A Star Is Born (1937)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

William A. Wellman

Writers:

William A. Wellman (story) and
Robert Carson (story) ...

Release Date:

27 April 1937 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Fate Raised Her To Fame - and killed the man she loved !

Plot:

A young woman comes to Hollywood with dreams of stardom, but achieves them only with the help of an alcoholic leading man whose best days are behind him.

Plot Keywords:

Hollywood | Alcoholic | Party | Famous Line | Sanitarium

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 1 win & 7 nominations

Cast

Janet Gaynor	...	Esther Victoria Blodgett, aka Vicki Lester
Fredric March	...	Norman Maine
Adolphe Menjou	...	Oliver Niles
May Robson	...	Grandmother Lettie
Andy Devine	...	Daniel 'Danny' McGuire
Lionel Stander	...	Matt Libby
Owen Moore	...	Casey Burke, director
Peggy Wood	...	Miss Phillips, Central Casting clerk
Elizabeth Jenns	...	Anita Regis
Edgar Kennedy	...	Pop Randall, landlord
J.C. Nugent	...	Mr. Blodgett
Guinn 'Big Boy' Williams	...	Posture coach (as Guinn Williams)

Runtime:

111 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System Noiseless Recording)

Certification:

Canada:PG (Ontario) | USA:Approved (PCA #2968) | Finland:S | Australia:G

Filming Locations:

Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, California, USA

Company:

Selznick International Pictures

Trivia:

David O. Selznick originally rejected the story, as films about Hollywood had generally failed, but was persuaded to do the film by his wife Irene Mayer Selznick. Writer-director William A. Wellman had alternately suggested a sequel to The Public Enemy (1931), titled "Another Public Enemy".

Goofs:

Factual errors: In the night court scene, the judge refers to the "commonwealth" but the movie is set in California which isn't one of the states to have commonwealth status. The judge should have referred to the "state" instead.

Quotes:

Danny McGuire: The program tonight's gonna be swell. Take this fella Beethoven: I'm a pushover for him. And Chopin - well, he's not so dusty, either.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Hooray for Hollywood (1975)

Soundtrack:

Les Préludes

colour stardom of Esther Blodgett

Janet Gaynor plays Esther Blodgett beautifully, a girl who leaves for Hollywood with dreams of film magazines and the blessing of her granny. Once there she finds it tough-going until meeting Norman Maine (Fredric March) at a party. We've already seen Norman drunk at a theatre but here he charms Esther and actually gets her into the movies before marrying her and watching his own career crumble. March is excellent in this, and the look of the film is surprisingly modern with its lovely technicolor and gadgets (I particularly like the shower in the motor home Esther and Norman take on honeymoon). Esther's move to become star Vicki Lester, Oscar-winning actress, is unbelievable but as her real-life tragedy unfolds, compelling. And who can stay dry-eyed at the end? Remade with music and Judy Garland in 1954 (very well) but this first version is a jewel amongst other 30s classics.