Carrie (1952) Reviews

• Cruel Classic Romance

  claudio_carvalho2006-10-05

  In Columbia Clay, Missouri, the young and naive Carrie Meeber (Jennifer Jones) boards the train expecting to meet her older sister in Chicago and have a better life in the big city. While traveling in the train, she meets the fabric salesman Charles Drouet (Eddie Albert), who gives her his card. Once in Chicago, she finds a simple job in a shoe factory sewing shoes, but when she injures a finger, she is fired. Unable to find another job, she looks for Charles, and he invites her to have dinner at the Fitzgerald's, the most expensive restaurant of Chicago, where she meets the elegant middle-age manager George Hurstwood (Laurence Olivier). Carrie moves to Charles' apartment and becomes her lover due to the lack of options, and later George falls in love for her. Pressed by his wife and by the owner of the restaurant to forget Carrie, George leaves all his possessions behind and embezzles a fortune from the restaurant, traveling with Carrie to New York expecting to rebuild his life, but the shadows of his past are cruel with him. Meanwhile, Carrie matures and becomes successful in her business. "Carrie" is a cruel classic romance, with a stunning performance of the great British actor Laurence Olivier, who surprisingly was not nominated as Best Lead Actor to the Oscar. I am really impressed with his acting in this movie, being perfect either as an elegant upper class man or as a beggar. The direction of William Wiler is brilliant and stylist as usual, supported by magnificent costumes and decorations. Jennifer Jones, Eddie Albert and Miriam Hopkins give credibility to their characters with their great performances. The romantic and dramatic story does not have the usual commercial happy end of Hollywood movies, but a credible and realistic conclusion, and maybe that is why I loved this film. My vote is nine. Title (Brazil): "Perdição Por Amor" ("Perdition for Love")

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• Olivier Elevates This Solid Soaper Big-Time

  ccthemovieman-12005-10-28

  This was a pretty powerful melodrama, thanks to the great performance of Sir Laurence Olivier. Olivier plays an unhappily-married older man who falls for the young and beautiful Jennifer Jones (not hard to understand!).....and pays a huge price for his adultery. Olivier is near-mesmerizing in this film and Jones is absolutely gorgeous, as she was in "Portrait Of Jennie," made about five years prior to this film. Eddie Albert was a bit annoying (but effective) in his role and Miriam Hopkins is downright brutal in her small part as Olivier's wife. The shocking thing about this film was the subject matter, rare for its day. It was ahead of its day in one respect: it makes the adulterers into the sympathetic "good guys." I'm surprised that got by the censors of the day. Jones' character is oddly innocent for someone "shacking up" with Albert. I am not a fan of soap operas, but this was highly involving, a tough story to put down once it started I didn't particularly like the ending, but are you gonna do? Note: One of the scenes near the end was inserted on the DVD. It had previously been cut out of the theatrical release. That "flophouse" scene was one that was not passed over by the censors.

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• Very Realistic (Unfortunately!!)

  edwinalarren2006-01-08

  A well respected spawn of Chicago society, George Hurstwood ,(Lawrence Olivier) from outward appearances, seems to have it all!! Money, stature, and prestige!! Being a deservedly integral facet of a well renowned Lincoln Park restaurant in the late 1890's suggests a comfortable and justified complacency in the aggregate scheme of events...Why would anyone risk all of this? TRUE LOVE!!!...Misery in George's (Lawrence Olivier's) life has a very ubiquitous disposition, and necessitates the desire for George Hurstwood to be intimately nurtured, as well as thoroughly appreciated for what he is as a man!! His wife, (Miriam Hopkins) the perennial virago, is consumed by social facades, and pretentious aristocratic Chicago register acquaintances, as a means of furthering the family's societal plight!! Lawrence Olivier senses the unfortunate reveille with the fact that his family is pieced together by coercively orchestrated affluent trappings, and upscale pecuniary circle obligations...Now enters Carrie into his life, he falls in love with Carrie!! She is young and impressionable, and develops a precocious infatuation for him!! Carrie (Jennifer Jones) is the main character in the movie, quite a bit of this film is through her eyes!..Initially, Charlie's (Eddie Albert's) wife, she does not feel comfortable with him entirely!! A good friend perhaps, but not sustenance material for an indefinite marriage commitment!! Carrie becomes enthralled with Lawrence Olivier's character, she is easily cajoled, and thus very susceptible to George Hurstwood's professional charm!!...So now, Carrie wants to be married to an older, more distinguished man, whom she feels she can devote her life to!!...What is the problem with falling in love with this married man? The problems are too numerous to count!! Now propagates a myriad of emotional nightmares!! Lawrence Olivier loses his job, his money, his status in Chicago society, his family and his friends...To top things off, he is earmarked for grand larceny!! From there, things go from bad to worse....George and Carrie move to the Big Apple!! New York capriciously beats them up, financial circumstances dictate that they get resorted to the New York City slums, there they are effortlessly mangled!! Such a situation depicts the apocalyptic ramifications incurred as a result of George and Carrie's quest for true love!!!! Lawrence Olivier is relegated to becoming a hobo on the street, while Carrie makes it in the theater world, and attempts to make restitution on the fact that she too neglected Lawrence Olivier in her own manner!! The flop house scene at the end of the movie was very poignant as a way of illustrating the despondent indigence that Lawrence Olivier was plagued with!!! Nobody should have any delusions of grandeur about this situation turning around...To say that this is an unhappy ending for Lawrence Olivier would be a masterpiece of understatement!! This is indeed a living horror to the point where Lawrence Olivier's suicide attempt, which he backs down on, is viewed by the movie audience as a good way of quelling his tragically pathetic existence on earth!! He was a totally ruined man, and inevitably, he will be relegated by the population to the unfortunate status of an educated derelict!! This movie is extremely powerful and gripping!! It effectuates a sympathy and fear for an unencumbered social plummet that devastates George Hurstwood!! He abandons everything just because he felt his marriage emotionally neglected him, and as a result,he sought an opportunity for spousal contentment and gratification with another woman!! Performances by Jennifer Jones, Eddie Albert, Miriam Hopkins and of course Sir Lawrence Olivier, were to say the least, phenomenal!!. "Carrie" is one of the stellar films in all of American cinema history !!! Without a doubt, SENSATIONAL!! William Wyler directed this film ("Director of Best Years of Our Lives") This movie stands behind his fabulous reputation, and ultimately delivers with noteworthy critical acclaim as well!! I was very impressed with this movie, depressed as well, as it was very realistic!! (unfortunately)...See this movie!!!! I give it five stars out of five stars, a perfect ten!!

