INTERRUPTED MELODY
US, 1955, 106 minutes, Colour.
Eleanor Parker, Glenn Ford, Roger Moore, Cecil Kellaway.
Directed by Curtis Bernhardt.
Interrupted Melody is a popular '50s-style biography of Australian opera singer, Marjorie Lawrence. Born and raised in Geelong, she travelled to America and lived her life there. The victim of polio, she showed great heroism in continuing her career as an opera star and also was invaluable in her services for entertaining the troops during World War Two. Eleanor Parker gives a vigorous performance as Marjorie Lawrence, is dubbed by her for her singing, and Miss Parker won an Oscar nomination for her performance. Glenn Ford, so popular in the 50s, is genial as her husband. Attractively presented in Cinemascope and directed by Curtis Bernhardt, the director of many "women's films" of the '40s and '50s.
1. How enjoyable a film? The interest in biography, music?
2. The use of colour, Cinemascope, the background music, the opera music and the popular songs?
3. The quality of the film as a musical? The presentation of the opera excerpts? The background of the musical world? How authentic?
4. Audience expectations of a biography? The facts of a person's life? The insight into character and conflicts? How realistic did this biography seem? How impressive the character, the nature of her achievement? The treatment of a real-life character? Reverence, showing her "warts and all", as an inspiration for hope? The biography as a morale-boosting film?
5. The importance of the Australian background of Marjorie Lawrence? Origins and style? The nature of the family? The country? Horses and trains, the eisteddfod? Her relationship to Cyril and its later failure?
6. The quality of Marjorie's talent? In competition, pushing herself, nervousness at the eisteddfod?
7. The quality of her success, the collage effect of her success and its impact on the audience? What had she achieved on the European stage? How important to her?
8. The chance encounter with Tom King? His values as a doctor? The quality of their encounter and relationship? Her not immediately remembering him? Yet the growth in love, the effect on each of them? The question of careers and giving up careers? The inevitability of quarrels? The quality of their marriage? Cyril's disgust?
9. The question of the South American tour and the repercussions for each of them? The illness and the impact on each?
10. The credibility of Marjorie's despair at failure? Her not wanting to try? Even when she tried, the desperation? The suicide attempt?
11. The picturing of Tom's patience? Life in Florida and poverty? His strategies to help her? The concert and her running away? How real was this struggle inside Marjorie and inside Tom?
12. The war setting, her changing in time and the morale-boosting singing? The opera and her sitting down? The final achievement of her standing?
13. The melodramatic aspects of the film and their realism? How desperate was Marjorie Lawrence. The inspiration of her final achievement? How moving?
