Moscow Nights | |
---|---|
Directed by | Anthony Asquith |
Written by | Erich Seipmann Anthony Asquith |
Based on | an unpublished novel by Pierre Benoît |
Produced by | Alexis Granowsky |
Starring | Laurence Olivier Penelope Dudley-Ward Harry Baur |
Cinematography | Philip Tannura |
Edited by | Francis D. Lyon |
Music by | Muir Mathieson |
Production companies | Denham Films London Film Productions |
Distributed by | General Film Distributors |
Release date |
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Running time | 100 minutes |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Moscow Nights (released as I Stand Condemned in the United States) is a 1935 British drama film directed by Anthony Asquith and starring Laurence Olivier, Penelope Dudley-Ward and Harry Baur. The screenplay concerns a wounded officer who falls in love with his nurse.
Based on a novel by Pierre Benoit, it is a remake of the 1934 French film of the same title. Harry Baur was the only actor to reprise his role from the original. It was shot at Denham and Isleworth Studios, both controlled by Alexander Korda's London Films. [1] The film's sets were designed by the art director Vincent Korda. It was released in the United States by United Artists.
During the First World War, a wounded Russian officer, Captain Ignatoff, falls in love with his nurse. Matters are complicated by the fact that she is already engaged to a wealthy merchant.
Writing for The Spectator in 1935, Graham Greene called the film "completely bogus", and "the worst, as well as the most ballyhooed, film of the year". Asquith and Dudley-Ward were criticised in particular, with Greene describing Asquith's direction as puerile, and Dudley-Ward's acting as "country-house charades". Although Greene praised the acting from the rest of the film's stars, and noted that Asquith's past direction had been characterized by trickery, he commented that "now [Asquith's] bag of tricks seems empty". [2]
Dame Penelope Anne Constance Keith, is an English actress and presenter, active in film, radio, stage and television and primarily known for her roles in the British sitcoms The Good Life and To the Manor Born. She succeeded Lord Olivier as president of the Actors' Benevolent Fund after his death in 1989, and was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2014 New Year Honours for services to the arts and to charity.
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Knight Without Armour is a 1937 British historical drama film starring Marlene Dietrich and Robert Donat. It was directed by Jacques Feyder and produced by Alexander Korda from a screenplay by Lajos Bíró adapted by Frances Marion from the 1933 novel by James Hilton. The novel was published in the United States as Without Armour. The music score was by Miklós Rózsa, his first for a motion picture, using additional music by Tchaikovsky.
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Q Planes is a 1939 British comedy spy film starring Ralph Richardson, Laurence Olivier and Valerie Hobson. Olivier and Richardson were a decade into their fifty-year friendship and were in the process of staging a theatrical version of Othello, with Richardson in the title role and Olivier as Iago, when this film was made.
Storm Over the Nile is a 1955 British adventure film adaptation of the 1902 novel The Four Feathers, directed by Terence Young and Zoltan Korda. The film not only extensively used footage of the action scenes from the 1939 film version stretched into CinemaScope, but is a shot-for-shot, almost line-for-line remake of the earlier film, which was also directed by Korda. Several pieces of music by the original composer Miklos Rozsa were also utilized. It featured Anthony Steel, Laurence Harvey, James Robertson Justice, Mary Ure, Ian Carmichael, Michael Hordern and Christopher Lee. The film was shot on location in the Sudan.
Mimi is a 1935 British romance film directed by Paul L. Stein and starring Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Gertrude Lawrence and Diana Napier. Set in nineteenth century Paris, the screenplay concerns a composer who becomes inspired by a young woman he encounters. The film is based on the 1851 novel La Vie de Bohème by Henri Murger. The score includes arrangements of Giacomo Puccini's music from the opera La bohème, arranged by George H. Clutsam.
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Walter Percy Day O.B.E. (1878–1965) was a British painter best remembered for his work as a matte artist and special effects technician in the film industry. Professional names include W. Percy Day; Percy Day; "Pop" or "Poppa" Day, owing to his collaboration with sons Arthur George Day (1909–1952) draughtsman, Thomas Sydney Day (1912–1985), stills photographer and cameraman, and stepson, Peter Ellenshaw, who also worked in this field.
Crime and Punishment is a 1935 French crime drama film directed by Pierre Chenal and produced by Michel Kagansky starring Harry Baur, Pierre Blanchar and Madeleine Ozeray. It is an adaptation of the 1866 novel of the same name by Fyodor Dostoevsky. The same year a separate American film adaptation was made featuring Peter Lorre.
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Moscow Nights is a 1934 French war drama film directed by Alexis Granowsky and starring Annabella, Harry Baur and Pierre Richard-Willm. It is based on a story by Pierre Benoît. The film's sets were designed by the art director Andrej Andrejew. It marked the screen debut of the Corsican singer Tino Rossi, who went on to star in a number of films.