The Virtuous Sin | |
---|---|
Directed by | George Cukor Louis J. Gasnier |
Written by | Martin Brown Louise Long Based on a play by Lajos Zilahy |
Starring | Walter Huston Kay Francis Kenneth MacKenna |
Cinematography | David Abel |
Edited by | Otho Lovering |
Music by | Sam Coslow Ralph Rainger |
Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 80 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
The Virtuous Sin is a 1930 American pre-Code comedy-drama film directed by George Cukor and Louis J. Gasnier and starring Walter Huston, Kay Francis, and Kenneth MacKenna. The screenplay by Martin Brown and Louise Long is based on the 1928 play The General by Lajos Zilahy. A separate 1931 German-language version The Night of Decision was shot at Paramount's Joinville Studios in Paris.
Marya is married to medical student Victor Sablin, who finds it impossible to deal with military life when he is inducted into the Russian army during World War I. When her husband is sentenced to death by firing squad due to his insubordination, Marya offers herself to General Gregori Platoff in order to save him. When the two unexpectedly fall in love, Victor — not caring that his life has been spared — threatens to kill his rival. His determination to eliminate the general falters when Marya confesses she is not in love with her husband — and never was.
Mordaunt Hall of the New York Times called the film "a clever comedy with a splendid performance by Walter Huston" and added, "There is a constant fund of interest in this picture's action. It is one of those rare offerings in which youth takes a back seat. [1]
In the book On Cukor, director George Cukor confided to biographer Gavin Lambert: "It wasn't much good. I'd be in great shock if they [film restorationists & historians] rescued this one. I remember that I enjoyed working with Kay Francis and Walter Huston, though." [2]
A complete print of this film is held by the UCLA Film and Television Archive. However, the UCLA archive's website says the print is too shrunken for projection. [3]
George Dewey Cukor was an American film director and film producer. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. His career flourished at RKO when David O. Selznick, the studio's Head of Production, assigned Cukor to direct several of RKO's major films, including What Price Hollywood? (1932), A Bill of Divorcement (1932), Our Betters (1933), and Little Women (1933). When Selznick moved to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1933, Cukor followed and directed Dinner at Eight (1933) and David Copperfield (1935) for Selznick and Romeo and Juliet (1936) and Camille (1936) for Irving Thalberg.
One Hour with You is a 1932 American pre-Code musical comedy film about a married couple who are attracted to other people. It was produced and directed by Ernst Lubitsch "with the assistance of" George Cukor, and written by Samson Raphaelson from the play Only a Dream by Lothar Schmidt. It stars Maurice Chevalier, Jeanette MacDonald, Genevieve Tobin, Charlie Ruggles and Roland Young. A French-language version titled Une heure près de toi was produced simultaneously, with Lili Damita playing Tobin's role.
The Royal Family of Broadway is a 1930 American pre-Code comedy film directed by George Cukor and Cyril Gardner and released by Paramount Pictures. The screenplay was adapted by Herman J. Mankiewicz and Gertrude Purcell from the play The Royal Family by Edna Ferber and George S. Kaufman. It stars Ina Claire, Fredric March, Mary Brian, Henrietta Crosman, Arnold Korff, and Frank Conroy. It was shot at the Astoria Studios in New York.
The following is an overview of 1932 in film, including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths.
The following is an overview of 1931 in film, including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths.
Kay Francis was an American stage and film actress. After a brief period on Broadway in the late 1920s, she moved to film and achieved her greatest success between 1930 and 1936, when she was the number one female star and highest-paid actress at Warner Bros. studio. She adopted her mother's maiden name (Francis) as her professional surname.
Mary Brian was an American actress, who made the transition from silent films to sound films.
Men Without Women is an American 1930 pre-Code drama film directed and written by John Ford, from the script by James Kevin McGuinness. The film also starred Kenneth MacKenna, Frank Albertson, and J. Farrell MacDonald. The sound version is now lost. Only a print of the "International Sound Version", held by the Museum of Modern Art, survives.
Manhattan Parade is a 1931 American pre-Code musical comedy film photographed entirely in Technicolor. It was originally intended to be released, in the United States, early in 1931, but was shelved due to public apathy towards musicals. Despite waiting a number of months, the public proved obstinate and the Warner Bros. reluctantly released the film in December 1931 after removing all the music. Since there was no such reactions to musicals outside the United States, the film was released there as a full musical comedy in 1931.
I Take This Woman is a 1931 American pre-Code romance film directed by Marion Gering and starring Gary Cooper and Carole Lombard.
William Grigs Atkinson, known professionally as Paul Cavanagh, was an English film and stage actor. He appeared in more than 100 films between 1928 and 1959.
Mary Philips was an American stage and film actress.
Kenneth MacKenna was an American actor and film director.
Girls About Town is a 1931 American pre-Code romantic comedy film directed by George Cukor and starring Kay Francis and Joel McCrea.
Paramount on Parade is a 1930 all-star American pre-Code revue released by Paramount Pictures, directed by several directors including Edmund Goulding, Dorothy Arzner, Ernst Lubitsch, Rowland V. Lee, A. Edward Sutherland, Lothar Mendes, Otto Brower, Edwin H. Knopf, Frank Tuttle, and Victor Schertzinger—all supervised by the production supervisor, singer, actress, and songwriter Elsie Janis.
The Woman from Monte Carlo is an American pre-Code film produced by Warner Bros. subsidiary First National Pictures in 1931 and released on January 9, 1932. It was directed by Michael Curtiz and gave top billing to German star Lil Dagover in her sole Hollywood film. Leading men Walter Huston and Warren William were listed after the title in the manner of supporting players.
First Lady is a 1937 film about behind-the-scenes political maneuverings in Washington, D.C. directed by Stanley Logan and starring Kay Francis, Preston Foster, Anita Louise, Walter Connolly and Verree Teasdale. Francis and Teasdale portray bitter rivals in their pursuit of the titular role of First Lady. The picture is based on the 1935 play of the same name by George S. Kaufman and Katharine Dayton.
Girl Missing is a 1933 American pre-Code mystery film starring Glenda Farrell, Ben Lyon and Mary Brian. It was directed by Robert Florey and released by Warner Bros. on March 4, 1933. Two women stranded in Palm Beach become involved in the case of a new bride who goes missing on her wedding night.
Sin Takes a Holiday is a 1930 American pre-Code romantic comedy film, directed by Paul L. Stein, from a screenplay by Horace Jackson, based on a story by Robert Milton and Dorothy Cairns. It starred Constance Bennett, Kenneth MacKenna, and Basil Rathbone. Originally produced by Pathé Exchange and released in 1930, it was part of the takeover package when RKO Pictures acquired Pathé that year; it was re-released by RKO in 1931.
The Night of Decision is a 1931 American drama film directed by Dimitri Buchowetzki and starring Conrad Veidt, Olga Chekhova, and Peter Voß. Based on the 1928 play The General by Lajos Zilahy, it is also known by the alternative title of Der General.