{"id":3349,"date":"2011-08-09T14:01:56","date_gmt":"2011-08-09T18:01:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/?p=3349"},"modified":"2012-05-09T01:25:42","modified_gmt":"2012-05-09T05:25:42","slug":"dvd-desiree-1954","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/?p=3349","title":{"rendered":"BR: Desir\u00e9e (1954)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Return to: <\/strong>Home <\/a>\/ Blu-ray, DVD, Film Reviews<\/a> \/ <\/em>D<\/a><\/p>\n

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\nFilm: Good\/ BR Transfer: Excellent\/ BR Extras: Good<\/p>\n

Label:\u00a0 Twilight Time \/\u00a0Region:\u00a0All \/ Released: April, 2012<\/p>\n

Genre: Drama \/ Biography<\/p>\n

Synopsis: \u00a0Fictionalized dramatization of Desir\u00e9e Clary’s liaison with Napoleon Bonaparte during his rise from an officer to Emperor of France.<\/p>\n

Special Features: \u00a0Isolated Stereo Soundtrack \/ Theatrical Trailer \/ Liner notes by film historian Julie Kirgo \/ Limited to 3,000 copies and available exclusively from Screen Archives Entertainment<\/a> only<\/p>\n

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Review:<\/p>\n

After walking away from his co-starring role in The Egyptian<\/a> <\/strong>[M<\/a>] (1954), Marlon Brando was slapped with a $2 million lawsuit which motivated him to reconsider his breach of contract position and agree to a compromise: he could skip the sandy epic, but must appear opposite Jean Simmons in Desir\u00e9e<\/strong>, a most peculiar version of the Napoleon Bonaparte<\/a>\u2013Desiree Clary<\/a> liaison.<\/p>\n

The story of Napoleon\u2019s one-time fianc\u00e9e and later Queen of Sweden was previously dramatized by French director Sacha Guitry in Le destin fabuleux de D\u00e9sir\u00e9e Clary<\/strong> (1942), but for Fox\u2019 1954 production, the studio drew from the international best-selling 1951 novel by Annamarie Selinko<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Screenwriter Daniel Taradash (Golden Boy<\/strong>, From Here to Eternity<\/strong>, Picnic<\/a> <\/strong>[M<\/a>]) compacted the novel into a brisk 106 min. film with nearly each scene devote to the eponymous character. The story\u2019s scope moves from Desir\u00e9e (Jean Simmons) introducing her family to brothers Napoleon (Marlon Brando) and Joseph<\/a> (Cameron Mitchell), her aborted engagement to the future Emperor of France, and her eventual liaison and marriage to Baptiste Bernadotte<\/a> (Michael Rennie), an officer in Napoleon\u2019s army who later accepts the position of Sweden\u2019s Crown Prince \u2013 much to the disgust of Mons. Bonaparte.<\/p>\n

Forever fond of Napoleon, her love dwindles when she sees him dumping barren wife Josephine (Merle Oberon) for a younger shiksa with swell child bearing capacity, but Desir\u00e9e returns to Paris when her role as Sweden\u2019s Crown Princess proved most disagreeable (Sweden + Snow = TOO COLD).<\/p>\n

Never mind she abandoned her husband and son; Desir\u00e9e remains a token diplomatic figure in the court of Emperor Napoleon, and is tolerated even when Sweden declares war on France, and wins \u2013 causing Napoleon to be banished into exile. When he finally agrees to stop trying to conquer Europe using the blood and flesh of more Frenchman, the film closes with Desir\u00e9e depicted as a reluctant but necessary key player in Napoleon\u2019s life, and aiding France in ridding itself of the egomaniacal emperor once and for all.<\/p>\n

