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Anthony Adverse
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| Anthony Adverse | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Mervyn LeRoy |
| Screenplay by | Sheridan Gibney Milton Krims |
| Based on | Anthony Adverse 1933 novel by Hervey Allen |
| Produced by | Hal B. Wallis Jack L. Warner |
| Starring | Fredric March Olivia de Havilland Gale Sondergaard |
| Cinematography | Tony Gaudio |
| Edited by | Ralph Dawson |
| Music by | Erich Wolfgang Korngold |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 141 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1,192,000[2] |
| Box office | $2,750,000[2] |
Anthony Adverse is a 1936 American epic historical drama film directed by Mervyn LeRoy and starring Fredric March and Olivia de Havilland. The screenplay by Sheridan Gibney draws elements of its plot from eight of the nine books in Hervey Allen's 1933 historical novel, Anthony Adverse. Abandoned at a convent as an infant, Anthony comes of age in the tumultuous turn of the 18th to the 19th century, the age of Napoleon. The audience is privy to many truths in Anthony's life, including the tragic story of his origins and the fact that the wealthy merchant who adopts him is his grandfather. Most important of all, Anthony believes that his beloved Angela abandoned him without a word, when in fact she left a note telling him that the theatrical troupe was going to Rome. The gust of wind that blows the note away is one of many fateful and fatal events in Anthony's story.
The film received four Academy Awards, including the inaugural Academy Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, given to Gale Sondergaard for her performance as the villainous Faith Paleologus.
Plot
[edit]
In 1773, young Scottish woman Maria Bonnyfeather is the new bride of middle-aged Spanish Marquis Don Luis. The consummation of their marriage is postponed until he is cured of gout at a famous spa. Meanwhile, Maria's true love, Denis Moore, follows them and stays near their château. While the marquis is away taking the cure, they meet in the woods, and after three months Maria tells him she is carrying his child. The marquis returns home, cured, and Maria is horrified at what awaits her. The lovers plan to flee that night, but the marquis discovers Maria waiting for Denis. Don Luis takes her away, but Denis pursues them to an inn, where Don Luis kills him in a sword duel.
Months later, Maria dies giving birth to her son at a chalet in the Italian Alps. Don Luis leaves the infant in the foundling wheel of a convent near Leghorn. The nuns christen him Anthony because he was found on the feast day of St. Anthony the Great. Don Luis lies to Maria's father, wealthy merchant John Bonnyfeather, telling him that the infant also died. Ten years later, by chance, Anthony is apprenticed to Bonnyfeather, who discovers his relationship to the boy but keeps it a secret. The only explanation for Don Luis’ behavior is that Maria's child was illegitimate, and Bonnyfeather cannot bear to have his daughter—or his grandson—bear that stigma. He gives the boy the surname Adverse acknowledging the difficult start in life.
Anthony and the cook's daughter, Angela Guisseppi fall in love. Angela wants to become a great singer. Anthony wants to serve Bonnyfeather and marry Angela, but Angela's father wins the lottery and the family leaves Leghorn. Years later, Anthony finds her, singing in the opera chorus. Eventually, they wed. Soon after the ceremony, Bonnyfeather sends Anthony to Havana to save Bonnyfeather's fortune from a laggard debtor, the trading firm Gallego & Sons. On the day his ship sails, he and Angela are supposed to meet at the convent, but she arrives first, and he is late. Unable to wait any longer, she leaves a note outside the convent to inform him that she is leaving for Rome with her opera company, but the note is blown away. Confused and upset, he sails without her. Meanwhile, assuming he has abandoned her, she continues her career.
Gallego has quit Havana. Anthony leaves to take control of Gallego & Sons' only remaining asset—a slave trading post on the Pongo River in Africa, so he can recover Bonnyfeather's debt. Three years in the slave trade corrupts him, and he takes slave girl Neleta into his bed. After his friend, Brother François, is crucified and killed by natives, Anthony returns to Italy to find Bonnyfeather has died. His housekeeper, Faith Paleologus (Don Luis' longtime co-conspirator and now wife), has inherited Bonnyfeather's fortune.
Anthony goes to Paris to claim his inheritance and is reunited with his friend, banker Vincent Nolte. He saves Nolte from bankruptcy by loaning him his entire fortune, having learned from Brother François that "There's something besides money and power". Meanwhile, all Paris is buzzing with gossip about Mademoiselle Georges, the famous opera star and mistress of Napoleon Bonaparte, and the diamond necklace he has given to her, although Josephine wanted it.
