All That Heaven Allows". Rotten Tomatoes .
  15. ↑ "National Film Registry". Library of Congress . Archived from the original on March 28, 2013. Retrieved October 28, 2011.
  16. ↑ "All That Heaven Allows". Chicago Reader . Retrieved January 25, 2016.
  17. ↑ Halberstadt, Alex (May 22, 2020). "Unforeseen Calamities". MoMA Magazine .
  18. ↑ Taubin, Amy. "Far From Heaven | Todd Haynes". Film Comment (September–October 2002).
  19. ↑ Hornaday, Ann (September 27, 2002). "'8 Women': Bonbons With a Wicked Center". The Washington Post . ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved July 7, 2023.

Further reading

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.