It runs, "Ask not for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee." Even the quote testifies to the tragic power of Hemingway's tale of the Spanish Revolution. I was fortunate in seeing the movie in its original release version, lasting 170 minutes. That's two hours and fifty minutes in a time (1943) when film was generally available on a preference to blatantly propaganda films. This doesn't mean that propaganda films were bad, for most of such films during WWII were extremely good, and some ranked as classics. The problem with For Whom The Bell Tolls was that it was widely seen as a pacifistic theme at a time when fiery patriotism was wanted and needed. The main justification found was that it was anti-fascism, which we were in fact fighting in Europe at that time.
The story is that of Robert Jordan (Gary Cooper), an American explosives expert, who has gone to Spain to join the Revolution against Fascism in the form of the Falangists. Many Americans went as volunteers to form The Lincoln Brigade and fight commendably on behalf of the Socialist/Communist revolutionaries. It was futile, for Hitler joined the fight on behalf of Generalissimo Francisco Franco and used the war as a testing ground for his growing military arsenal.
Much of the background details were omitted in creating the screenplay because of their political sensitivity by screenplay writer Dudley Nichols. Despite his bowdlerization of the story, he should be commended for sustaining the overall power of Hemingway's story, and what a magnificent story it is!
Jordan is guided to the protection of a guerrilla band supposedly led by Pablo, played exquisitely well by Akim Tamiroff. As the story unfolds, it becomes apparent that Pablo has lost his courage and chosen to hide his fear in skins of wine. The band has been more or less taken over by his woman, Pilar, a vibrantly powerful peasant woman played by Katina Paxinou. Pilar, ever a patriot of the people, is a Gypsy who has the Romany ability to read palms and see into the future.
Among her band are Agustin, young and fiery tempered and brave played by Arturo de Cordova; Anselmo, a wizened and wise old peasant played by character actor Vladimir Sokoloff; a big and bombastic peasant named Fernando and played by Fortunio Bonanova, who is proud of his cautious bravery; a young and naive peasant named Andres played by Eric Feldary, who Pilar delights in teasing with her unabashed sexuality; and another Gypsy by the name of Rafael, played by Mikhail Rasmuny, who delights in his opportunity to prove himself braver than Pablo. The last of the truly important members of Pablo's band is a young peasant girl and orphan named Maria, played by Ingrid Bergman.
Jordan's mission is to be guided and escorted by Pablo's band to a critical bridge, which he is then to destroy. The orders of the revolutionary high command are that the bridge must go at any cost. It is in a difficult and exposed location, and very well protected. Pablo, despite his charge, is fearful that he will lose his entire band in trying take the bridge. His fear is unconcealable, and the men begin to taunt him.
Primitivo, another band member arrives with the news that the band of El Sordo (The Deaf), played by Joseph Calleia, has come under attack and appears in danger of being massacred. Pilar and the men go to see if they can help, and are in time to see German dive bombers kill them all, but not before we are given the opportunity to know them individually. Maria is particularly hard hit since one of El Sordo's band, young Joaquin played by Lilo Yarson, had the beginnings of a relationship with her. Upon their return to their cave lair, they find that the essential detonator box has been burned beyond use, jeopardizing the completion of their task.
It is apparent to all that Pablo is responsible for burning the detonator, and Agustin tries to provoke him into a fight so that he can be killed. It is an extremely tense and powerful scene, with Pablo being slapped repeatedly like a woman, and uttering over and over a line I will never forget -- "I don't provoke... I don't provoke."
The characterizations are both real and wholly human. Pilar is asked to read Jordan's palm to see if they can still carry out the task. When she freezes at what she sees, Jordan -- called "Eengless" (Ingles) because of the difficulty of pronouncing the "J" -- senses what she has seen but doesn't want it to mean that the bridge won't be destroyed. When he goes out to be alone, Pilar sends Maria out to him with some coffee, knowing what will happen.
Jordan leads Maria to open up to him about why her hair is shorn so shortly. She then describes how the Falangists ravaged her village, killed her parents, then cut her long braids to use as a gag while they raped her. Jordan opens himself to comfort her, and another of the famous film lines is uttered by Maria as they prepare to kiss. She asks in all naive simplicity, "Where do the noses go?"
There is love in this story, as well as hatred. There is bravery and outright cowardice. There is villainy when Pablo recruits additional members from another band and then kills them so his band will be assured of having enough horses to make their escape. The whole movie is so real -- the surrounded mountain top of El Sordo's massacre, the dark smokiness of the cave while Jordan plans and becomes known to the members of the band, the starry bluff upon which Jordan and Maria give each other love and solace and hope for the future, and the starkness of the exposed bridge which promises death more than life.
The movie was made on Hollywood sound stages and the outdoor locations were at Sonora, California. The landscapes are magnificent, and wholly in character with the Spanish mountains. It would be relatively easy to review this movie from a strictly critical perspective, in which case much of the action is slow and/or trite. If, however, you give yourself to the story with the same spirit in which Hemingway wrote it, it becomes a movie that will burn itself into your memory forever. It is one of the all-time masterpieces to come out of Hollywood, and the most memorable film done by Director Sam Wood.
If you've read Hemingway's story, you know what the ending is, but you can't imagine the emotional power of the finale without seeing the film. I was 13 years old when this came out, and invulnerable to "mushy old romance," but it got to even me. Now, if a 13 year-old crying at the ending of the movie doesn't tell you something about the quality of the whole thing, I don't know what will.
I can't begin to tell you the talent that went into the creation of this movie. Other actors who might be recognized by the film buffs among you include Duncan Renaldo (30's star and sometime Cisco Kid), Frank Puglia (major supporting character actor from the late 30's to late 40's), Pedro de Cordoba (Mexican film star and co-star in a couple of John Wayne movies), stuntman par excellence Yakima Canutt as a young cavalryman, George Coulouris (usually cast in spy roles opposite someone like Humphrey Bogart), Louise LaPlanche (silent film star), Eduardo Cianelli (a frequent sardonic Italian spy or other villain), and even Yvonne De Carlo in her first film appearance as a cafe girl. Even the original music, by Victor Young, established criteria of excellence that went mostly unmet until John Williams came along years later.
If this still hasn't convinced you that you need to see this movie, Katina Paxinou won the Oscar for Best Supporting Oscar, and other nominations were received for Best Actor- Gary Cooper; Best Actress, Ingrid Bergman; Best Supporting Actor, Akim Tamiroff; Best Picture, Sam Wood; Best Cinematography, Ray Rennahan; Best Music, Victor Young; and both Paxinou and Tamiroff won the 1944 Golden Globes for Best Supporting Actor and Actress! Now, then, if I've finally stimulated your desire to see this movie, and you can't find the restored version (it had been cut to a mere 130 minutes) of 156 minutes anywhere else, you can buy it for only $14.95 (I think that's the price) at Amazon.com. I say that as a favor to you since I don't get a cent of commission if you buy. If you do buy it, I can promise that you will watch it over and over again, my word of honor!
Ernest Hemingway's 1939 novel FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS stands among the great pieces of American literature. Sam Wood's direction of the script by Dudl...More at Family Video
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