Impresario Debrulle reunites Anthony with Angela, who bore him a son. A delighted Angela tells him that she is singing at the opera, and he goes, with Nolte. Searching the program in vain for her name, he hears her voice coming from the stage. He exclaims, “That's Angela” and Nolte replies, “That's Mademoiselle Georges!” Angela continues the aria and emerges from the shadows, descending a staircase. Wearing Napoleon's gift, she whispers “Goodbye, Anthony,” as he stands and leaves the box.
Shaken, he returns home to find his son, with a letter from Angela saying that Anthony is better suited to raise the boy. Anthony and the boy sail for America hoping for a better life.
Cast
[edit]- Fredric March as Anthony Adverse
- Olivia de Havilland as Angela Giuseppe
- Donald Woods as Vincent Nolte
- Anita Louise as Maria
- Edmund Gwenn as John Bonnyfeather
- Claude Rains as Marquis Don Luis
- Rollo Lloyd as Napoleon Bonaparte
- Louis Hayward as Denis Moore
- Gale Sondergaard as Faith Paleologus
- Steffi Duna as Neleta
- Billy Mauch as Anthony Adverse (age 10)
- Akim Tamiroff as Carlo Cibo
- Ralph Morgan as Debrulle
- Henry O'Neill as Father Xavier
- Pedro de Cordoba as Brother François
- Alma Lloyd as Florence Udney (as an adult)
- Marilyn Knowlden as Florence Udney (as a child)
- Anne Howard as Angela as a child (uncredited)
Production
[edit]
Before casting Fredric March to costar with Olivia de Havilland, Warner Bros. considered Robert Donat, Leslie Howard, and George Brent for the title role.[3] The studio during preproduction also intended to cast Errol Flynn in support of March, but Flynn became so popular with moviegoers after his performance in Captain Blood in 1935 that Warner Bros. assigned him to star instead in the 1936 film The Charge of the Light Brigade.[4]
Billy Mauch plays the young Anthony Adverse in the earlier scenes. Warner Bros. discovered Mauch had a twin, and it put them both under contract. They were given a starring vehicle in The Prince and the Pauper.
Film editor Ralph Dawson provided some statistics: a shooting script of 250 pages; 1,098 camera set-ups, plus another 200 scenes prepared by special effects (including superimposed titles); 600,000+ feet of positive print film delivered to his cutting room, yielding a finished film of 12,250 feet.[5]
Reception
[edit]Critical response
[edit]
In his 1936 review, The New York Times critic Frank S. Nugent panned "Warner's gargantuan film":
Speaking for ourselves, we found it a bulky, rambling and indecisive photoplay which has not merely taken liberties with the letter of the original but with its spirit...For all its sprawling length, [the novel] was cohesive and well rounded. Most of its picaresque quality has been lost in the screen version; its philosophy is vague, its characterization blurred and its story so loosely knit and episodic that its telling seems interminable. A few years back we devoted the better part of a British week-end to the reading of Mr. Allen's little pamphlet and we enjoyed it. Yesterday we spent only a fraction more than two hours watching its progress on the screen and we squirmed like a small boy in Sunday school.[6]
Writing for The Spectator, Graham Greene expressed similar views, acerbically noting of the film that it "goes on too long, otherwise it might have been the funniest film since The Crusades".[7] Variety described it as "a bit choppy" and "a bit long-winded" as well; but the popular trade magazine praised Fredric March's performance, adding that he was "an ace choice, playing the role to the hilt."[8] Film Daily wrote that Anthony Adverse "easily ranks among the leading pictures of the talking screen" and called the production's acting "flawless".[9] "I don't think Mr. March has done any better piece of work than this", noted John Mosher in his positive review for The New Yorker.[10]
The film was named one of the National Board of Review's Top Ten pictures of the year and ranked eighth in the Film Daily annual critics' poll.[11] In a much later review, however, Reverend Austin Spencer also found the film adaptation—when compared to the novel—inadequate, especially in its portrayal of the personal challenges that confronted the story's protagonist:
