Flesh and Fantasy

Last updated
Flesh and Fantasy
Fleshandfantasy.jpg
Directed by Julien Duvivier
Written byEllis St. Joseph (Story segment 1)
Oscar Wilde (Story segment 2)
László Vadnay (Story segment 3)
Ernest Pascal
Samuel Hoffenstein
Starring Edward G. Robinson
Charles Boyer
Barbara Stanwyck
Betty Field
Cinematography Stanley Cortez
Paul Ivano
Edited byArthur Hilton
Music by Alexandre Tansman
Distributed by Universal Pictures
Release date
  • October 29, 1943 (1943-10-29)
Running time
94 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$1.8 million (US rentals) [1]

Flesh and Fantasy is a 1943 American anthology film directed by Julien Duvivier and starring Edward G. Robinson, Charles Boyer, Robert Cummings, and Barbara Stanwyck. The making of this film was inspired by the success of Duvivier's previous anthology film, the 1942 Tales of Manhattan . Flesh and Fantasy tells three stories, unrelated but with a supernatural theme, by Ellis St. Joseph, Oscar Wilde, and László Vadnay. Tying together the three segments is a conversation about the occult between two clubmen, one played by humorist Robert Benchley.

Contents

Plot

First segment The setting is New Orleans, Louisiana. Plain and embittered, Henrietta, secretly loves law student, Michael. On Mardi Gras night, a mysterious stranger gives her a white mask of beauty that she must return at midnight. At a party, Michael falls in love with Henrietta but has yet to see her face under the mask. Henrietta encourages Michael to follow a better life although it may mean losing him forever. Henrietta removes the mask at midnight discovering she is now beautiful and that her old, selfish attitude was really the cause of her ugliness.

Second segment The second story is based on Oscar Wilde's short story Lord Arthur Savile's Crime . A palmist, Septimus Podgers, is making uncannily accurate predictions at a party for the rich and bored. He tells skeptical lawyer, Marshall Tyler, to avoid a certain street intersection on the way home. The palmist also acts as if he sees more in his hand but does not admit it. Marshall eschews the advice and almost gets shot during a police chase at the intersection. Marshall goes to the palmist’s home. Under pressure, the palmist admits that he saw that Marshall is going to kill someone.

The notion obsesses Marshall, who decides that he must kill someone, anyone, just to get it over with. He comes close to killing two people but is unable to do so. He finally meets Podgers by accident on a bridge one night, and blaming Podgers for his problem, strangles him to death in a rage. Trying to escape, Marshall is hit by a car. The accident is witnessed by the Great Paul Gaspar, a high-wire artist, and it leads without pause into the third segment of the film.

Third segment High-wire artist the Great Paul Gaspar is haunted by dreams of falling, and in each dream of doom encounters a woman, Joan Stanley, he has never met. These dreams affect his performance as he backs down from the most dangerous stunt, jumping from one wire to another. Eventually he meets his dream girl, who has serious troubles of her own. Paul later decides that he will not let his bad dreams affect him and that his life is his own. He performs the stunt successfully, not knowing that the woman that he has now fallen in love with is about to be arrested.

Cast

Marshall Tyler (Robinson) gets an unpleasant surprise. Thomas Mitchell and Edward G. Robinson - Flesh and Fantasy.jpg
Marshall Tyler (Robinson) gets an unpleasant surprise.

Production

At one stage the film was known as For All We Know. [2] Cummings and Field were cast in March 1943. [3]

Deleted segment

John Garfield was originally signed for the segment, [4] but changed his mind. He was replaced by Universal contract star Alan Curtis in his role intended to begin with a half-hour sequence concerning an escaped killer who finds refuge with a farmer (Frank Craven) and his blind daughter (Gloria Jean). This sequence ended with a spectacular storm scene, staged by director Duvivier and photographer Paul Ivano, in which the enraged killer races after the blind girl. The forces of nature spare the girl but strike down the killer. The preview audience raved about this scene, but Universal removed it and shelved it. (The very end of the deleted scene survives in the final print: the killer's body washes up on shore.) [5] To replace the missing footage the studio connected the remaining three segments with new footage of humorist Robert Benchley.

Not wanting to waste the Jean-Curtis footage Universal hired screenwriter Roy Chanslor to come up with additional material and Reginald LeBorg to direct a few new scenes, so that the segment could be released as a separate feature film. The studio insisted upon "framing" scenes wherein the refugee is shown to be innocent of the crimes for which he has been imprisoned, and which allowed a happy ending. The completed film was finally released in 1944 as Destiny . [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Cummings</span> American actor (1910–1990)

Charles Clarence Robert Orville Cummings was an American film and television actor who appeared in roles in comedy films such as The Devil and Miss Jones (1941) and Princess O'Rourke (1943), and in dramatic films, especially two of Alfred Hitchcock's thrillers, Saboteur (1942) and Dial M for Murder (1954). He received five Primetime Emmy Award nominations, and won the Primetime Emmy Award for Best Actor in a Single Performance in 1955. On February 8, 1960, he received two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contributions to the motion picture and television industries, at 6816 Hollywood Boulevard and 1718 Vine Street. He used the stage name Robert Cummings from mid-1935 until the end of 1954 and was credited as Bob Cummings from 1955 until his death.

