STUFF YOU GOTTA WATCH - Dark Victory

DARK VICTORY

(1939)
With Bette Davis, George Brent, Humphrey Bogart, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Ronald Reagan, Henry Travers, Cora Witherspoon
Directed by Edmund Golding
Black and White
Review by JL

The ultimate three-hankie weeper, DARK VICTORY succeeds mainly because of Bette Davis' dynamic performance that runs the emotional gamut from A to letters that haven't been invented yet. Plus, it's a chance to watch Bogey as he stumbles over his Irish accent, and there's a future president in the cast to boot. From sets to costumes, no expense was spared in the making of DARK VICTORY, giving it an elegant touch above that of most Warner Bros. melodramas, and helping to elevate material that was already a bit shopworn in 1939. Long before CGI and worldwide location shooting, this is what a big-budget film looked like. ½ - JB