The Song Of Bernadette [1943]

Customer Reviews:

Memorable and moving.......2005-07-01

What stands out in this film - cinematography, some excellent performances (Jennifer Jones, Vincent Price, Charles Bickford, Anne Revere), a literate script - a movie worhty of its subject.

Much more than one realizes.......2005-05-07

1943 in the south of France. What was going on in 1943 ? Heavy fighting was going on in Africa with American and German forces. The USA saw the rationing of meat, butter and cheese March 29 , 1943.Construction of the Manhattan Project began also, in 1943. Vincent Price as usual, played the bad guy, but every actor was at risk .Terrible events all around the world were taking place at the same time in 1943. The movie set in the 1850 's and filmed in 1943. What one sees in the movie was very little changed as it was in the 1850 's . All the stones buildings, houses, streets, and bridges were the same ones. Which incidentally, The late Pope stopped last year in Lourdes, and was likely the last place he visited outside of Italy. And lastly the movie portrays very well how nothing stands in the way of honesty. By the way, what is often overlooked , is what exists yet today. The healing waters of Lourdes, France

The Song of Bernadette [1943] (REGION 1) (NTSC)

Average customer rating:

the visionary of Lourdes
The most sublime and moving of Hollywood's religious films
Gritty and moving
A Star Is Born

The Song of Bernadette [1943] (REGION 1) (NTSC)
Starring: William Eythe , Charles Bickford , Vincent Price , Lee J. Cobb , and Gladys Cooper
Director: Henry King
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00008LDO7
Release Date: 2003-06-03

Customer Reviews:

the visionary of Lourdes.......2004-08-22

Based on Franz Werfel's 1942 best-seller, this is an exquisite telling of the life of Bernadette Soubirous, who in 1858 at the age of 14 saw a vision of the Virgin Mary in a grotto near the small village of Lourdes, where she lived with her family in abject poverty. Bernadette received much opposition from the atheistic town authorities, as well as initially from the clergy, but kept her faith in "The Lady", and it gave her a wisdom when questioned by the unbelievers that went beyond her natural understanding.
Jennifer Jones is superb as the simple Bernadette, and she tells the story with her eyes; there are many scenes where the camera focuses on her face, and one can tell what is happening by her expressive gaze. Director Henry King screen tested many actresses by placing a stick behind the camera, and telling them to look at it, and imagine the Virgin Mary...King said that Jennifer was the only one who "saw", while the others merely "looked".
The supporting cast is wonderful, with many standout performances; I especially like Charles Bickford as the Dean of Lourdes, Lee J. Cobb as Dr. Dozous, Anne Revere as Bernadette's mother Louise, and as a lifelong adversary, a prideful nun who is jealous of Bernadette's visions, the terrific Gladys Cooper.

The film was a huge box-office success, as well as receiving critical acclaim, and was the most nominated film at the 1943 Oscars, with 12 nominations and 4 wins. It won for Best Actress, Best B&W Cinematography (Arthur Miller), Best Score (Alfred Newman), and Best Interior Decoration. The nominations were for Director, Editing, Picture, Screenplay, Sound, Supporting Actor (Bickford), Supporting Actress (both Cooper and Revere).
At 2 hours and 36 minutes, this is a film that is totally engrossing, and the time spent with it is very rewarding.

Cannonized in 1933, Bernadette's legacy continues to flourish; over 200 million people have visited the shrine, and though I have never been there, one of my few treasures is a "souvenir" cross that contains water from the spring at Lourdes (which continues to produce over 25,000 gallons a week), and proving that those in the film portrayed as wanting to commercialize the water from the site have succeeded beyond their expectations.
"For those who believe in God, no explanation is necessary. For those who do not believe in God, no explanation is possible".

The most sublime and moving of Hollywood's religious films.......2003-12-08

There are very few "religious" films that actually achieve a sense of spirituality that makes them work for believers and non-believers alike. "The Song of Bernadette" is one of those rare films, and owes a lot of its power to the Oscar winning performance of Jennifer Jones as Bernadette Soubirous, the young French peasant girl who in 1858 saw a vision of the Virgin Mary in a grotto near the town of Lourdes. While gathering firewood with her sister and a friend, Bernadette was told by the "beautiful lady" to return to the grotto every day for fifteen days. The common folk of Lourdes come to belief in young Bernadette's visions, while the authorities try to put a stop to the nonsense, and the church keeps its distance for the moment.