In the book as written and published, Anthony Adverse's far-ranging life was clearly intended to be a spiritual journey at least as much as a physical one. Befitting with his name, he goes through great adversity to emerge a better man - renouncing material possessions in general and the owning of slaves in particular, and aspiring with increasing success to emulate the saintly, martyred Brother François. In the film, all this was chopped off and amputated by cutting off the book's plotline in the middle. The film's Anthony Adverse is in effect denied the spiritual redemption which his literary creator intended for him. Possibly this was simply due to the fact that a normal length film could not accommodate so many adventures and changes of fortune over three continents. But I have a sneaking suspicion that some of the film-makers considered 'too much Christianity' as endangering a film's box office success. Anyway, I strongly recommend to anyone seeing the film to also read the book and find for themselves what they missed.[12]
On TCM, film critic Leonard Maltin gives the picture a positive review of 3.5/4 stars, praising the "Blockbuster filmization of Hervey Allen bestseller ... of young man gaining maturity through adventures in various parts of early 19th-century Europe, Cuba, and Africa" and the film's cinematography and "rousing musical score", both winners of Academy Awards.[13]
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 18% of 11 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 4.3/10.[14] It is the lowest-rated film to ever be nominated for Best Picture film on the website.[15]
Box office
[edit]The film was Warner Bros.' most popular release of 1936. It was also the studio's most expensive production that year, with an overall budget of $1,192,000. That hefty expense, however, proved to be a wise investment, for Anthony Adverse generated $1,558,000 in profits at the box office for Warner Bros., earning the studio $1,783,000 domestically and $967,000 in foreign markets.[2]
- Awards[16]
- Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Gale Sondergaard
- Best Cinematography: Gaetano Gaudio
- Best Film Editing: Ralph Dawson
- Best Music (Scoring): Warner Bros. Studio Music Department, Leo F. Forbstein, head of department (Score by Erich Wolfgang Korngold)
- Nominations
Cultural references
[edit]The initial theme of the second movement of Erich Wolfgang Korngold's violin concerto was drawn from the music he composed for the film.
English singer Julia Gilbert adopted the name of the film's main character when recording for the London-based él record label in the late 1980s.
Screen legend Tony Curtis (1925–2010), who was born Bernard Schwartz, named himself for the titular character: The novel from which this film was adapted was the actor's favorite. Curtis, who was established as a star in The Prince Who Was a Thief (1951), was buried with a Stetson hat, an Armani scarf, driving gloves, an iPhone and a copy of his favorite novel Anthony Adverse.
Jack Benny parodied Anthony Adverse on the October 11 and 18 episodes of his "Jell-O Show" in 1936.[17]
In the 1934 short comedy What, No Men!, when their plane lands in "Indian Country" and Gus (El Brendel) is told to throw out the anchor, he tosses out a rope attached to a huge book titled Anthony Adverse.
In the 1949 cartoon Hare Do, a marquee at a theater advertises the movie.
References
[edit]- ^ Hanson, Patricia King, ed. (1993). The American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures Produced in the United States: Feature Films, 1931–1940. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. p. 70. ISBN 0-520-07908-6.
- ^ a b c Warner Bros financial information in The William Schaefer Ledger. See Appendix 1, Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, (1995) 15:sup1, 1-31 p 16 DOI: 10.1080/01439689508604551
- ^ Scheuer, Philip K (October 4, 1934). "Walter Connolly Selected to Play Title Role in "Father Brown, Detective": Long Search for Correct Type Ends "Vampire of Prague" Lead Scheduled for Fay Webb". Los Angeles Times. p. 13.
- ^ "Chaplin's Big Business: Goldwyn's Leading Lady: A New Romantic Hero" Bain, Greville. The Times of India [New Delhi] March 7, 1936: 9.
- ^ Dawson, Ralph. "How Anthony Adverse Was Cut." American Cinematographer 17:8 (August 1936), 345.
- ^ Nugent, Frank (1936). "The Film Version of 'Anthony Adverse' Opens at the Strand – 'To Mary – With Love,' at the Paramount" Archived February 4, 2024, at the Wayback Machine, film review, The New York Times, August 27, 1936; retrieved November 17, 2017.
- ^ Greene, Graham (September 25, 1936). "The Song of Freedom/Anthony Adverse". The Spectator. (reprinted in: Taylor, John Russell, ed. (1980). The Pleasure Dome. Oxford University Press. pp. 103-104. ISBN 0192812866.)
- ^ "Kauf." (1936). "Anthony Adverse", film review, Variety, New York, N.Y., September 2, 1936, page 18. Internet Archive, San Francisco, California; retrieved November 17, 2017.
