The Magnificent Ambersons (1942)

User Rating:

8.0/10   

Director:

Orson Welles
(more)

Writers:

Booth Tarkington (based on the novel by)
Orson Welles (script writer)
(more)

Release Date:

10 July 1942 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

From the Man who Made "The Best Picture of 1941"

Plot:

The spoiled young heir to the decaying Amberson fortune comes between his widowed mother and the man she has always loved.

Plot Keywords:

Spoiled Child | Marriage Proposal | Progress | Pulitzer Prize Source | Small Town

Awards:

Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 2 wins

Cast

Joseph Cotten	...	Eugene
Dolores Costello	...	Isabel
Anne Baxter	...	Lucy
Tim Holt	...	George
Agnes Moorehead	...	Fanny
Ray Collins	...	Jack
Erskine Sanford	...	Roger Bronson
Richard Bennett	...	Major Amberson
Orson Welles	...	Narrator (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Edwin August	...	Citizen (uncredited)
Georgia Backus	...	Matron (uncredited)
Harry A. Bailey	...	Citizen (uncredited)
Olive Ball	...	Mary - Maid (uncredited)
Jack Baxley	...	Reverend Smith (uncredited)
William Blees	...	Young Man at Accident (uncredited)
Lyle Clement	...	Citizen (uncredited)
Bobby Cooper	...	George Minafer as a Boy (uncredited)
John Elliott	...	Guest (uncredited)
Keenan Elliott	...	Workman (uncredited)
William Elmer	...	Servant (uncredited)
James Fawcett	...	Citizen (uncredited)
Mel Ford	...	Fred Kinney (uncredited)
Nancy Gates	...	Girl (uncredited)
Nina Guilbert	...	Guest (uncredited)
Maynard Holmes	...	Citizen (uncredited)
Edward Howard	...	Chauffeur (uncredited)
Harry Humphrey	...	Citizen (uncredited)
Elmer Jerome	...	Attendee at Funeral (uncredited)
J. Louis Johnson	...	Sam - Butler (uncredited)
Lew Kelly	...	Citizen (uncredited)
Del Lawrence	...	Citizen (uncredited)
Bert LeBaron	...	Citizen (uncredited)
John Maguire	...	Young Man (uncredited)
Philip Morris	...	Policeman (uncredited)
Anne O'Neal	...	Mrs. Foster (uncredited)
Gil Perkins	...	Citizen (uncredited)
Charles R. Phipps	...	Uncle John (uncredited)
Hilda Plowright	...	Nurse (uncredited)
Drew Roddy	...	Elijah (uncredited)
Henry Roquemore	...	Hardware Man (uncredited)
Jack Santoro	...	Barber (uncredited)
Gus Schilling	...	Drug Clerk (uncredited)
Kathryn Sheldon	...	Matron (uncredited)
Sada Simmons	...	Wife (uncredited)
Dorothy Vaughan	...	Mrs. Johnson (uncredited)
James Westerfield	...	Policeman at Accident (uncredited)
Joe Whitehead	...	Citizen (uncredited)

Directed by
Orson Welles
Fred Fleck		(additional sequences) (uncredited)
Robert Wise		(additional sequences) (uncredited)

Writing credits
Booth Tarkington		(based on the novel by)
Orson Welles		(script writer)
Jack Moss		(additional scenes) uncredited and
Joseph Cotten		(additional scenes) uncredited

Produced by
Orson Welles	....	producer (as A Mercury Production by Orson Welles)
Jack Moss	....	associate producer (uncredited)
George Schaefer	....	executive producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Bernard Herrmann		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
Stanley Cortez		(photographer)
Jack MacKenzie		(uncredited)
Orson Welles		(uncredited)

Film Editing by
Robert Wise
Jack Moss		(uncredited)
Mark Robson		(uncredited)

Production Design by
Albert S. D'Agostino		(uncredited)

Art Direction by
Albert S. D'Agostino		(uncredited)

Set Decoration by
Darrell Silvera		(uncredited)

Makeup Department
Mel Berns	....	makeup department head (uncredited)
Robert J. Schiffer	....	makeup artist (uncredited)
Maurice Seiderman	....	makeup artist (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Fred Fleck	....	assistant director (as Freddie Fleck)
Harry Mancke	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
A. Roland Fields	....	set dresser (as Al Fields)
Mark-Lee Kirk	....	set designer
Chesley Bonestell	....	background paintings (uncredited)
Charles Sayers	....	props (uncredited)

Sound Department
Bailey Fesler	....	sound recordist
James G. Stewart	....	sound recordist
Terry Kellum	....	sound (uncredited)
Earl B. Mounce	....	sound (uncredited)
James Thompson	....	boom operator (uncredited)
John E. Tribby	....	sound (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Vernon L. Walker	....	special effects (uncredited)