Taradash\u2019s script focuses entirely on Desir\u00e9e\u2019s interaction with her two main suitors \u2013 Napoleon and Bernadotte \u2013 which means there are no battle scenes (rather, montages and music fill in the gaps), and a sporadic narration provides a bullet-point, wrap-up of major battles, such as Waterloo<\/a>, where the Pompous One finally met his downfall.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s all fine, since the three-person story could work as a stage play, but in compacting historical facts and compressing Selinko\u2019s tale in under two hours, some aspects of Desir\u00e9e\u2019s life are ill-paced. The film\u2019s first third is choppy and spastic: the actors blow through dialogue and movements like wound-up toys, specific locations are sometimes muddy, and Taradash\u2019s dialogue never establishes the characters beyond celluloid icons.<\/p>\n

The film\u2019s structural woes are worsened by Brando deciding to play Napoleon like a 3D version of his best official portraits and statues: donning a pointy nose and a perfectly glued hair swoosh across his forehead, he persistently poses, hand behind his arched back; Brando’s head is perpetually angular to emphasize his deep-set eyes; and his movements always begin and end with a pose. It\u2019s not quite caricature, but Brando plays the little despot like a pompous, ingratiating ass within a drawing room satire, so there\u2019s never any belief we\u2019re seeing an incisive take on history.<\/p>\n

The lack of any tenderness, introspection, or loosening up means Napoleon never becomes a living creature, and the film feels mannered, melodramatic and dosed up in hysterics until the midsection, where Desir\u00e9e returns to Paris, is wooed by Bernadotte, and embarks on a peculiar relationship which is far more intriguing that her tiffs with the diminuative egotist.<\/p>\n

Had the story stopped in Sweden and focused on her difficulties with upper and lower class society, Desir\u00e9e, <\/strong>as a film, would\u2019ve been more interesting, but Desir\u00e9e\u2019s return to the court of France\u2019s self-crowned emperor brings the drama back to flat scenes, and an increasingly contrived wrap-up where Napoleon finally says ‘uncle’, hands over his sword, and agrees to live in exile on the island of St. Helena.<\/p>\n

The finale also feels rushed: Napoleon \u2018pops by\u2019 Desir\u00e9e\u2019s home after his defeat in Russia, then reappears for a surrender, re-emerges when he escapes from his first exile in Elba, and hangs around long enough to surrender to Desir\u00e9e (and French authorities) prior to the End Credits. Taradash occasionally bridges these scenes with narration from Desir\u00e9e\u2019s diary entries and letter writing, but they add to the film\u2019s innate staginess.<\/p>\n

Director Koster was probably saddled with a hastily written script that needed to be filmed fast to make use of Brando after his Egyptian<\/strong> bail-out, but there are a few affecting scenes, such as Desir\u00e9e\u2019s shouting her distaste for the chilly Swedish palace in an empty hallway; and her one-night romantic reunion with Bernadotte in Paris, prior to Napoleon\u2019s first surrender, which Koster covers with the camera trained on a smoldering fireplace, and love chatter off-screen. Also effective is a short scene where Napoleon convinces his former finacee to teach him the waltz; Brando loosens up to reveal Napoleon’s sexual ego, but the actor seems to be undressing Simmon and not Desir\u00e9e with his hungry eyes.<\/p>\n

Being an early CinemaScope production, the lenses weren\u2019t perfect, mandating a lot of wide shots and few closer images of the actors, which render the film stately, but static, if not visually dull. There\u2019s also exceptionally sloppy continuity between dinner scenes at night, and the \u201cgarden\u201d walks that are clearly taking place at noon: either no effort was made to feign day-for-night, or the lenses weren\u2019t fast enough for night shoots (which isn\u2019t true, since much of Night People<\/a><\/strong>, shot the same year, takes place after hours). Koster was probably brought on board because he had just completed the studio\u2019s first CinemaScope film, The Robe<\/strong> (1953), and knew how to block scenes to accommodate the massive 2.55:1 ratio.<\/p>\n