- ^ "'Anthony Adverse'", "Reviews of the New Films", The Daily Film, New York, N.Y., May 12, 1936, page 12. Internet Archive; retrieved November 17, 2017.
- ^ Mosher, John (August 29, 1936). "The Current Cinema". The New Yorker. p. 54.
- ^ Anthony Adverse at Turner Classic Movies[dead link]
- ^ Rev. Austin James Spencer, "Christianity and Twentieth Century American Culture", p. 125, Spiritual Guidance Press, Kansas City, 1983
- ^ "Anthony Adverse (1936) – Overview – TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies. Archived from the original on October 1, 2020. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
- ^ "Anthony Adverse". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved October 18, 2024.
- ^ "The 40 Lowest-Rated Best Picture Nominees of all time". Archived from the original on July 5, 2023. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
- ^ "The 9th Academy Awards (1937) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. Archived from the original on March 21, 2016. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
- ^ Jack Benny's "Jell-O Show" "The Jack Benny Show at OTR.Network (Old Time Radio)". Archived from the original on August 11, 2014. Retrieved July 16, 2014.
External links
[edit]
- Anthony Adverse at IMDb
- Anthony Adverse at the TCM Movie Database
- Anthony Adverse at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
- Anthony Adverse at Rotten Tomatoes
- Complete volume one of the novel at Project Gutenberg
- Anthony Adverse at Virtual History
- Hervey Allen Papers, 1831–1965, South Carolina.1952.01, Special Collections Department, University of Pittsburgh
Anthony Adverse
View on GrokipediaSource Material
Novel
Anthony Adverse is a picaresque epic novel written by American poet, educator, and historian Hervey Allen, tracing the life of its protagonist from birth to age 30 across multiple continents and historical upheavals.[6] Allen, an obscure Pittsburgh poet known for his World War I memoir Toward the Flame (1926), crafted this as his first novel, drawing on his scholarly interest in history to weave a narrative of adventure and personal evolution.[7] The story follows Anthony Adverse, an illegitimate child abandoned in Italy, as he navigates a world of intrigue, commerce, and moral dilemmas, set against the backdrop of late 18th- and early 19th-century events including the Napoleonic Wars.[8] Published in June 1933 by Farrar & Rinehart, the novel spans 1,224 pages across three volumes titled The Roots of the Tree, The Other Bronze Boy, and The Lonely Twin.[7][9] It unfolds in nine "books," chronicling Anthony's journeys from Europe to Africa, Cuba, and America, with extensive subplots that delve into slave trading on the Rio Pongo in Africa, debt collection and romantic entanglements in Havana, and entrepreneurial pursuits as a banker and plantation owner in New Orleans.[8] These episodes include philosophical digressions on destiny and fate, as Anthony grapples with unforeseen events like the crucifixion of a missionary companion in Africa and personal tragedies such as the loss of his family in a fire.[10] Central themes encompass adventure and romance amid commerce and exploitation, particularly the brutal realities of slavery during Anthony's time managing a slave-trading station and shipping captives to Cuba.[8] The narrative explores moral growth through Anthony's experiences—from youthful idealism to disillusionment in trade and imprisonment in Mexico—while pondering the interplay of fate and human agency in a turbulent era.[10] The novel achieved immense commercial success, becoming the Publishers Weekly bestselling book in the United States for 1933 and 1934, with over 500,000 copies sold in its first year at $3 each and an additional 1,000 copies daily for the following two years, surpassing 2 million copies by 1936 and ultimately exceeding 3 million worldwide.[7][4]Adaptation Process
Warner Bros. acquired the film rights to Hervey Allen's bestselling 1933 novel Anthony Adverse shortly after its publication, paying $40,000—a record amount at the time for a first novel.[11] The studio saw potential in the book's epic scope and commercial success, which had sold over a million copies, to create a grand Hollywood spectacle amid the Depression-era demand for escapist entertainment.[12] The adaptation posed significant challenges due to the novel's immense length of approximately 1,200 pages, divided into nine books spanning decades and continents. Screenwriter Sheridan Gibney led the effort to condense this sprawling narrative into a 136-minute film, focusing primarily on the protagonist Anthony's personal journey while streamlining the plot into a more linear adventure-romance structure suitable for cinematic pacing.[13] Multiple writers contributed to the script development, including uncredited work from Milton Krims, who contested the sole credit, and Edward Chodorov, reflecting the collaborative and iterative process typical of Warner Bros. productions.