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Released by: Olive Films
Released on: May 24th, 2016
Directed by: Albert Lewin
Cast: George Sanders, Angela Lansbury, Ann Dvorak, Katherine Emery, Susan Douglas, John Carradine, Hugo Haas
Year: 1946
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The Movie:
First published in 1885, Bel Ami was French author Guy de Maupassant's second novel. It concerns one Georges Duroy, who, after a chance encounter with a former military comrade, begins a career as a journalist. He owes his success to his friend's wife, Madeleine, who rewrites his work in sensationalistic fashion. She also uses her contacts in high society and politics to get the dirt on various Parisian politicians. When his friend dies, Duroy marries Madeleine, but her friends begin to call him by her former husband's last name, an act that enrages Duroy. Meanwhile, Duroy starts an extramarital affair with another woman but regrets it when he fails to get rid of her. Later, he catches his own wife in the act of adultery and sues her for divorce. Not one to be stopped in his quest for power, Duroy then proceeds to marry a rival's daughter against her parents' wishes. The book ends with Duroy pondering how he can seduce his former mistress into another love affair as his wedding ceremony carries on.
In 1945, filmmaker Albert Lewin turned his attention to Oscar Wilde's blackly comical horror novella The Picture of Dorian Gray. The film met with powerful animosity from various political and religious factions because of its perceived homosexuality and premarital sexual situations, but it met with complete indifference from U.S. audiences (the film cost almost $3 million to make but recouped less than $2 million at the North American box office). Regardless, the film proved a critical darling, in part because of the performances of George Sanders as Lord Henry Wotten and Angela Lansbury, in her cinematic debut, as Dorian's jilted lover. Lansbury won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress and was nominated for an Oscar in the same category.
In an attempt to repeat that film's critical success but with a greater appeal to the masses, Lewin basically remade it the following year as The Private Affairs of Bel Ami, though this time using de Maupassant's original novel as the nominal source. Sanders was cast in the nearly identical role of Duroy, while Lansbury was cast in a nearly identical role as one of Duroy's mistresses. The film's plot wasn't too far removed from de Maupassant's story. Nor did the similarities to the director's take on Wilde's tale stop with similar characters and cast: Lifting a directorial touch from his previous film, Lewin shoots a grotesque painting (for which the studio paid a number of famous artists to compete, including Salvador Dali, though it was Max Ernst who won) in full color, despite the fact that the rest of the film was shot in black and white.
The film is set in Paris in 1880. Former soldier Georges Duroy (George Sanders) stumbles upon an old friend, Charles Forestier (John Carradine), in a small café. Forestier offers him a job as a journalist, and Duroy accepts. At a party at the Forestier home, Duroy is introduced by Mrs. Forestier (Ann Dvorak) to the beautiful young Clotilde de Marelle (Angela Lansbury), a widow and mother. Duroy and de Marelle begin an affair, but while it's love at first sight for Clotilde, it's anything but for Duroy, who beds a number of women in his desire to climb the social ladder. When Forestier dies of a chronic illness, Duroy marries his wife. Later tiring of her, he realizes that he can have part of her fortune and still move up the social ladder by marrying another; he frames her for adultery and files for divorce. He continues his on-again, off-again romance with Clotilde while maintaining affairs with other women, whom he uses for information on political enemies. He also learns that the daughter of a 'friend' his set to inherit a great deal of money and seduces her. Unfortunately, without a name in social circles, he cannot marry her, and his attempts to make such a name for himself results in a challenge to duel.
Unfortunately, the film met with resistance from censors at the time. Too sexually frank, it was decreed that Duroy could not get away with his immoral crimes as he had in the novel, and the ending was changed dramatically. The affairs were also toned down, though some daring dialogue and situations still made it through the censors (as they had with The Picture of Dorian Gray). For example, when Duroy seduces an older woman to pry information from her, he refers to her as a “soot-filled furnace,†a clear reference to her aging vagina. The film is chock-full of such references, and Duroy is presented as the disgusting, sexist heel he is. That a film was built around such a character is a surprise, particularly given the reception to Dorian Gray the previous year. When the movie was released briefly (in Paris, Texas) in 1946, it wasn't met with the adoration Lewin had hoped, and it was pulled for retooling, which lasted into the following year, when it was released in April.
Regardless of what one thinks of the film today, it's hard to deny that the performances are excellent all around. (Sanders, Lansbury, and the often-overlooked John Carradine are particularly good.) And really, the script does feature a surprisingly filthy wit that keeps it from falling into predictability and dullness. If anything, The Private Affairs of Bel Ami is a refreshing, daring work of film art, a delicious black comedy cum dark melodrama worth at least one viewing (though this critic will likely give it many more).
Video/Audio/Extras:
Paramount's The Private Affairs of Bel Ami comes to Blu-ray courtesy of Olive Films in 1080p high definition and an MPEG-4 AVC encode. The original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.33:1 is maintained and looks quite good. Detail is relatively sharp, and there's virtually no crush. Grain is mostly organic but in a couple of instances appears a little heavy. There's some minor dirt and debris and a few scratches, but these add to the filmic quality rather than detract from it. The remastering was presided over by the UCLA film archives with the involvement of director Martin Scorsese and was clearly a labor of love. It may not be perfect, but it's doubtful the film has ever looked better since its original projection.
The audio is presented in a newly mastered English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio track, which is very nice. It's as robust as films of this vintage can be, with no serious hiss, pops, or cracks to be heard. English subtitles for the deaf and hearing impaired are included, but you won't have to use these because of issues with the audio track, that's for sure.
Olive has seen fit to include a warning: “There is a syncing issue occurring in Chapter 8 at 1:43:16 that is inherent to the source material. This issue may be due to an oversight in the original ADR sync or possible aesthetic choices.†But trust us at R!S!P!, the issue isn't nearly as problematic as the warning makes it out to be. Most people won't even notice it!
The only drawback for Olive's release is that there aren't any extras, not even a trailer.
Final Word:
The Private Affairs of Bel Ami is a window into the type of films aimed at adults in the 1940s, a mature, sometimes funny, often dirty, but always engaging melodrama with terrific dialogue, impressive performances, and smart direction. The visuals on Olive's Blu-ray release are strong, as is the soundtrack. If you're into classic cinema, there really is no reason to avoid this forgotten gem.
Christopher Workman is a freelance writer, film critic, and co-author (with Troy Howarth) of the Tome of Terror horror film review series. Volume 2 of that series (covering the 1930s) is currently available from Midnight Marquee Press, Inc.
Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps!
