Portrait of jennie film

The most successful of nathans books, it is considered a modern masterpiece of fantasy fiction. Why portrait of jennie remains one of hollywoods strangest. William dieterles 1948 film, starring jennifer jones and joseph cotten, is an enthralling meditation on memory, loss and transformative power. Shooting for portrait of jennie extended to a year and a half and proved to be a moneylosing venture, requiring endless script revisions. Portrait of jennie 1948 original trailer hd 1080p youtube. At the 21st academy awards, it won an oscar for best special effects paul eagler, joseph mcmillan johnson, russell shearman and clarence slifer. This movie convinces the viewer that love is truly indestructable without resort to any unusual special effect. Over the next few months cotten meets jennie again and again. The portrait was a property of the producer, as it was painted as a prop to the movie. Portrait of jennie is a film you dont forget there is nothing quite like it in the world of cinema. Intrigued at her thorough knowledge of the past, eben is about to converse with her further. In portrait of jennies closing moments, pain and loss melt away. Nov 06, 2010 portrait of jennie is a haunting enigma of a film.

One cold winter evening in central park, he meets an enigmatic, oldfashioned little girl, jennie appleton jennifer jones, who captures his fancy when she asks him to wait for her to grow up. Portrait of jennie is a beautifully made film, not perfect but lavish and constantly inventive and surprising in its design if not its story. According to wikipedia, it was exposed in the home of davide o. Its a shame disney releasing the title through mgm seems to have no interest at all in even the best of their selznick titles. Aside from its tumultuous climax, portrait of jennie is a relatively quiet film, and subtleties like footsteps are nicely rendered. The portrait of jennie is a perfect film in an achingly brief 86 minutes, and it effortlessly achieves the dreamy mythic quality of a longlost story from childhood. All the dialogue is easy to comprehend though some of the overdubbing does not sync well and dimitri tiomkins variations on claude debussys themes sound rich and robust. William dieterles approach is unlike the hollywood fantasies current at the time, which tended to be semicomic films blanc like here comes mr. Portrait of jennie 1948 letterboxd social film discovery. Alfred hitchcock didnt just borrow bits and pieces of this film, its like he remade it, but changed it into a story of obsession for a. Portrait of jennie film by dieterle 1948 britannica. Thanks to a classic film starring joseph cotten and jennifer jones, it is the one book title by this sadly almost forgotten author which is vaguely familiar to modern readers.

Oct 17, 2017 belying the trickery of its multiple techniques, however, portrait of jennie remains a simple story magnificently told, and definitively lives up to the frankly quite overwhelming ambition of its producer. Portrait of jennie isnt perfect, but it is a powerful romantic fantasy and an ideal vessel for the jennifer jones joseph cotten combo. The story of an ethereal romance between two generations is told with style, taste. This story combines romance, fantasy, mystery, and the supernatural. Selznick recalled the film as doomed to be one of the. Portrait of jennie 1948 cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. May 06, 2019 eben, his place in the pantheon assured, is nowhere to be found at the film s close.

In 1949 dieterle directed the accused, an entertaining film noir about a college professor loretta young on the run from a homicide. Also in the cast are ethel barrymore and lillian gish. Selznick and jones reteamed more respectably with this film, a delicate new york ghost story produced. Portrait of jennie is an uplifting story of a beatdown artist named eban adams joseph cotten who finds his muse in a young girl jennifer jones he happens to meet playing in the snow. Jennifer jones and joseph cotten prove themselves a strong team. Its easy to see the miscalculations in portrait of jennie but this beautifullooking film with its debussy inspired score has atmosphere to spare. Sep 23, 2009 tribute to the 1948 film portrait of jennie starring jennifer jones and joseph cotten.

Film at the time saw a remarkable concentration on portraiture, starting around 1944 with laura and edgar g. Eben takes out the scarf to show gus and notices an advertisement for jennie s parents act on the newspaper, which is dated 1910. Eben takes out the scarf to show gus and notices an advertisement for jennies parents act on the newspaper, which is dated 1910. Starving artist eben adams joseph cotton has a chance encounter in central park with jennie jennifer jones, a ghostly girl.

All images from the film are credited to dvdbeaver and are captured directly from kino lorbers bluray release of portrait of jennie. In portrait of jennie, joseph cotten plays an artist, eben adams, who is unable to bring any true feeling to his work. There are supernatural romances and then theres portrait of jennie an unassailable work of visionary delirium and towering claptrap that is easily the strangest film ever recalled fondly by your tcmloving aunt. Portrait of jennie is a wellmade sentimental romance. Her audience intriguingly, all girls listen in wonder.

The original trailer in high definition of portrait of jennie directed by william. Portrait of jennie is one of my all time favorite films. Jennifer jones came in for more than a dozen sittings in brackmans connecticut studio. Soon after, eben sells a sketch of jennie to kindly art dealer miss spinny ethel barrymore and, as he meets the oddly mutable jennie in fleeting moments, begins to realize they share a special destiny. The film is a very fine mood piece a fantasy well acted and beautifully designed that belies the script and shooting difficulties that characterized it. Portrait of jennie is one of several films that paired actors joseph cotten and jennifer jones together in a romantic scenario, but what is particularly noteworthy about this venture is the extent to which it blends sentimentality with supernatural fantasy. In depressionera new york, painter eben adams joseph cotten despairs at his lack of success. Tribute to the 1948 film portrait of jennie starring jennifer jones and joseph cotten.