[11] The script emphasized romance and high-stakes adventure, downplaying the novel's philosophical and introspective elements to align with the studio's preference for accessible, visually driven epics.[13] Key alterations included the omission of the novel's ninth and final book, along with substantial portions of intervening material, to fit the runtime and comply with Hollywood's Production Code censorship requirements, which necessitated toning down explicit themes like violence and immorality.[11][13] Historical events, such as those tied to the Napoleonic era, were simplified for dramatic flow, reducing the book's dense historical context to serve the film's forward momentum. The ending was notably changed: while the novel concludes ambiguously with Anthony's arrival in America amid unresolved personal turmoil, the film provides a more optimistic resolution, reuniting Anthony with Angela and their son before they embark for the New World together.[14] Director Mervyn LeRoy envisioned Anthony Adverse as a lavish spectacle, building on his success with socially conscious dramas like I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932) but shifting toward opulent period pieces to diversify Warner Bros.' output.[15] He prioritized visual grandeur, with sweeping sequences in exotic locales, to capture the novel's adventurous spirit while ensuring broad audience appeal through emotional highs like the convent discovery scene, added for heightened dramatic impact.[16] LeRoy's approach transformed the source material into a Hollywood epic, emphasizing spectacle over literary depth.[13]Plot Summary
Anthony Adverse is divided into three volumes, each comprising three books, chronicling the life of the protagonist from his birth in 1775 to his later years during the Napoleonic era. The narrative follows his picaresque adventures across Europe, Africa, the Americas, and the West Indies, intertwining personal growth, romance, commerce, and historical events such as the French Revolution and the Louisiana Purchase.[17]Volume I: The Roots of the Tree
The story opens in 1775 in the Auvergne region of France, where Maria da Messer Don Luis, unhappy in her marriage to the Marquis Don Luis, begins an affair with the young Englishman Denis Moore. Maria gives birth to their son, Anthony, in a ruined convent near Livorno, Italy, in 1776, but dies shortly after due to complications. Don Luis, discovering the affair, kills Denis in a duel and abandons the infant Anthony at the convent's Madonna statue with a sum of money and a note. The nuns, led by Mother Marie José, raise Anthony, who is educated by the Jesuit priest Father Xavier. Anthony grows up imaginative and resilient, befriending the servant girl Angela and developing a bond with the merchant John Bonnyfeather, who eventually takes him into his household in Leghorn (Livorno) as an apprentice. Under Bonnyfeather's care, Anthony learns commerce, languages, and navigation, while grappling with his mysterious origins and the shadows of the French Revolution encroaching on Europe. Key figures include the faithful housekeeper Faith Paleologus and the tutor Toussaint Clairveaux, who introduce Anthony to philosophy and music.[17]Volume II: The Other Bronze Boy
As a young man in his late teens, Anthony embarks on his first major voyage aboard the ship The Unicorn, captained by Elisha Jorham, to Havana, Cuba, to collect a debt owed to Bonnyfeather by the slave trader Don Carlos Gallego. En route, Anthony experiences his first romance with Angela, who reveals a deeper connection to his past, but she leaves him after a lottery windfall disrupts their plans. In Havana, Anthony immerses himself in the vibrant but brutal world of colonial trade, including the slave markets, and amasses a fortune through shrewd dealings. He returns to Italy wealthier but haunted by moral questions, particularly after encounters in Africa where he witnesses the horrors of the slave trade firsthand. Back in Leghorn, Anthony manages Bonnyfeather's affairs, forms a close friendship with the banker Vincent Nolte, and navigates romantic entanglements, including a complex relationship with Faith. His adventures expand to include trips to Genoa and interactions with international merchants, solidifying his role as a worldly entrepreneur while he continues to search for clues about his parentage.[17]Volume III: The Lonely Twin
In adulthood, Anthony's life becomes more tumultuous as he marries Angela in a bid for stability, but their union is strained by secrets and separations. Financial setbacks strike when Bonnyfeather dies, leaving Anthony to contend with inheritance disputes and economic turmoil from the Napoleonic Wars. Anthony travels extensively—to New Orleans, the American frontier, and back to Europe—pursuing business ventures, including establishing a trading post and confronting old adversaries like the manipulative Don Luis. He reunites briefly with Angela and fathers a child, but tragedy and betrayal lead to profound isolation. Anthony's journey culminates in reflections on faith, redemption, and legacy, influenced by encounters with missionaries like Father François and philosophical discussions with Toussaint. Amidst slave revolts, piracy, and frontier exploration, Anthony seeks purpose beyond material success, ultimately finding a measure of peace in simplicity and spiritual awakening.[17]Cast