<i>Saboteur</i> (film) 1942 film by Alfred Hitchcock

Saboteur is a 1942 American spy thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock with a screenplay written by Peter Viertel, Joan Harrison and Dorothy Parker. The film stars Robert Cummings, Priscilla Lane and Norman Lloyd.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julien Duvivier</span> French film director and screenwriter (1896–1967)

Julien Duvivier was a French film director and screenwriter. He was prominent in French cinema in the years 1930–1960. Amongst his most original films, chiefly notable are La Bandera, Pépé le Moko, Little World of Don Camillo, Panic (Panique), Deadlier Than the Male and Marianne de ma jeunesse.

<i>Son of Frankenstein</i> 1939 film by Rowland V. Lee

Son of Frankenstein is a 1939 American horror film directed by Rowland V. Lee and starring Basil Rathbone, Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi. The film is the third in Universal Pictures' Frankenstein series and is the follow-up to the 1935 film Bride of Frankenstein. Son of Frankenstein stars Rathbone as Baron Wolf von Frankenstein who, with his wife Elsa and son Peter, returns to his late father's estate. Near the castle lives Ygor, a crazed blacksmith whose neck was broken in an unsuccessful hanging attempt. Among the castle's remains, Frankenstein discovers the remains of the Monster and decides to try to save his family name by resurrecting the creature to prove his father was correct. He finds, however, the Monster only responds to Ygor's commands.

<i>The Black Cat</i> (1941 film) 1941 film by Albert S. Rogell

The Black Cat is a 1941 American comedy horror and mystery film directed by Albert S. Rogell and starring Basil Rathbone. The film was a hybrid of style: being inspired by comedy "Old Dark House" films of the era as well as the 1843 short story "The Black Cat" by Edgar Allan Poe. It stars Basil Rathbone as Montague Hartley, the head of a greedy family who await the death of Henrietta Winslow so that they can inherit her fortune. When she is found murdered, an investigation begins into who might be the culprit. Alongside Rathbone and Loftus, the film's cast includes Hugh Herbert, Broderick Crawford, and Bela Lugosi.

<i>Son of Dracula</i> (1943 film) 1943 film by Robert Siodmak

Son of Dracula is a 1943 American horror film directed by Robert Siodmak with a screenplay based on an original story by his brother Curt Siodmak. The film stars Lon Chaney Jr., Louise Allbritton, Robert Paige, Evelyn Ankers, and Frank Craven. The film is set in the United States, where Count Alucard has just taken up residence. Katherine Caldwell (Allbritton), a student of the occult, becomes fascinated by Alucard and eventually marries him. Katherine begins to look and act strangely, leading her former romantic partner Frank Stanley (Paige) to suspect that something has happened to her. He gets help from Dr. Brewster (Craven) and psychologist Laszlo who come to the conclusion that Alucard is a vampire.

<i>House of Frankenstein</i> (film) 1944 film

House of Frankenstein is a 1944 American horror film starring Boris Karloff, Lon Chaney Jr. and John Carradine. It was directed by Erle C. Kenton and produced by Universal Pictures. Based on Curt Siodmak's story "The Devil's Brood", the film is about Dr. Gustav Niemann, who escapes from prison and promises to create a new body for his assistant Daniel. Over the course of the film, they encounter Count Dracula, the Wolf Man and Frankenstein's monster. The film is a sequel to Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943).

<i>House of Dracula</i> 1945 film by Erle C. Kenton

House of Dracula is a 1945 American horror film released and distributed by Universal Pictures. Directed by Erle C. Kenton, the film features several Universal Horror properties meeting as they had done in the 1944 film House of Frankenstein. The film is set at the castle home of Dr. Franz Edelmann, who is visited first by Count Dracula and later by Larry Talbot, the Wolf Man, who are trying to cure their vampirism and lycanthropy, respectively. Talbot is eventually cured, which leads him to discover the body of Frankenstein's monster in a cave below the base of the castle. Edelemann takes the monster's body back to his laboratory but finds Count Dracula has awakened and by attacking his assistants, he captures Edelmann and forces a reverse blood transfusion, which gives Edelmann a split personality and makes him a killer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gloria Jean</span> American teen actress and singer (1926–2018)

Gloria Jean was an American actress and singer who starred or co-starred in 26 feature films from 1939 to 1959, and made numerous radio, television, stage, and nightclub appearances. She may be best remembered for her appearance with W. C. Fields in the film Never Give a Sucker an Even Break (1941).

<i>The Mummys Tomb</i> 1942 film by Harold Young

The Mummy's Tomb is a 1942 American horror film directed by Harold Young and starring Lon Chaney Jr. as Kharis the mummy. Taking place 30 years after the events of The Mummy's Hand, where Andoheb has survived and plans revenge on Stephen Banning and his entire family in Mapleton, Massachusetts. With the help of the high priest Mehemet Bey, Andoheb and the mummy Kharis Bey takes up a job as a caretaker of a graveyard. At the first full moon, the mummy is fed tanna leaves which allow him to break into the Banning residence and kill the now elderly Stephen. Banning's son then seeks assistance from Babe Hanson, one of the members of the original Banning expedition to Egypt to stop Andoheb and Kharis.

