Letter from an Unknown Woman (1948)

Director:

Max Ophüls

Writers:

Stefan Zweig (story) and
Howard Koch (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

13 September 1948 (Sweden)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Plot:

In Vienna, about 1900, a dashing man arrives at his flat, instructing his manservant that he will leave before morning: the man is Stefan Brand...

Plot Keywords:

Letter | Pianist | Duel | Flashback | Platonic Love

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Joan Fontaine	...	Lisa Berndle
Louis Jourdan	...	Stefan Brand
Mady Christians	...	Frau Berndle
Marcel Journet	...	Johann Stauffer
Art Smith	...	John
Carol Yorke	...	Marie
Howard Freeman	...	Herr Kastner
John Good	...	Lt. Leopold von Kaltnegger
Leo B. Pessin	...	Stefan Jr.
Erskine Sanford	...	Porter
Otto Waldis	...	Concierge
Sonja Bryden	...	Frau Spitzer
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Patricia Alphin	...	Pretty (uncredited)
Harry Anderson	...	(uncredited)
Edit Angold	...	Middle-Aged Woman (uncredited)
Lois Austin	...	Elderly Woman (uncredited)
Polly Bailey	...	Passenger (uncredited)
John T. Bambury	...	Midget (uncredited)
George Blagoi	...	(uncredited)
Betty Blythe	...	Frau Kohner (uncredited)
Walter Bonn	...	Colonel Kohner (uncredited)
Sven Hugo Borg	...	Mover (uncredited)
Robert W. Brown	...	First Officer (uncredited)
Paul E. Burns	...	Concierge (uncredited)
Douglas Carter	...	Man (uncredited)
Donald Chaffin	...	Pedestrian (uncredited)
Gordon Clark	...	Street Singer (uncredited)
Edmund Cobb	...	Carriage Driver (uncredited)
Tom Costello	...	Musician (uncredited)
Ashley Cowan	...	Callow Youth (uncredited)
Helen Dickson	...	Large Woman (uncredited)
Watson Downs	...	Conductor (uncredited)
Tay Dunn	...	Young Officer (uncredited)
Al Eben	...	Waiter (uncredited)
John Elliott	...	Flower Vendor (uncredited)
Edwin Fowler	...	Dancing Master (uncredited)
Curt Furburg	...	Butler (uncredited)
Lorraine Gale	...	Girlfriend (uncredited)
Joe Garcia	...	Collector (uncredited)
Jack Gargan	...	Man (uncredited)
Jack George	...	Opera Critic (uncredited)
Lisa Golm	...	Musician (uncredited)
Roy Gordon	...	Elderly Man in Uniform (uncredited)
William Gould	...	The Bürgermeister (uncredited)
Ilka Grüning	...	Ticket Taker (uncredited)
William Hall	...	Mover (uncredited)
Ramsay Hill	...	Col. Steindorf (uncredited)
Edna Holland	...	Nun (uncredited)
Mauritz Hugo	...	Young Man (uncredited)
Doretta Johnson	...	Girlfriend (uncredited)
Joseph Kamaryt	...	Bavarian Mountain Climber (uncredited)
Elizabeth Kerr	...	(uncredited)
Rex Lease	...	Station Attendant (uncredited)
William A. Lee	...	Mover (uncredited)
Arthur Lovejoy	...	Footman (uncredited)
Celia Lovsky	...	Flower Vendor (uncredited)
Michael Mark	...	Cafe Customer (uncredited)
John McCallum	...	Store Helper (uncredited)
Betty McDonough	...	(uncredited)
Hal Melone	...	Waiter (uncredited)
Torben Meyer	...	Carriage Driver (uncredited)
Howard M. Mitchell	...	Man on Streetcar (uncredited)
Kay Morley	...	Daughter (uncredited)
Leo Mostovoy	...	Older Man (uncredited)
Fred Nurney	...	Officer on Street (uncredited)
William H. O'Brien	...	Footman (uncredited)
Blanche Obronska	...	Young Woman (uncredited)
Manuel París	...	Baron's Second (uncredited)
Joe Ploski	...	Moving Man (uncredited)
Jean Ransome	...	Maid (uncredited)
Peggy Remington	...	(uncredited)
Bruce Riley	...	Officer (uncredited)
Paul Rochin	...	Bavarian Man (uncredited)
Countess Elektra Rozanska	...	Elegant Lady (uncredited)
Shimen Ruskin	...	Older Man (uncredited)
Norbert Schiller	...	Stefan's Second (uncredited)
Bill Schroff	...	Waiter (uncredited)
Irene Seidner	...	Frau Mombert (uncredited)
Jameson Shade	...	Musician (uncredited)
Lester Sharpe	...	Critic (uncredited)
Guy L. Shaw	...	Cafe Patron (uncredited)
Walter Soderling	...	(uncredited)
Pietro Sosso	...	Coachman (uncredited)
Helen Spring	...	Middle-Aged Woman (uncredited)
Lotte Stein	...	Musician (uncredited)
Hermine Sterler	...	Mother Superior (uncredited)
Cy Stevens	...	Man (uncredited)
Diane Stewart	...	Girlfriend (uncredited)
Vera Stokes	...	Girlfriend (uncredited)
Frieda Stoll	...	Burgomeister's Wife (uncredited)
Paul Peter Szemere	...	Mover (uncredited)
William Trenk	...	Fritzel (uncredited)
Lisl Valetti	...	Musician (uncredited)
Roland Varno	...	Stefan's Second (uncredited)
William Vedder	...	Street Singer (uncredited)
Erich von Schilling	...	Usher (uncredited)
Max Willenz	...	Baggage Man (uncredited)
Gabrielle Windsor	...	Ballet Girl (uncredited)
Judith Woodbury	...	Model (uncredited)
June Wood	...	Cashier (uncredited)
Jack Worth	...	Officer (uncredited)
Mary Worth	...	Musician (uncredited)

