Devotion (1946) Reviews

• The First Family of Victorian Literature

  theowinthrop2006-05-11

  If you want a generalized account of the Bronte Family, DEVOTION is not bad - but it is not really good history. Basically in the 1810s to 1830s Reverend Patrick Brunte (which he changed to Bronte) was in charge of the parsonage of Haworth in Yorkshire. He and his wife had six children: five girls and a son. Most people forget there were two older sisters than Charlotte, Emily, and Anne (and their brother Bramwell) but the two older daughters died prematurely of lung problems (which would bedevil all the Brontes). In that isolated parsonage, the Bronte children entertained themselves by making up stories about a fabulous place called "Great Glass Town" that was ruled by England's superhero of the day, the Duke of Wellington. As they grew older, they would write down their stories about this wonderful place - and soon they were also writing down poetry. All that is but Bramwell. He was very bright and promising, and it was hoped he would develop his considerable talents as a draftsman and artist. He was even sent to a boarding school. But Bramwell developed a love for drinking, and the early promise of his brilliance eventually dissipated. He would also be the first of the better remembered children to die. Before Bramwell died he would live to see the success of his three sisters. Charlotte, Emily, and Anne joined together to publish a volume of poetry called POEMS BY CURRER, ELLIS, & ACTON BELL. The reason for the pseudonyms was that in 1839 it was very unusual for woman to write fiction or poetry. So the girls figured it would not hurt to pretend they were men. The poetry worked well, and soon Charlotte and Emily sent into London the manuscripts of their two novels JANE EYRE and WUTHERING HEIGHTS. Again both were under the pseudonyms. The two novels were acclaimed, as was a novel by Anne called THE TENANT OF WILDFELL HALL (published as Acton Bell). The novels gained the attention of William Thackeray, and he wrote a glowing review of them - especially of JANE EYRE. Charlotte wrote to Thackeray, and arranged a trip to meet him in London. Then he learned that these three novelists and poets were women. Thackeray became their greatest booster. It's nice to know that Emily was aware of this, because she died shortly after Bramwell did - after nursing him. Anne wrote a novel AGNES GRAY, and then her health failed too and she died. Now Reverend Bronte found only one child of his six was still alive. Charlotte wrote her "problem of England" novel called SHIRLEY. In 1853 a third novel, VILLETTE (which most critics consider better than JANE EYRE) was published. Charlotte married the Reverend Arthur Bell Nichols in 1854, and within a year she died giving birth to a still born child. A posthumous novel (actually an early version of VILLETTE called THE PROFESSOR) was published. So was a small fragment called EMMA. Reverend Bronte died in 1861, having survived his six children (but knowing that at least three were remembered as writers). Charlotte's husband Reverend Nichols died in 1901. For a family that has maintained popular interest from their heyday to today, the total literary output of seven novels and a book of poetry is small. But eventually their fans would also have the dozens of surviving notebooks of their childhood fantasies of "Great Glass Town" as well, and even Bramwell's etchings and attempts at painting retain interest. For all it's tragedy of early death, the Brontes retain our fascination as an unexpected blossoming of genius that was cut too short. DEVOTION, as I said earlier, was close to an outline of the story. It showed some of the biographical background that would shape Charlotte's (Olivia de Haviland's) and Emily's (Ida Lupino's) fiction: Emily's love for the wild moors, which would translate into her imagery for Heathcliff and Cathy Earnshaw in HEIGHTS; and Charlotte's infatuation with a foreign tutor she knew in Belgium (a nice performance by Victor Francken) which is used in creating the character of Paul in VILLETTE. But the fiction is tied to a ruthless streak in Charlotte at her more talented sister's expense, especially over Reverend Nichols (Paul Henreid). Actually Emily never yearned for Nichols, or any man Charlotte liked. Bramwell (Arthur Kennedy) is closer to Emily, and tries to support her - but he's undermined by his drinking and declining health. Anne Bronte (Nancy Coleman) is (unfortunatley typically) given short shrift beside her two better known sister novelists. Thackeray is played by Sidney Greenstreet, who physically and intellectually matches the rotund genius who gave us BARRY LYNDON, VANITY FAIR, and HENRY ESMOND. He shows an appreciation of Charlotte and shepherds her around London (guarranteeing her social success). But he also realizes - good novelist and critic that he is - that Emily's writing has a raw power that Charlotte's politer writing lacks. But the movie misses that Thackeray's interest in Charlotte and JANE EYRE may have been based on the figure of Rochester's mad wife in the attic (Bertha). It seems Thackeray also had an insane wife. However his social snobbery is deliciously given when he sneers at some street urchins ("Not my public!"), and when he warns Charlotte against an author they pass - Charles Dickens. DEVOTION is a entertaining film, and a good way to get an audience to look into the Brontes and their literary work. At very least, it leads one to view some movie version of JANE EYRE or WUTHERING HEIGHTS.