<i>Tower of London</i> (1939 film) 1939 film by Rowland V. Lee

Tower of London is a 1939 black-and-white historical film directed and produced by Rowland V. Lee. It stars Basil Rathbone as the future King Richard III of England, and Boris Karloff as his fictitious club-footed executioner Mord. The film is based on the traditional depiction of Richard rising to become King of England in 1483 by eliminating everyone ahead of him. Each time Richard accomplishes a murder, he removes one figurine from a dollhouse resembling a throneroom. Once he has completed his task, he now needs to defeat the exiled Henry Tudor to retain the throne.

Arthur Hilton was a British-born film editor and director.

<i>Lord Arthur Saviles Crime and Other Stories</i> Collection of short stories by Oscar Wilde

Lord Arthur Savile's Crime and Other Stories is a collection of short semi-comic mystery stories that were written by Oscar Wilde and published in 1891. It includes:

<i>Dracula</i> (1931 Spanish-language film) 1931 American horror film

Dracula is a 1931 Spanish-language American horror film directed by George Melford. The film is based on both the novel Dracula by Bram Stoker and the play Dracula by Hamilton Deane and John L. Balderston. The film is about Renfield, who travels to Translyvania to visit Conde Drácula. He is drugged by the Count and becomes his minion. The two travel to England, where Drácula begins to seduce Lucía Weston as she becomes his first victim. This leads Professor Van Helsing to investigate, who confirms that Drácula is a vampire.

<i>The Reluctant Dragon</i> (1941 film) 1941 Disney film directed by Alfred L. Werker and Hamilton Luske

The Reluctant Dragon is a 1941 American live-action/animated anthology comedy film produced by Walt Disney, directed by Alfred Werker, and released by RKO Radio Pictures on June 27, 1941. Essentially a tour of the then-new Walt Disney Studios facility in Burbank, California, the film stars Algonquin Round Table member, film actor, writer and comedian Robert Benchley and many Disney staffers such as Ward Kimball, Fred Moore, Norman Ferguson, Clarence Nash, and Walt Disney, all as themselves.

Roy Rowland was an American film director. The New York-born director helmed a number of films in the 1950s and 1960s including Our Vines Have Tender Grapes, Meet Me in Las Vegas, Rogue Cop, The 5000 Fingers of Doctor T, and The Girl Hunters. Rowland married Ruth Cummings, the niece of Louis B. Mayer and sister of Jack Cummings. They had one son, Steve Rowland, born in 1932, who later became a music producer in the UK.

<i>The Night Walker</i> (film) 1964 film by William Castle

The Night Walker is a 1964 American psychological horror film directed and produced by William Castle, written by Robert Bloch, and starring Robert Taylor, Judith Meredith, Lloyd Bochner and Barbara Stanwyck in her final theatrical film role. It follows the wife of a wealthy inventor who is plagued by increasingly disturbing nightmares, which escalate after her husband's death. It was the final black and white film made by Universal Pictures.

<i>Destiny</i> (1944 film) 1944 film by Reginald Le Borg

Destiny is a 1944 American drama film noir directed by Reginald Le Borg and starring Gloria Jean, Alan Curtis, Frank Craven, and Grace McDonald.

<i>Frankenstein</i> (Universal film series) American horror film series

Frankenstein is a film series of horror films from Universal Pictures based on the play version by Peggy Webling and the 1818 novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelley. The series follow the story of a monster created by Henry Frankenstein who is made from body parts of corpses and brought back to life. The rest of the series generally follows the monster continuously being revived and eventually focuses on a series of cross overs with other Universal horror film characters such as The Wolf Man. The series consists of the following films: Frankenstein (1931), Bride of Frankenstein (1935), Son of Frankenstein (1939), The Ghost of Frankenstein (1942), Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943), House of Frankenstein (1944), House of Dracula (1945) and Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948).

References

  1. "Top Grossers of the Season", Variety, 5 January 1944 p 54
  2. DRAMA AND FILM: Walter Huston Joins Boyer's Starry Parade Los Angeles Times 8 Mar 1943: 8.
  3. SCREEN NEWS HERE AND IN HOLLYWOOD New York Times 3 Mar 1943: 19.
  4. "SCREEN NEWS HERE AND IN HOLLYWOOD; John Garfield Will Appear in Third Sequence of 'Flesh and Fantasy' for Universal 'THE MUMmy's TOMB' DUE Arrives at the Rialto Today -- American Premiere at 48th St. For 'Valfangare'". The New York Times. 24 October 1942.
  5. 1 2 Tom Weaver, Michael Brunas and John Brunas. Universal Horrors: The Studios Classic Films, 1931-1946, 2007. Jefferson, NC: Mcfarland & Co Inc. ISBN   978-0786429745, pp. 463-468.