Portrait of jennie is a haunting evocation of one mans pained artistic process, and the genius of the film is how dieterle delicately equates. Jun 27, 2001 portrait of jennie is a haunting evocation of one mans pained artistic process, and the genius of the film is how dieterle delicately equates the creative impulse to an everevolving spiritual crisis. Portrait of jenny is a wonderful example of a great romantic fantasy story made all the more believable by the fine acting of joseph cotten and jennifer jones. Starving artist eben adams joseph cotton has a chance encounter in central. Portrait of jennie 1948 directed by william dieterle. Alfred hitchcock didnt just borrow bits and pieces of this film, its like he remade it, but changed it into a story of obsession for a dead woman rather than being a love story. The portrait of jennie jennifer jones was painted by artist robert brackman. Presented by the chicago film society click here to purchase advance tickets there are supernatural romances and then theres portrait of jennie an unassailable work of visionary delirium and towering claptrap that is easily the strangest film ever recalled fondly by your tcmloving aunt. Belying the trickery of its multiple techniques, however, portrait of jennie remains a simple story magnificently told, and definitively lives up to the frankly quite overwhelming ambition of its producer. With jennifer jones, joseph cotten, ethel barrymore, lillian gish.

Portrait of jennie is a novel by american writer robert nathan, first published in 1940. Instead, miss spinney, a different kind of genius, has the final word on the meaning of true art. Its 1934 in new york city, the great depression rages on, and. Other articles where portrait of jennie is discussed. The whole film expresses a sentimental unwillingness to connect historical futures with cherished pasts, hell, it visually declares at one point that life is insubstantial unless it resembles a great exaggeration. While painting in central park one morning, eben makes the acquaintance of a schoolgirl named jennie jennifer jones, who prattles on about things that happened years ago. Portrait of jennie had a hellacious production and distribution history, most of which can be blamed directly on the overcontrolling, egotistical selznick. Aug 29, 2014 portrait of jennie is a wellmade sentimental romance. Portrait of jennie 1948 rotten tomatoes movie trailers. Portrait of jennie is a 1948 film based on the novella by robert nathan, directed by william dieterle and produced by david o.

What a strange trailer for a film as romantic, poetic and etherial as. As he proved with the hunchback of notre dame 1939 and the devil and daniel webster 1941, especially, hollywood workhorse dieterle was a master of sustained mood, of making watching a film feel like entering a fugue state. The only problem is that the girl seems to age very quickly and goes from 14 or so to a grown woman in a matter of months. Starring joseph cotten citizen kane and oscarar winner jennifer jones a farewell to arms in a sensitive, appealing performance the hollywood reporter, this tender and poetic variety tale is enthralling from its touching beginning to its haunting conclusion. Where is the portrait that robert brackman did for david. In this film, joseph cotten plays an artist who meets an intriguing schoolgirl named jennie. Portrait of jennie 1948, directed by william dieterle. Portrait of jennie portret jennie jest film iz 1948. Eben then begins his portrait of jennie, and the next day, while dining at a restaurant, tells his taxi driver friend, gus otoole, about her. Portrait of jennie is a 1948 fantasy film based on the novella by robert nathan. The plot concerns a painter who draws inspiration from someone whom we gradually suspect. Portrait of jennie synopsis favorite theater button. Portrait is an astonishingly rich and atmospheric film that slips over the viewer like a shroud. Portrait of jennie by william dieterle joseph cotten.

Jennifer jones is simply luminous, turning in her second quietly staggering performance, after cluny brown. The love story featured jones and cotten, and its supernatural twist was borrowed by subsequent films. William dieterles 1948 masterpiece portrait of jennie is not only an unabashedly romantic melodrama but also a fascinating ghost story. Portrait of jennie is the latest of these films to appear.

It stars jennifer jones as the title character a coincidence, not the danza and joseph cotten as eben adams. Jennifer jones, joseph cotten, ethel barrymore, lillian gish, cecil kellaway, david wayne, albert sharpe, henry hull, florence bates, felix bressart, clem bevans, maude simmons, robert dudley, john farrell, anne francis et brian keith. Apr 21, 2018 its easy to see the miscalculations in portrait of jennie but this beautifullooking film with its debussy inspired score has atmosphere to spare. He had optioned the robert nathan story at least as early as 1944. Eben, his place in the pantheon assured, is nowhere to be found at the films close. The film was directed by william dieterle and produced by david o.

A companion piece to the dieterleselznick love letters, also starring jones and cotten. One of the most unusual romances ever filmed, portrait of jennie is the picture of sumptuousperfection. The two worlds of jennie logan is a 1979 american television film which is an adaptation of david l. It stars jennifer jones as the title character a coincidence, not the danza and joseph cotten as eben adams, the artist she inspires.

Lonely and magical, portrait of jennie is often cited as a romantic fantasy masterpiece. The million pound note 1954 starring gregory peck full movie duration. Ulmers bluebeard, and quickly followed by scarlet street and albert lewins picture of dorian gray as well as his contribution to the same magicalrealist romance genre jennie belongs to, pandora and the flying dutchman. Portrait of jennie is an excellent film, and it was clearly the inspiration for an even better film. An essay by film historian john dileo about the film portrait of jennie 1948. The majority of the film is rather bland, mired in romantic conventions, but a sharp and deathdefying third act saves it. The portrait of jennie supposedly painted by joseph cottens character, eben adams, was in reality created by noted portrait artist robert brackman. Selznick, portrait of jennie is much closer in spirit to his cycle of hitchcock films like rebecca than his famous grandiose epics like gone with the wind or duel in the sun, the latter starring his lover and eventual wife, jennifer jones. A devastating love story and a fascinating otherworldly mystery, it is a difficult film to classify. Movie is very unconventional for its time there are no opening credits, the end credits are listed as the actors are jennifer jones, etc. After a filming start in february of 1947, selznick was unhappy with much of the material he was getting, and frustrated by bad weather. It also stars marc singer, linda gray, alan feinstein and henry wilcoxon. Jones, who captures his fancy when she asks him to wait for her to grow up.