Dark Victory Reviews
Alec B
Super Reviewer
February 17, 2013
Its a pretty silly melodrama that even Bette Davis' absurd acting choices can't save. On a side note, this film also features a terrible supporting performance by Ronald Reagan.
February 15, 2013
Great performance by Davis and Bogart chips in well. Interesting to see Reagan but he was awful. The story excellent and although melodramatic in parts it was never corny.
January 23, 2013
Unapologetically soapy and stagebound, what keeps it from being another weak weepie is Bette Davis. Her facing down mortality could have been trite, but her unique screen presence illuminates and fleshes out her dying heiress, giving her both a feisty fight for life and a growing calm in the face of death - and in return, the film gets a surprisingly potent intelligence and depth. They really don't make 'em like they used to. (Oh, and keep your eyes peeled for Bogie!)
November 25, 2012
I pretty much knew how this movie had to end. Still, Bette Davis's journey to acceptance was amazing to watch.
October 12, 2012
Bette Davis regarded this as her favorite film role, and it is easily among her all-time best films. Bette Davis could carry the entire film by herself, but her fellow cast members are no slackers either, with each one of them churning out sublime performances. This film is also a very emotional film, especially the end which Bette Davis plays beautifully. Dark Victory is a superb drama and needs to be seen by any fan of Bette Davis.
October 6, 2012
Not quite classic Bette Davis - I prefer her being a bitch! However, this is a great Hollywood weepie and yet again Ms Davis shows why she's so highly rated as a character actress.
September 23, 2012
Davis was never more vulnerable or got to show off all of her gifts, and her ending scene is weepie heaven.
"I'll have a large order of...PROGNOSIS NEGATIVE!"
Davis was never more vulnerable or got to show off all of her gifts, and her ending scene is weepie heaven.
September 20, 2012
And with a very young Humphrey Bogart (and Ronald Reagan!) to boot!
I want to say that this film started the whole "terminal disease = Oscar nominee" trope, considering it's age. And yet, it almost seems formulaic in that respect. Predictable, but still pretty good.
And with a very young Humphrey Bogart (and Ronald Reagan!) to boot!
August 13, 2011
I generally don't go for this type of movie but Bette Davis' performance is absolutely captivating. As a result, I see it quite often.
June 17, 2012
"dark victory" is a perfect example of how something depressing can be beautiful, led by a stellar performance from leading lady, bette davis.
January 22, 2012
"I haven't cried yet..." *last 10 minutes* "Oh shit..." I was sobbing. Bette Davis is one of, if not the best, film actress of all time.
rthornhill
May 8, 2009
note to hf: available at no. bruns. & pway - jfk and ewing.....
August 18, 2011
1939 is a great year in movies! A full of life woman (Davis) is living her life wonderfully, but is stopped by some painful headaches. She stops by the hospital and sees a doctor (Brent). He tells her she will be fine, but he later informs her friend (Fitzgerald) that she is dying from a brain tumor and only has a few months to live. Bette Davis was fresh from her win from classic 1938's "Jezebel". It's a great movie, and is most of the time just a teeny bit overlooked than this movie. It shouldn't be. To me, this is a great example of a tearjerker. Since I'm not a crier, nothing came out for me, but certainly it's believable why so many people consider this to be so good. Davis' performance is very very good and should have won an Oscar for this one too (though it was pretty rare to get to Academy Awards two times in a row). Fitzgerald made this the same year she made William Wyler's "Wuthering Heights" which she was nominated for an Oscar for best supporing actress. Though her role might not be as vital or as great as the other one, she certainly does a standup job and proves why she was considered so good. Look out for Humphrey Bogart and Ronald Reagen in early roles by the way! "Dark Victory" is a classic, and certainly adds to 1939's list of best movies
EnglishCrumpet
July 4, 2011
Perhaps not so much of a tearjerker as its reputations suggests, Dark Victory is still an emotional and well-acted melodrama with a big heart and sterling performance from Bette Davis. A strong ensemble cast rally around Davis, including supporting turns from Humphrey Bogart and Ronald Reagan, while director Edmund Goulding's well-paced and -executed telling of the tragic story saw the film to a deserved Best Picture nomination.
Cambo
January 11, 2011
A great, touching film - another classic Bette Davis film.
AJ V
Super Reviewer
September 5, 2010
This is a good movie, with good actors, and a good story. It's a dramatic and exciting thriller. I saw it a while ago, but I remember it was good.
carloslotr
September 18, 2010
Bette Davis is pretty good but the plot isn't very original watching it in these days, however there were some good scenes but nothing special.
Jason B.
September 5, 2010
Review:
A triumph film that relied solely on the performance of the one actress playing Judith Terherne, lucky for Studio Boss Jack Warner, he was relying on a star who knew what she was doing...Bette Davis. A woman that had so much presence on the screen, she could be in a cast with the greatest actors in the world, and she would still be the lead because she has something very few have, star quality. Something that you can not gain, or learn, you had to have it, and Bette Davis had it. But do not let her natural talent as an actress and star fool you, for she was one of the hardest working actress that cinema has every had, and will ever have, for she was an absolute professional and perfectionist. So with a name and talent so big, Dark Victory was on the clear path to being a success...and Mrs. Davis knew this. For she was the one to persuade Jack Warner into obtaining the rights, when he mocked the whole idea, saying no one in their right minds would want to see a woman go blind on screen; clearly he forgot who was going to star in it, for no one could make going blind more glamourous than Bette Davis, and she goes out on a bang.