• A rarely seen enjoyable film

  emuir-12002-07-02

  Although not historically accurate, this is a very enjoyable romantic view of the Bronte sisters and their devotion to each other and to their drug addicted brother. I am surprised that it has not been shown as often as the overwrought versions of Jane Eyre and Wuthering heights which were made around that time. The performances are excellent, even more so because they are quietly underplayed for the times. The attention to detail is good, except for the scene where Charlotte returned to find Emily on her deathbed but left the front door wide open! Growing up on the Yorkshire moors about 10 miles away from Haworth, I know that no one would ever leave the door open on a cold stormy night. I kept wanting to shout in Yorkshire dialect "Put t'wood in't hoile!" (Shut the door, in English) The Bronte sisters have been the subject of vastly more scholarly print than their combined output, but this film skims over the heartbreak and hardship they endured. One has to see the bleakness of the Haworth parsonage and the moors to begin to grasp what it must have been like for them. Death was a constant companion, taking all of them away in their early adulthood. Death from drink, tubercolosis and in Charlotte's case, childbirth, were the norm for those who survived infancy. Their lives were bleak, but their imagination was rich. Picky picky details aside, this films deserves to be shown more often.

• Excellent performances in romanticized Bronte biography

  Doylenf2001-03-13

  Despite the fact that this treatment of the famous Bronte sisters (Charlotte, Emily and Anne) and their tormented brother Branwell (Arthur Kennedy)gives their story a romantic glow (instead of the harsh reality of their life on the moors), it can be enjoyed on the level of a well-acted, sometimes overwrought romantic drama with sterling performances by Ida Lupino and Olivia de Havilland, as well as an excellent one from Arthur Kennedy as the brother who wastes his talent. The large cast includes Sydney Greenstreet (effective as Thackeray), Victor Francen, Nancy Coleman, Ethel Griffies and Dame May Witty. It may not be an accurate biography (in fact some critics said it should have been called 'Distortion'), but thanks to fine performances and Erich Wolfgang Korngold's magnificent score, it's fascinating to watch. Particularly effective is the montage showing a horse and rider against a cloudy sky as death approaches Emily Bronte and Korngold's music mounts as he comes closer and closer. Wonderful moment of imagery. Whatever its shortcomings, I cannot praise Erich Wolfgang Korngold's score enough. It's one of his most magnificent and stands with KINGS ROW as one of his best film scores, adding majesty and atmosphere to many of the film's most dramatic scenes. Trivia note: DEVOTION has a strange history. It was actually filmed and finished in 1943 while de Havilland was still under contract to the studio. When she launched her famous legal battle against them for adding suspension time to the end of her contract, Jack Warner decided to punish her. He gave her third billing, kept the film off the screen for three years hoping to weaken her career, and failed to invite her to the premiere of the film when it finally did open in Hollywood. Despite all this, Olivia not only won the case in the Supreme Court, but went on to win two Oscars after the film was released!! Proof that he was wrong all along in underestimating her.