The only saving grace of the production are the rich costumes, lush set d\u00e9cor, and Alex North\u2019s sleek score which offers up a lush romantic theme (written by Alfred Newman), and contrasting modernistic variations that suggest the depth neither cast, writer, nor director were able to create from what feels like a rushed production. Also a plus: small roles featuring Alan Napier (TV\u2019s Batman<\/strong>) Cathleen Nesbitt, John Hoyt (When Worlds Collide<\/strong>), and perky Carolyn Jones – still giggling like her flirty-bird character from House of Wax<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Previously released by Spain’s Vella Vision as a Region 2 DVD in Dolby 2.0 stereo, Twilight Time’s swanky Blu-ray is the mandatory upgrade, boasting a sharp HD transfer and uncompressed DTS surround sound. The picture is so sharp one can notice the peculiar flaws of the early CinemaScope lenses, such as soft focus at the frame egdes, and moments when a rack focus creates a pulse of CinemaScope ‘mumps,’ smooshing the image a bit. Julie Kirgo’s booklet notes provide some context to the film’s casting, Koster replacing original director Anatole Litvak, and the film’s small moments of creative ingenuity.<\/p>\n

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Postscript<\/strong><\/p>\n

Brando\u2019s next film for Fox would be The Young Lions<\/strong> (1958) \u2013 a vastly superior film, and career highpoint. Simmons, who had starred in The Robe<\/strong> and The Egyptian<\/strong>, would next co-star with Brando in Sam Goldwyn\u2019s Guys and Dolls<\/strong> (1955).<\/p>\n

After appearing in MGM\u2019s Deep in My Heart<\/strong> the same year as Desir\u00e9e<\/strong>, Oberon went into television, making only four feature films between 1956-1973.<\/p>\n

Michael Rennie, who also appeared in the \u2018scope epics The Robe<\/strong>, King of the Kyber Rifles<\/strong> (1953), Prince Valiant<\/a><\/strong> (1954), and Demetrius and the Gladiators<\/strong> (1954), was dead-centre in his heyday at Fox, co-starring in some of the studio\u2019s biggest action & adventure films, including the upcoming Soldier of Fortune<\/strong> (1955), Seven Cities of Gold<\/strong> (1955), and The Rains of Ranchipur <\/strong>(1955). He’s particularly strong in Desir\u00e9e<\/strong>, giving Bernadotte a broad range of virility, insult, and heroism as the future Crown Prince of Sweden.<\/p>\n

Films derived from the writings of Annemarie Selinko include Morgen gaat \u2018t b\u00eate<\/strong> \/ Tomorrow it Will Be Better<\/strong> (1939), Desir\u00e9e <\/strong>(1954), Ich war ein h\u00e4\u00dfliches M\u00e4dchen <\/strong>(1955), Heute heiratet mein Mann<\/strong> \/ My Husband\u2019s Getting Married Today<\/strong> (1956), and Es wird alles wieder gut<\/strong> (1957).<\/p>\n

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\u00a9 2011; revised 2012 – Mark R. Hasan<\/p>\n

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External References<\/em>:<\/p>\n

IMDB<\/a> — Soundtrack Album<\/a> —\u00a0 Composer Filmography<\/a><\/p>\n

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Return to<\/strong>: Home <\/a>\/ Blu-ray, DVD, Film Reviews<\/a> <\/em><\/em><\/em>\/ D<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Return to: Home \/ Blu-ray, DVD, Film Reviews \/ D . Film: Good\/ BR Transfer: Excellent\/ BR Extras: Good Label:\u00a0 Twilight Time \/\u00a0Region:\u00a0All \/ Released: April, 2012 Genre: Drama \/ Biography Synopsis: \u00a0Fictionalized dramatization of Desir\u00e9e Clary’s liaison with Napoleon Bonaparte during his rise from an officer to Emperor of France. Special Features: \u00a0Isolated Stereo […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[18],"tags":[641,367,642,543,639,398,640,643],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8nuyW-S1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3349"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3349"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3349\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4835,"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3349\/revisions\/4835"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3349"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3349"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3349"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}