Dark Victory's main purpose as a film is to showcase Davis's talent, but boy does she showcase it. In probably one of Bette Davis's best performances (tied with All About Eve), and one of the greatest performances ever to hit the screen, Dark Victory is the classic, sob story that even now, in 2010 has me balling half way into the movie. A movie that should have reached it's expiration date 20 years ago, continues to prevail as a classic and as a great, quality movie, for that is one thing I have learned about acting, you can never put an expiration date on a good performance. However, I must say there are many subtle things that complement Mrs. Davis's performance, and they were unfortunately unnoticed at the time because they lacked the 30s finesse, such as Gone with the Wind. Rather these things which I will reveal, chose to go towards a more natural and smooth direction that was uncommon at the time. What was so strange about this film was the music, and the cinematography. Instead of having a huge, grand orchestra, such as Gone with the Wind or The Wizard of Oz, which went on to win Best Score that year, Dark Victory plays it down, going for a more emotional score by Max Stein. Same goes for the cinematography, instead of having wide angle, sweeping shots of Bette Davis running through hills, the cinematography mirrored some of the emotions in the film, and was kept simple not to outshine a bright lightbulb.
Now I will admit, this movie, does not choose to go into great stories of the civil war, or go deep into thought-provoking subjects, instead it chooses to be a tear jerker, melodramatic film that merely has everyone there for one reason only, the star. But this movie plays the genre to perfection, and deals with subjects that we haven't even solved now, and it is a quality film with fine performances, and a great star, to make a great movie.
Synopsis: A young, spirited, wealthy socialite is diagnosed with a brain tumor and she goes through revolutions in her life, and questions it's purpose, and the point of time, in the mean while, she falls in love with a brain surgeon who becomes frustrated with the idea that some one so full of spirit must be condemned to an awful disease. While this two struggle with in themselves, they both go on a journey to find what is meaningful in life.
Review:
A triumph film that relied solely on the performance of the one actress playing Judith Terherne, lucky for Studio Boss Jack Warner, he was relying on a star who knew what she was doing...Bette Davis. A woman that had so much presence on the screen, she could be in a cast with the greatest actors in the world, and she would still be the lead because she has something very few have, star quality. Something that you can not gain, or learn, you had to have it, and Bette Davis had it. But do not let her natural talent as an actress and star fool you, for she was one of the hardest working actress that cinema has every had, and will ever have, for she was an absolute professional and perfectionist. So with a name and talent so big, Dark Victory was on the clear path to being a success...and Mrs. Davis knew this. For she was the one to persuade Jack Warner into obtaining the rights, when he mocked the whole idea, saying no one in their right minds would want to see a woman go blind on screen; clearly he forgot who was going to star in it, for no one could make going blind more glamourous than Bette Davis, and she goes out on a bang.
Dark Victory's main purpose as a film is to showcase Davis's talent, but boy does she showcase it. In probably one of Bette Davis's best performances (tied with All About Eve), and one of the greatest performances ever to hit the screen, Dark Victory is the classic, sob story that even now, in 2010 has me balling half way into the movie. A movie that should have reached it's expiration date 20 years ago, continues to prevail as a classic and as a great, quality movie, for that is one thing I have learned about acting, you can never put an expiration date on a good performance. However, I must say there are many subtle things that complement Mrs. Davis's performance, and they were unfortunately unnoticed at the time because they lacked the 30s finesse, such as Gone with the Wind. Rather these things which I will reveal, chose to go towards a more natural and smooth direction that was uncommon at the time. What was so strange about this film was the music, and the cinematography. Instead of having a huge, grand orchestra, such as Gone with the Wind or The Wizard of Oz, which went on to win Best Score that year, Dark Victory plays it down, going for a more emotional score by Max Stein. Same goes for the cinematography, instead of having wide angle, sweeping shots of Bette Davis running through hills, the cinematography mirrored some of the emotions in the film, and was kept simple not to outshine a bright lightbulb.
Now I will admit, this movie, does not choose to go into great stories of the civil war, or go deep into thought-provoking subjects, instead it chooses to be a tear jerker, melodramatic film that merely has everyone there for one reason only, the star. But this movie plays the genre to perfection, and deals with subjects that we haven't even solved now, and it is a quality film with fine performances, and a great star, to make a great movie.
Adrian B.
July 19, 2010
This is a hard film to watch because you actually feel very, very sorry for Bette Davis' character in this case. She is a daignosed with a brain tumor, operated on, and it seems to be successful. But...the doctor lied and she only has months to live. How do you live life knowing that it will be shortened significantly? It is an incredibly difficult film, that was sadly released the same year as Gone With the Wind, The Wizard of Oz, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Wuthering Heights, and Ninotchka. Sadly, its brilliance has fallen in the shadows of these other films. What a great film, and another one rejected from the 1001 Movies List. Humphrey Bogart's role is also pretty strong.