Stunts
David Sharpe	....	stunt double: Tim Holt (uncredited)
Helen Thurston	....	stunt double: Anne Baxter (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Russell A. Cully	....	photographer: additional scenes (uncredited)
William Eglinton	....	camera department head (uncredited)
Eddie Garvin	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Ralph Hoge	....	grip (uncredited)
Alexander Kahle	....	still photographer (uncredited)
Bill McLellan	....	gaffer (uncredited)
Russell Metty	....	additional photographer (uncredited)
Russell Metty	....	photographer: additional scenes (uncredited)
Earl Miller	....	electrician (uncredited)
Nicholas Musuraca	....	photographer: additional scenes (uncredited)
Howard Schwartz	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Bert Shipman	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Clifford Stine	....	process photography (uncredited)
Harry J. Wild	....	photographer: additional scenes (uncredited)

Casting Department
Rufus Le Maire	....	casting: Hollywood (uncredited)
Robert Palmer	....	casting: Hollywood (uncredited)
Arthur Willy	....	casting: New York (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Claire Cramer	....	wardrobe department head (uncredited)
Earl Leas	....	wardrobe: men (uncredited)
Margaret Van Horn	....	wardrobe: women (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Mark Robson	....	assistant editor (uncredited)
I.J. Wilkinson	....	negative cutter (uncredited)

Music Department
Dave Dreyer	....	music department head (uncredited)
Bernard Herrmann	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Roy Webb	....	composer: additional music (uncredited)

Transportation Department
Elroy G. Cline	....	transportation captain (uncredited)

Other crew
William Alland	....	assistant: Mr. Welles (uncredited)
John Barada	....	ranch manager (uncredited)
Leda Bauer	....	script reader: New York (uncredited)
Howard Benedict	....	unit publicist (uncredited)
Herbert Drake	....	publicist (uncredited)
H. Emolieff	....	film export manager (uncredited)
Fred Fleck	....	unit business manager (uncredited)
Winifred Hablam	....	production notes (uncredited)
John Hamilton	....	first aid (uncredited)
Ross Hastings	....	production attorney (uncredited)
G.B. Hobe	....	production treasurer (uncredited)
Amalia Kent	....	script supervisor (uncredited)
J.B. McDonough	....	business manager (uncredited)
Elizabeth McGaffey	....	research department head (uncredited)
Ivy R. McLean	....	public relations (uncredited)
L. Messenger	....	script reader: Hollywood (uncredited)
Howard Nelson	....	maintenance (uncredited)
J.J. Nolan	....	office manager (uncredited)
Roy S. Otto	....	dailies projectionist (uncredited)
Sid Rogell	....	backlot manager (uncredited)
Ann Rogers	....	secretary: Mr. Welles (uncredited)
Louis Shapiro	....	location manager (uncredited)
Richard Wilson	....	assistant: Orson Welles (uncredited)
H. Winnicar	....	studio teacher (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Mercury Productions
• RKO Radio Pictures

Distributors

• RKO Radio Pictures (1942) (USA) (theatrical)
• C&C Television Corporation (1955) (USA) (TV)
• Continental Home Vídeo (2004) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (1993) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Kinowelt Home Entertainment (2000) (Germany) (DVD)
• Radio Filmes (Portugal)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (2005) (Italy) (DVD)
• Turner Classic Movies (TCM) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (2008) (USA) (DVD)

Runtime:

88 min | 148 min (original cut) | 131 min (preview)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:TV-PG | South Korea:15 | USA:Approved (PCA #7800) | Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | Finland:S | Germany:12 | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Big Bear Lake, California, USA

Company:

Mercury Productions

Trivia:

Welles later described the 88 minute version as if "it had been edited by a lawnmower".

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: Towards end of long tracking shot with George and Lucy in horse-drawn carriage, portion of rear end of camera car and some sort of filmmaking equipment briefly enters left side of frame.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Narrator: The magnificence of the Ambersons began in 1873. Their splendor lasted throughout all the years that saw their midland town spread and darken into a city. In that town, in those days, all the women who wore silk or velvet knew all the other women who wore silk or velvet...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Lianna (1983)

Soundtrack:

The Man Who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo

The Most Beautful American Movie Ever Made

If one could have a single wish regarding movie history, surely it would be the rediscovery of the nearly one hour cut out of what seem to be all existing prints of this! Even with the tampering, it is a gorgeous movie. To me, it is superior to "Citizen Kane." Wells himself was partially at fault for its being butchered: Had he stayed in the United States and not pursued a new, eventually unfulfilled dream, he surely could have fought RKO.

The narration by Welles at the beginning is like the dream storytelling of any child or young person. The words so beautiful, the tones so calm and mellifluous! And the final credits, in which he reads the crew and then the cast, are astonishingly moving.

In between is a touching story that is acted and filmed with rare integrity. Dolores Costello is a haunting presence. Agnes Moorhead, as the Neurotic aunt, gives a performance rarely equaled in movie history.

Stanley Cortez was cinematographer for three great movies (and many other fine ones): "The Magnificent Ambersons," "Night of the Hunter," and "The Naked Kiss." Each relies strongly on its look and Cortez created three very different, memorable canvases.

One fan hope against hope that the lost footage turns up in someone's basement, unlikely as that is. Even so, once seen this movie is never forgotten.