• Far better than one is lead to believe

  icblue022006-11-15

  To say that DEVOTION is an accurate representation of the lives of Emily and Charlotte Bronte is as erroneous as saying that 1939's WUTHERING HEIGHTS and 1944's JANE EYRE are flawless film interpretations of their respective novels. Viewers who seek to learn all they can about the sisters Bronte should look elsewhere. Those who wish to be enveloped in a well-written, well-acted tale of two of the greats of English literature should tune in whenever possible. Ida Lupino and Olivia de Havilland turn in rich performances as Emily and Charlotte Bronte. Although much of the history in this film is distorted, these woman effectively convey the personalities of the actual Bronte women, as evidenced in scholarly research throughout the years. Charlotte (played by de Havilland) was known for being very outspoken, and driven toward making connections in the literary world and becoming a success. Her view was that life was just a series of experiences that provided her with material on which to base her prose. De Havilland conveys a dualistic Bronte, showing both her bold and outspoken tendencies, as well as her actual naive nature. Charlotte is challenged by the fact that, although not particularly well-versed in love and life, she has composed one of the greatest novels the literary world has ever known (Jane Eyre). Throughout the movie, we see a definite transition in Charlotte...the eldest Bronte indeed grows up. For her part, Emily (played by Lupino) was much more introverted, preferring to use her experiences on the moors of Northern England and her own personal emotions to create her sole novel, Wuthering Heights. Lupino conveys a very intense, very troubled woman in her portrayal of Emily Bronte. Lupino and Arthur Kennedy effectively show the closeness that existed between Emily and Branwell Bronte, and their scenes together are among the most touching in the film. Lupino also has a mastery of the rather literary dialogue here, as she lends conviction to every line she is given. Bottom line: If you want a complete and true account of the lives of the Bronte sisters, track down an A&E Biography on the topic. Although the characters in DEVOTION are reasonably true to the actual women (and the leading ladies play them well), the facts are skewed. Better yet, grab copies of Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights, as most editions of the novels have thorough biographical notes on the authors (some even written by Charlotte Bronte). For a general notion of what made these women tick, however, watch DEVOTION. Just remember, literary license does apply.

• Fictionalized account of the Bronte sisters

  blanche-22009-09-21

  Ida Lupino is Emily Bronte, and Olivia de Havilland is Charlotte Bronte in "Devotion," a 1946 film, made in 1943 and shelved, which tells the story of the two sisters, their sister Anne, and their brother Branwell (Arthur Kennedy). In essence, the Bronte sisters led sad, miserable, and short lives - there was nothing romantic about the moors, as much as they seem so in the Bronte books. The sisters enjoyed poor health, their brother was a disgrace, and their father a cold man with a violent temper. Only with the entrance of their aunt into their lives was much attention paid to them. She was a warm woman who saw to their education and gave them structure. What the Bronte sisters had was imagination, and plenty of it, and they exercised their imaginations with their writings. "Devotion" is a lovely film with a wonderful performance by Ida Lupino as the tragic Emily. Olivia de Havilland does a good job as Charlotte, shown in the film as selfish and a man magnet. In truth, she was ugly and considered herself so, and while she did develop a crush on Constantin Heger (Victor Francen), the affection doesn't seem to have been returned. All of Charlotte's success happened after Emily's death, not where it does in the film, and the reason the girls left school was not because of their brother's illness, but because of their aunt's death. The eternally underrated Arthur Kennedy is excellent as Branwell, shown here as only a drunk. Branwell did have several jobs, none of which he kept, had an affair with an older married woman, which was an open scandal, and is suspected of eating opium as well as drinking. However, it is true that Charlotte was angry with him. Charlotte did marry Nicholls (and died eight months later) but there was no love triangle with Emily. Nor was Nicholls, as in the film, the model for the mysterious, romantic men in Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights. The fact that this love triangle is represented as inspiration for the men in their novels in "Devotion" is a good case for Paul Henried being miscast. The movie was made during the war, when there were no men around, and Warner Brothers would never have given a star like Errol Flynn a supporting role. But the role of Nicholls, given his importance in the film, cried out for someone a little more dashing and handsome. Sydney Greenstreet appears as William Thackery in a small but showy role toward the end of the film. The film was shelved in 1943 because of a lawsuit filed by Olivia de Havilland against Warner Brothers; in 1946, though she won the suit, the movie was released due to the big success of her film, "To Each His Own" for Paramount. "Devotion" is worth seeing, but not as a true story of the Bronte sisters.