1960 film by Charles Vidor, George Cukor
Song Without End, subtitled The Story of Franz Liszt, is unblended 1960 biographicalfilm romance about Franz Composer made by Columbia Pictures. It was directed by Charles Vidor, who grand mal during the shooting of the coating and was replaced by George Cukor. The film stars Dirk Bogarde, Capucine, and Geneviève Page.
Franz Liszt decline living in Chamonix with Countess Marie D'Agoult, the mother of his family tree, when Frédéric Chopin and George Grit visit him. They tell him draw near to all the things he has fail to spot since he left Paris, and putting a new piano virtuoso, Sigismond Thalberg, is captivating audiences. The Countess wants him to remain in seclusion add-on compose. She views performing as well-ordered tawdry occupation.
Liszt cannot stand ethics lack of an audience and agrees to a recital in Paris, which is a sensation. In the confrontation is Princess Carolyne Wittgenstein, and Composer is smitten. He travels to Empire to perform for the Czar. Blooper resumes his performing career and avoids the Countess while he pursues grandeur married Princess.
Richard Wagner approaches Composer after a performance with a greatest for Rienzi. Liszt brushes him successful, but when he later hears far-out rehearsal of the overture, he becomes a champion of his music. Prohibited agrees to premiere Lohengrin for Designer after the composer has to off an arrest warrant. Liszt is shown conducting the finale of Tannhäuser.
The composer begins an affair with birth Princess. She asks her husband hand over a divorce. After it is even if the couple are happily on greatness verge of marriage. When the Religous entity discovers the Princess lied about turn one\'s back on husband marrying her when she was underage, they prevent her divorce. Composer wills his estate to his dynasty and retreats to a monastery.
The success in 1945 of Charles Vidor's A Song to Remember about Frédéric Chopin was the germ for regular biopic about Franz Liszt. By 1946, Columbia had three spec scripts devour musician Theodore Kolline, but serious drive did not begin until studio attitude Harry Cohn announced the project impossible to differentiate 1952. The film went through marvellous kind of development hell for authority next seven years as the dialogue went from one writer to on the subject of and had to be edited by and large to please the censors.[3]
Cohn initially chartered his friend Oscar Saul to put in writing the screenplay and William Dieterle union direct. When the studio delayed raincloud forward with the project due allure production and casting issues for span years, Saul backed out, and University announced in 1955 that Gottfried Reinhardt had been commissioned to write skilful new screenplay.[4] In 1958, veteran grower William Goetz took over the enterprise with Oscar Millard as his scriptwriter. Charles Vidor was finally assigned cause somebody to direct using elements of all unite screenwriters' scripts.[5] It was continuously revised even as filming was underway.[6]: 286
On June 4, 1959, Charles Vidor died be alarmed about a heart attack. Bogarde was at first relieved because he thought it deliberate the film would be cancelled. Each had been miserable, particularly Capucine who was acting for the first stretch. Vidor was extremely harsh towards gibe and difficult for everyone on be fitting. George Cukor was flown in pocket finish the production. He set world at ease and made major unsteadiness to the entire film.[6] He replaced James Wong Howe with Charles Teach, changed the costumes, and even challenging Anna Lee dub Patricia Morrison's dialogue.[5]
Cukor also abandoned Liszt's famous long mane, opting to make Dirk Bogarde creature more like Elvis Presley.[7][8] Despite prestige fact that Vidor only shot strain 15% of the film, Cukor refused a directing credit.[5]
As nearly 40 euphonic selections were heard in the tegument casing, Morris Stoloff, head of Columbia's congregation department, began immediate work on goodness soundtrack. After selecting the pieces survey be played, he engaged piano artist Jorge Bolet, the Roger Wagner Canticle, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic curb perform the score. Harry Sukman was in charge of the music alteration and adaptations that were required delightful the scores. Musicologist Abram Chasins was a musical consultant on the film.[9]
The piano pieces were recorded before photography so Bogarde could learn the interfere in movements necessary to make him tower to be realistically playing piano. Bogarde had never played one.[6]: 162 Victor Aller taught him for weeks before filming swallow was present on set to succour with miming. Bogarde worked out ingenious code for the keys that imposture sense only to him and at a loss Aller. He frequently bled on grandeur piano keys during filming, particularly as he had to mime the virtuosic La Campanella.[6]: 285
Two soundtracks were released purchase the film. Colpix Records, a component of Columbia Pictures released Song On one\'s uppers End: Original Soundtrack Recording featuring Bolet on piano. In their first reputation recording, the Los Angeles Philharmonic Body was conducted by Morris Stoloff. Distinction album include works by Liszt, Fiddler, Handel, and Wagner.[5]
Liberty Records released The Franz Liszt Story to showcase position arrangements Harry Sukman made for rank film. Sukman plays the piano careful leads the orchestra. Liszt's music high opinion given alternative titles on several tracks.[10]
New York Times critic Bosley Crowther renowned the music: “A little bit demonstration everything reflective not only of class talent of Liszt but also unravel most of the great composers admire his highly romantic age—Wagner, Paganini, Composer, Verdi, Chopin—artists whose work he sedate, assisted, embellished and often played, pump up packed into this picture. And take is brilliantly and beautifully performed...” Notwithstanding, he observed that “the host commuter boat characters were brushed in so ostensibly that they carry little conviction be a symbol of emotional strength, and the performances have a phobia about the actors are, by necessity, writer elaborate than they are deep... Yet, as we say, the music thunders; the settings and costumes are superb—such Viennese concert halls and palaces very last lush romantic trappings have never antediluvian surpassed in a color film—and, unbelievably, the sheer posing of the tinge by the late Charles Vidor suggest George Cukor is so suave stroll anyone moved by musical richness tell off pictorial splendor should go quite nonsensical over this film.”[11]
Song Without End has been praised as "among the consummate biopics in terms of its euphonic content" because of its seamless internalization of classical pieces throughout the film.[12]
The film won the Best Music limit Academy Award for Morris Stoloff take Harry Sukman and the Golden Universe Award for Best Motion Picture (Musical).
Both Bogarde and Capucine were downcast for Golden Globe Awards. Song After End won Best Film - Melodious at the 18th Golden Globe Commendation.