The following table lists the principal cast of the 1936 film adaptation of Anthony Adverse:| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Fredric March | Anthony Adverse |
| Olivia de Havilland | Angela Guisseppi |
| Gale Sondergaard | Faith Paleologus |
| Edmund Gwenn | John Bonnyfeather |
| Claude Rains | Marquis Don Luis |
| Anita Louise | Maria |
| Donald Woods | Vincent Nolte |
| Louis Hayward | Denis Moore |
| Akim Tamiroff | Señor Cibo |
| Henry O'Neill | Father Xavier |
Production
Development
Warner Bros. Pictures greenlit the adaptation of Anthony Adverse as a major project in 1934, with Hal B. Wallis serving as executive producer to oversee its ambitious scope. The studio acquired the film rights to Hervey Allen's novel from its publisher, Farrar & Rinehart, for $40,000, marking an early step in securing the property amid growing interest in epic literary adaptations. Development efforts began as early as 1933, spanning three years until principal photography commenced on November 6, 1935. An initial budget of approximately $1.075 million was established, but after Wallis's adjustments that reduced set estimates by $75,000, costs reached around $1.05 million due to the film's expansive requirements.[11][19] Script iterations progressed through multiple contributions, with uncredited work from writers like Milton Krims and Edward Chodorov refining the narrative to capture the novel's epic scale, comparable to MGM's Mutiny on the Bounty. By mid-1935, following test readings and conferences, the screenplay was finalized under Wallis's direct supervision, who issued memos emphasizing historical accuracy and dramatic pacing—such as correcting anachronistic dialogue and limiting elaborate sequences to control expenses. Wallis, drawing from his success with prestige films, ensured the script balanced adventure and transformation themes central to the story. Pre-production challenges included production delays that impacted scheduling and the need for extensive historical research to authenticate costumes and sets, culminating in the construction of a 12-acre African slave compound on the studio backlot. The script was also trimmed to comply with emerging censorship standards from the Production Code Administration.[11][19] Casting approvals advanced in early 1936, with Fredric March secured as the titular Anthony Adverse after successful screen tests, leveraging his dramatic versatility from prior roles. Considerations for Errol Flynn in a supporting role were explored but ultimately rejected, as his rising swashbuckler persona from Captain Blood led to his reassignment to other Warner Bros. projects.[20] Wallis suggested additional talents, including Freddie Bartholomew for young Anthony and Edward G. Robinson with Basil Rathbone for supporting roles, while tests were conducted for actors like Humphrey Bogart as Napoleon and Bette Davis as Faith Paleologus. Mervyn LeRoy was attached as director in 1935, following his hit Page Miss Glory, selected over William Dieterle due to his familial ties to studio head Harry Warner and proven handling of large-scale productions. These decisions set the logistical foundation, concluding pre-production by late 1935.[11][19]Filming
Principal photography for Anthony Adverse, directed by Mervyn LeRoy with additional scenes by Michael Curtiz, commenced on November 6, 1935, at Warner Bros. studios in Burbank, California, and concluded after a 72-day shooting schedule.[11][21] The production unfolded primarily on soundstages and backlots, with key exteriors including a sprawling 12-acre replica of an African slave compound constructed on the studio grounds to depict scenes of captivity and trade.[11] Additional location work utilized reused miniatures from the earlier Warner Bros. film Captain Blood (1935), particularly for port and colonial settings, allowing for efficient recreation of diverse 18th-century environments spanning Italy, Cuba, and New Orleans without extensive on-location shoots.[11] The film's technical achievements centered on its black-and-white cinematography by Tony Gaudio, which captured the epic scale through dynamic compositions, complemented by Nathan Levinson's sound recording using the Western Electric system for clear dialogue and atmospheric effects in crowd and action sequences.[11] Levinson's work earned a nomination for Best Sound Recording at the 9th Academy Awards, highlighting the innovative integration of synchronized audio in a period drama with multilingual elements and orchestral underscoring. The production generated 15 reels of footage, demanding meticulous coordination during editing to condense the narrative without losing visual grandeur.