6/10
Romantic drama set in 2ª WW with sensational actors
19 January 2007
The film tells about Dr. Ravic(Charles Boyer),he's an exiled living in Paris before the Nazis penetrate into the city.Under false name and with no papers,aware always that the Surete(French gendarmes)could be sent away or jailed.One day he sees to Haake(Charles Laughton) a Gestapo official who tortured his anterior love and he's looking for revenge.One night in a bridge over river Sena,the refugee doctor finds to Jean Madou(Ingrid Bergman),a beauty and mysterious gal and he rescues her from a suicide attempt.The 2ªWW isn't the best environment for romanticism and a love affair but he falls is love with her.

The film is a romantic melodrama with magnificent actors.However is slow moving and little bit bored .The casting is frankly magnificent.Charles Boyer as sad refugee and gorgeous Ingrid Bergman as unfortunate damsel in disgrace are excellent.The secondary cast is awesome, impressive Charles Laughton as Nazi official, one of the his usual roles as villain and the lion's share of the acting meat deservedly goes to Louis Calhern as an exiled Russian colonel of the Czar who's a doorman in a show-coffee. Atmospheric black and white cinematography by Russell Metty who later made colorful super-productions.The film was restored with longtime but going on tedious,sluggish and dull.The motion picture is regularly directed by Lewis Milestone who directed various classic warlike movies.The flick is based on Erich Maria Remarque novel and was posteriorly rendered for TV(1985)by Waris Hussein with Anthony Hopkins and Lesley Anne Down.The picture will like to Ingrid Bergman and Charles Boyer enthusiastic.
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