Gaslight (1944)
- kbroer
- May 24, 2024
- 3 min read
Ingrid Bergman, Charles Boyer, Joseph Cotten
Directed by George Cukor
Available to stream on Prime Video
Our next "Husbands and Wives" film is a classic psychological thriller where seemingly charming and devoted husband Charles Boyer gradually drives wife Ingrid Bergman to doubt her own sanity by his manipulative and controlling behavior.
Why we love it: A tour de force of acting. Both Bergman and Boyer are fascinating to watch. She brilliantly portrays a woman whose initial happiness in marriage slowly gives way to doubts, fear, and uncertainty as her mental state deteriorates under her husband's influence. Charles Boyer's performance is equally brilliant, as his eyes become more and more menacing. He seems to loom taller the more control he exerts over her. Powerful denouement as she realizes what he has done, and does not run away from the situation, but instead insists on aggressively confronting him alone. Very gratifying to the audience when she stands over him and lets him have it while he is tied to a chair. Great stuff.
Fun Facts:
This was Angela Lansbury's first film. She was only 17 and had been working as a gift wrapper at a department store in Los Angeles. When director George Cukor was searching for the right actress to play the maid, one of the screenwriters suggested Lansbury -- she was the daughter of famous British stage actress, Moyna McGill, but the family had move to United States in 1940 during the Blitz. Cukor loved Lansbury's screen test so much that he had her part rewritten and made bigger. According to TCM, "In the big confrontation scene between the chambermaid and the lady of the house, Lansbury was required to light a cigarette in defiance of her mistress's orders. But because she was only 17, the social worker and teacher assigned to her would not allow her to smoke until she was a year older. When her 18th birthday arrived, Bergman and the cast threw her a party on the set, and the scene was done shortly after."
The film was nominated for Best Picture, Best Screenplay, and Best Cinematography. Angela Lansbury was nominated for Best Supporting Actress, Charles Boyer for Best Actor. Ingrid Bergman won the Academy Award for Best Actress and the film also won the Oscar for Best Art Direction - Interior Decoration.
At the time this film was made, Ingrid Bergman was under contract to David O. Selznick. He refused to loan her out unless she received top billing. Charles Boyer was also a big star and he demanded top billing. Bergman went to Selznick and told him she didn't care about her billing. She just wanted the part.
The casting really is superb. Both Ingrid Bergman and Charles Boyer were slightly out of their usual typecasting in this film. Director George Cukor later explained why Bergman was so wonderful for the part: "She wasn't normally a timid woman; she was healthy. To reduce someone like that to a scared, jittering creature is interesting and dramatic. You have to avoid letting people play scenes before you get to them. It would have been dangerous to cast the kind of actress you'd expect to go mad, the kind you know from the first moment you're in for a big mad scene." Charles Boyer also plays against his usual type. He was known for playing the romantic lead - the great French lover. For him to turn into such a diabolical, evil villain is surprising and captivating.
The term "gaslight," which according to Merriam-Webster means "to psychologically manipulate (a person) usually over an extended period of time so that the victim questions the validity of their own thoughts, perception of reality, or memories and experiences confusion, loss of confidence and self-esteem, and doubts concerning their own emotional or mental stability," originates from this film. In the film, Bergman sees the gaslight in her room dim because her husband Boyer is secretly in the sealed off attic, but he insists that the lights aren't dimming and she's imagining things.
Gaslight is based on the play "Angel Street" by Patrick Hamilton. There was an earlier British film version from 1940, but MGM tried to buy up and destroy all copies of it when this 1944 film was produced.
For more reviews and articles from the time, go the Fan Magazine Reviews page.
Featured Cocktail:
Gin Basil Smash
Smashes originated long ago. The oldest versions were simply a spirit, a sweetener, and ice. Modern bartenders usually add an herb or two and, occasionally, seasonal fruit. This smash takes advantage of fresh basil. A similar version adds cucumber slices to the mix.
2 oz (60 ml) gin
1½ Tbsp (22.5 ml) lemon juice
2 tsps (10 ml) sugar syrup
12 basil leaves
Shake all ingredients with ice. Double strain (use a normal strainer and a fine strainer) over ice into rocks glass. Garnish with basil sprig.
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