[11] Filming faced logistical challenges inherent to adapting Hervey Allen's 1,200-page novel, including script revisions to meet Motion Picture Production Code requirements, which necessitated trimming explicit themes of infidelity and violence.[11] Delays in the schedule impacted casting, as actor John Carradine was released from his role as Ferdinando to fulfill another commitment, requiring last-minute adjustments.[11] Period authenticity posed further hurdles, with costume designer Milo Anderson sourcing and crafting 18th-century attire from historical references, including elaborate gowns and uniforms for over 300 cast members in ensemble scenes.[5] Injuries occurred sporadically during action sequences, such as sword fights and carriage chases, though no major incidents halted production. Director Mervyn LeRoy employed a grand, spectacle-driven approach to convey the story's global scope, utilizing wide-angle lenses and strategic camera placements for immersive epic shots of markets, balls, and voyages.[22] He collaborated closely with art director Anton Grot on designing opulent interiors, such as Leghorn counting houses and Parisian salons, which featured matte paintings and forced perspective to enhance the film's lavish, historical ambiance—efforts that garnered Grot an Academy Award nomination for Best Art Direction.[23] LeRoy's method emphasized fluid transitions between intimate character moments and large-scale crowd scenes, often staging up to 500 extras to evoke the novel's bustling worlds while maintaining narrative momentum.[22]Release
Premiere and Distribution
The world premiere of Anthony Adverse occurred on July 29, 1936, at the Carthay Circle Theatre in Los Angeles, California, where Warner Bros. hosted a high-profile event attended by stars such as Fredric March and Olivia de Havilland, complete with a red carpet procession and a large celebrity audience to capitalize on the film's prestige status.[16][5] The premiere emphasized the adaptation's epic scope, drawing significant media attention as a major summer release from Warner Bros. Pictures. Following the Los Angeles debut, the film opened in New York on August 26, 1936, before launching into wide U.S. distribution on August 29, 1936, through Warner Bros.' extensive theater circuit, including roadshow engagements in major cities with reserved seating and overture-intermission formats typical of high-budget epics of the era.[11] Internationally, Anthony Adverse began its European rollout in mid-1936, with an early London presentation on May 19 and broader availability across the continent by late that year, aligning with Warner Bros.' strategy to leverage the novel's global popularity.[24] Marketing campaigns focused on the film's adventurous narrative and all-star cast, featuring theatrical trailers that showcased dramatic scenes, exotic locales, and the score by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, while posters prominently displayed March and de Havilland against backdrops evoking 18th-century intrigue; promotional tie-ins included reprints of Hervey Allen's bestselling novel to boost cross-media interest.[5] To comply with the Motion Picture Production Code enforced by the Hays Office, the screenplay toned down sensitive elements from the source material, such as implications of the slave trade, resulting in minor cuts that shortened the runtime from an initial 146 minutes to 141 minutes for improved pacing and broader appeal.[11] The distribution emphasized initial saturation in approximately 1,200 U.S. theaters after roadshow runs, ensuring maximum exposure for this ambitious adaptation.[5]Box Office Performance
Anthony Adverse was produced on a budget of $1,050,500. The film earned domestic rentals of $1,783,000, ranking seventh among the top-grossing films of 1936 and marking Warner Bros.' highest earner for the year with a net profit of $1,558,000. This performance placed it behind top hits like The Great Ziegfeld ($3,089,000 in rentals) and San Francisco ($2,400,000 in rentals), yet it demonstrated strong appeal in urban markets where epic dramas thrived during the economic recovery from the Great Depression. Worldwide, the film grossed $2,750,000. Re-releases in the 1940s contributed an additional $500,000 in earnings; home video releases began with VHS in the early 1990s, followed by DVD in 2015 and Blu-ray on November 18, 2025.[11][25][26]Reception
Critical Response