As Bernadette, Jones is the calm center at the heart of the storm. The scenes in which Bernadette sees the Lady (an unbilled and pregnant Linda Darnell) are presented by director Henry King with a elegant simplicity. Bernadette has a strong and simple faith, which is how she is able to endure the battering by those around her. It is in her victory over these opponents that make this story work, and Bernadette's opponents are a superb cast of supporting players. Charles Bickford is Peyramale Dean of Lourdes, who has to deal with the idea that this lazy and less than intelligent peasant girl has seen the Virgin Mother, Vincent Price the cold hearted local prosecutor Dutour, Lee J. Cobb as the reasonable and scientific Dr. Dozous, Anne Revere as Bernadett's mother, and Gladys Cooper as Sister Vauzous, the nun whose jealousy of Bernadette has quite an emotional payoff in the film.

A best selling version of Bernadette's story was written by Franz Werfel in 1942 and 20th Century Fox bought the rights to make an ambitious screen version which manages to avoid the faults of sentimentality. They also searched for a newcomer for the title role and looked at Anne Baxter, Teresa Wright, Linda Darnell and Gene Tierney before settling on Jones, who had small parts in two previous films as Phylis Isley and was renamed to have a clean slate as an actress. Winning the Oscar pretty much speaks to the success of their efforts. The film also deservedly won Oscars for Arthur Miller's cinematography and Alfred Newman's score. Ironically, Newman replaced the famous composer Igor Stravinsky on the film, and the second movement of Stravinsky's Symphony in Three Movements evolved from his original unused score.

The long awaited DVD version of "The Song of Bernadette" makes up for the delay with some excellent extras, including the A&E "Biography" of Jones, a theatrical trailer, a World War II newsreel of Jones visiting the troops, and an excellent commentary track by two of Jones' biographers. This is classy treatment for one of Hollywood's classiest films.

Gritty and moving.......2001-12-07

A beautiful and moving film, surprisingly unsentimental with some truly excellent performances.

Jennifer Jones works well as St Bernadette, and at times her performance is almost painfully moving - as in the famous moment when, obedient to "the lady" she starts shovelling mud into her mouth. She has just the right air of innocence and beauty.

Her mother is played with particular brilliance - as if one of those gritty peasants from an early Van Gogh painting stepped straight from the canvas. The atmosphere of 19th century agricultural France is well evoked. You get a great sense of poverty, civic pretension, and the ultimate radiance of the miraculous happenings.

Go buy it, and be inspired. You will not regret it. Hollywood failed to ruin it!

A Star Is Born.......2001-09-03

Made during WWII, this epic of faith and courage introduced Jennifer Jones to the world and an Oscar at the age of 24. It's an inspired performance, wide-eyed innocence at its best. All the supporting cast are great: Anne Revere as Bernadette's mother and Gladys Cooper as the jealous nun are stand outs.

Customer Reviews:

Singing the Song of Bernadette.......2005-01-18

In 1858 a young girl saw the Virgin Mary in a grotto outside Lourdes, in the French Pyrenees. Despite immense opposition from all those around her, the child remained faithful to the Beautiful Lady. Finally entering a convent, Bernadette died there in 1879 at the age of 35. Although her story is now known the world over and millions of pilgrims flock to the Grotto of Lourdes every year, what many people do not know is that the body of Saint Bernadette Soubirous remains entirely incorrupt, as lovely today as on the day she died. And I speak as one who has stayed in her convent more than once and gazed upon her.

This film tells the story of the life of Bernadette. Very faithful to the historical Bernadette and her story, the film makers have avoided sentimentality and religious fervour and produced a film which appeals to young and old, to those of religious convictions and those with none.

Made in 1943, the film stars the young Jennifer Jones in her first major role, and for which she deservedly won the Best Actress Oscar. At the Academy Awards that year, the film won a total of 4 Oscars. The supporting cast is first rate, including Vincent Price, Charles Bickford, William Eythe, Lee J Cobb and Gladys Cooper.

This is the kind of film which you will watch once and never forget. It is moving, told with great simplicity and touches something which is deep within us all.

A perennial favourite and only newly released on DVD after 61 years, this is one film you should make a point of watching.

Respectable cast in interesting film.......2004-09-12

Based on the story of the Lourdes miracles in the XIX century, this was the film that made Jennifer Jones into a Hollywood star. It is an enjoyable film with a respectable cast that includes Vincent Price, Gladys Cooper and Anne Revere but it lacks a certain sparkle. Maybe it was the theme that didn't do it for me, maybe it's the film itself. I don't know. I enjoyed it, but I doubt that I will remember it in a year's time. As for the DVD, as with recent classic releases from Fox, this is barebone but at least they put some care in the copy and the master is likely to be the same as the american edition.

Song of Bernadette [1943] (REGION 1) (NTSC)

Average customer rating:

Song of Bernadette [1943] (REGION 1) (NTSC)
Jennifer Jones
Manufacturer: Fox Home Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: 6307585951
Release Date: 2004-03-02

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