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• The Things We Do For Love

  jem1322006-05-23

  William Wyler's 'Carrie' is an excellent film that seems to have been passed by over the years. It is generally not considered a classic, perhaps because only a small number have actually viewed it (in it's entirety- with the 'flophouse' scene). It has suffered in comparison to that other film adaptation of a Dreiser work, the 1951 Stevens' offering 'A Place In The Sun'. Comparison is expected, but ultimately unfair in this case, as 'Carrie' is unique in it's own right. Olivier gives possibly the best film performance of his career as George Hurstwood, the tragic figure of the tale. His love for the much-younger Carrie Meeber (Jennifer Jones, in a powerhouse performance also) ignites his passion for existence, but ultimately proves to be the catalyst for his downfall. Hurstwood genuinely loves Carrie, but is his love for her more due to the way she makes feel than anything else? He may be one of cinema's unluckiest protagonists; everything seems to go wrong for George in the second half of the film. His downfall has an inevitable feeling to it, making it doubly painfully to watch. This is human nature and sacrifice at it's most harrowing. Olivier is absolutely brilliant in the role. Every gesture, every word, is perfectly executed, and he quells any doubts about his ability to emote on screen when a a scene calls for him to weep with anguish and regret. He does it perfectly. Jones is just as good as Carrie, the unknowing young girl who is first taken up one older man (Eddie Albert), than is the objective of affection and/or lust for another (Olivier). Jones must surely be one of the greatest film actresses of all time; her ability to play such a range of characters (Carrie, Pearl Chavez, Bernadette) on screen is compelling. In every scene she is compelling with Olivier, they share terrific chemistry. Miriam Hopkins is also great as Olivier's hateful wife, who will stop at nothing to ensure George is ruined for his foolishness. The content of the novel is pretty heavy stuff, and there are some big issues touched upon here. Carrie, when she first comes to the city, is a 'kept' woman. The Production Code in place ensures reference to her situation is mild, but it is quite easy to figure out the true nature of her relationship with the Albert character. It deals with marital problems, affairs, economic woes, lack of employment and the topic of bigamy. Olivier's descent into so many of these avenues is heartbreaking to watch, because he portrays Hurstwood so well. Wyler's direction is flawless; the film has a perfectly moody, dark atmosphere. It starts a little slow, setting up the story, but Wyler really hits his stride when the big drama sets in. While depressing to watch at times, this film is one of my favorites. More people NEED to see this film. It is an absolute essential for romantics, even though the romance is ultimately doomed. Film buffs everywhere and admirers of the cinema- I implore you to see this. 10/10.

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• Olivier and Jones at their best.

  DAHLRUSSELL2007-01-24

  *** I think you can not write about this movie without it containing a spoiler. The advertising makes it look like a glossy romance, and it is much deeper and darker.*** Do not miss this one, it is highly regarded for all the right reasons. This movie really should have been called "George,"as it is the story of a man (Laurence Oliver) who ruins his life for love. Olivier is essentially different here, a humble man who suffers silently, simply wonderful, and shows here in his youth moments of the great acting of his last years (important, because he was aged up for this role). It is a simply brilliant film for him. Jennifer Jones, playing Carrie, also gives one of her best performances, and their chemistry is fantastic. She was in her 30s and still looks 18, which helps a film where she ages from about 18 to 36. I did not know anything of this "girl comes to the big city, gets compromised, and rises above" story. It is far more than this trite outline. This wonderful script dips and turns with the complexities of life relationships, legal relationships, and the things we don't tell each other. Miriam Hopkins, even in her perky youth, was always rather arch and tart. This is used to fantastic advantage here in a very dislikable role. Eddie Albert is also used to best advantage as a flirty traveling salesman and lady killer. In black and white, the story is about the divisions of poverty and wealth, and how life can take us through levels. Edith Head's magnificent costuming takes the leads from highs to lows, tenements to townhouses to the glamour of the stage in the early 1900s. The score is by David Raksin, who did such memorable scores as WHIRLPOOL, THE BIG COMBO, FALLEN ANGEL, and PAT AND MIKE. While heavy handed by today's standards, it is musically complex and eloquent, and truly augments the emotional journey of the action. It is some of the best of it's time, evocative of the dissonant soundtracks of ON THE WATERFRONT, and REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE. The released film had a section removed set in poverty row/homeless men's housing. This section has been restored on the DVD, which reinstates yet another level of complexity, the mixture of poverty, humiliation and pride. All this makes this film wrenching, memorable and complete.

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