Upon its release in 1936, Anthony Adverse received mixed reviews from critics, who frequently praised individual elements such as performances and technical achievements while critiquing the film's length and narrative structure. Frank S. Nugent of The New York Times commended Fredric March's portrayal of the titular character as an "ace choice," noting his convincing range across varied roles, and highlighted the film's impressive visuals and production values, but described it as "Warner's gargantuan film" that was ultimately "overlong" and burdened by a loosely knit story that lost much of the novel's picaresque charm.[14] Similarly, Variety lauded the direction by Mervyn LeRoy for handling the sprawling adaptation with a "direct line and easy to follow" progression, praised Erich Wolfgang Korngold's score as pleasant and supportive, and acclaimed Gale Sondergaard's chilling performance as the villainous Faith Paleologus, but faulted the plot for being "a bit choppy" and "long-winded" in its meandering episodes.[13] Critics often highlighted the film's strengths in production values, with Nugent acknowledging its "lavish spectacle" despite the "narrative sprawl" that diluted the source material's philosophy and characterization.[14] Korngold's score received particular acclaim for its melodic richness, contributing to the film's emotional depth and earning an Academy Award, while Sondergaard's icy villainy was celebrated for its intensity and precision.[13] However, negative critiques centered on significant deviations from Hervey Allen's novel, which reviewers like Nugent argued resulted in blurred characterizations and a vague philosophical core, stripping away the book's cohesive humor and mysticism.[14] The melodramatic tone was another common complaint, with some viewing the film's expansive adventures and romantic entanglements as emblematic of "Hollywood excess," prioritizing spectacle over substance in its overextended runtime.[14][13] In aggregated assessments, Anthony Adverse holds an 18% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 11 contemporary reviews, underscoring how its dated pacing and tonal issues have aged poorly in retrospect.[27] Initial critical acclaim was stronger, however, as evidenced by its eighth-place ranking in the 1936 Film Daily critics' poll, indicating broad appreciation among period reviewers for its entertainment value and technical prowess.[5]Audience Reception
Upon its release, Anthony Adverse garnered strong initial popularity through positive word-of-mouth, particularly for its epic romance and adventure elements, which drew in families and enthusiasts of Hervey Allen's bestselling novel.[28] Contemporary reports highlighted enthusiastic audience reactions to the film's emotional highs. The film's appeal extended across demographics, with its romantic storyline attracting female viewers and action sequences engaging male audiences, leading to repeat viewings during roadshow engagements. Some book purists expressed backlash over the adaptation's deviations from the source material, though this did not diminish overall engagement. In contemporary exhibitor polls, such as those conducted by Motion Picture Herald, Anthony Adverse ranked highly among top films of 1936, reflecting its broad viewer draw.[29] Anecdotal evidence from theaters included complaints about the film's lengthy runtime prompting occasional walkouts, yet these were outweighed by reports of sustained interest. The release generated significant cultural buzz, as evidenced by a notable spike in novel sales following the premiere; the book, already a massive hit, topped American bestseller lists for two years and sold over 5.5 million copies in the United States by 1961, boosted by the film's visibility.[2] Fan letters praising the adventure aspects further indicated enthusiastic public response during the late 1930s.[7]Awards and Recognition
Academy Awards
Anthony Adverse received seven nominations at the 9th Academy Awards, held on March 4, 1937, at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, for films released in 1936.[30] The film ultimately won four Oscars, tying with Dodsworth for the most wins that year, though it lost Best Picture to The Great Ziegfeld.[30] The wins included the inaugural Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, awarded to Gale Sondergaard in her film debut as Faith Paleologus, marking the first time the Academy recognized performances in supporting roles.[31] Other technical victories were Best Cinematography for Gaetano Gaudio's work, Best Film Editing for Ralph E. Dawson's contributions, and Best Score for the Warner Bros. Studio Music Department, led by Leo F. Forbstein, with music by Erich Wolfgang Korngold.[30] These achievements highlighted the film's strong production values despite its sprawling narrative. The film was also nominated for Best Picture (produced by Henry Blanke for Warner Bros.), Best Art Direction for Anton Grot's sets, and Best Assistant Director for William Cannon's coordination efforts, but did not win in those categories.[30]| Category | Recipient(s) | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Best Picture | Henry Blanke (Warner Bros.) | Nominated |
| Best Supporting Actress | Gale Sondergaard | Won |
| Best Art Direction | Anton Grot | Nominated |
| Best Cinematography | Gaetano Gaudio | Won |
| Best Film Editing | Ralph E. Dawson | Won |
| Best Score | Warner Bros. Studio Music Department, Leo F. Forbstein (Head); Score by Erich Wolfgang Korngold | Won |
| Best Assistant Director | William Cannon | Nominated |