Directed by
Max Ophüls		(as Max Opuls)

Writing credits
Stefan Zweig		(story)
Howard Koch		screenplay
Max Ophüls		uncredited

Produced by
John Houseman	....	producer
William Dozier	....	executive producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Daniele Amfitheatrof

Cinematography by
Franz Planer		(as Frank Planer)

Film Editing by
Ted J. Kent

Art Direction by
Alexander Golitzen

Set Decoration by
Russell A. Gausman
Ruby R. Levitt

Costume Design by
Travis Banton		(gowns)

Makeup Department
Carmen Dirigo	....	hair stylist
Bud Westmore	....	makeup artist
Lou LaCava	....	makeup artist (uncredited)

Production Management
E. Dobbs	....	production manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
John Sherwood	....	assistant director (as John F. Sherwood)
Mickey Bennett	....	second assistant director (uncredited)
Les Warner	....	second assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Wally Kirkpatrick	....	props (uncredited)

Sound Department
Glenn E. Anderson	....	sound (as Glenn F. Anderson)
Leslie I. Carey	....	sound

Camera and Electrical Department
Albert Anderson	....	still photographer (uncredited)
Tex Bellah	....	best boy (uncredited)
Walter Blummie	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Punk Smith	....	key grip (uncredited)
Roland Smith	....	grip (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Virginia Tutwiler	....	wardrobe (uncredited)

Music Department
David Tamkin	....	orchestrator
Jakob Gimpel	....	musician: "Un Sospiro" (uncredited)

Other crew
William Dozier	....	presenter
Paul Elbogen	....	technical advisor
John Hambleton	....	production coordinator
Adele Cannon	....	script supervisor (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Rampart Productions (I)

Distributors

• Universal Pictures (1948) (USA) (theatrical)
• Universal Pictures (1950) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Criterion Collection, The (19??) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Kinowelt Home Entertainment (2007) (Germany) (DVD)
• Republic Pictures (19??) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Versátil Home Vídeo (2005) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Wild Side Vidéo (2003) (France) (DVD)

Runtime:

86 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

USA:Approved (MPAA rating: #12855) | UK:U | West Germany:12 | Argentina:Atp | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:Btl

Company:

Rampart Productions (I)

Trivia:

Joan Fontaine's favorite movie.

Quotes:

Stefan Brand: Promise me something.
Lisa Berndl: Anything.
Stefan Brand: And I don't even know where you live. Promise me you won't vanish.
Lisa Berndl: I won't be the one who vanishes.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in La science des rêves (2006)

Soundtrack:

Un sospiro

A European masterpiece, made in the USA

In terms of its construction - eg scenario and acting; recreation of 1900s Vienna; camera angles, movement, and lighting; editing etc - Max Ophuls' 1948 b&w film is rightly regarded as a masterpiece; but I think the term "American Masterpiece" is questionable. The movie was almost certainly not as Ophuls would ideally have wished, due to the notorious Hays Code. His next two Hollywood movies were films noirs, and he moved back to more congenial Europe for the cynical La Ronde, which he almost certainly could not have made in the US.

We're also entitled to raise an eyebrow at the movie's usual categorisation as a "tear jerker" and "woman's picture". No doubt, when it was released, and even today, many women (and some men) would unquestioningly identify with Lisa Berndl (Joan Fontaine), who maintains a deep love, from girlhood through to early middle age, for the handsome pianist Stefan Brand (Louis Jourdan), who increasingly shows himself to be a shallow, selfish philanderer; like her, they would fantasise about how they could change his ways, and help him return to the concert stage; and they would weep at the tragic end to Lisa's and their dreams.

But one of the brilliant aspects of this film lies in the way Ophuls maintains enough distance from his characters and situations to allow us, if we wish, to view the movie with a more sardonic eye; to see Lisa - whether due to mental or moral weakness - as failing to grow up; to have no illusions about Stefan's failings as a man or a pianist; and to see his impending death in the duel as a joke played on him by Lisa from her grave - because had her letter not been so long he would have had time to flee Vienna as he originally intended!