Review of For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943) by Bill C — 01 Jun 2013
At 170 minutes the first half of the archivally restored version drags on and on; the original theatrical release was trimmed to 134 minutes for good reason. Hemingway was unhappy with both versions, correctly claiming the political context of his novel had been ignored.
Ingrid Bergman in her first role after Casablanca is radiant; a vibrant Katina Paxinou won a well deserved Oscar for her Pilar. Paxinou plays off Cooper well and gives us a tantalizing glimpse of her fiery younger self. The rest of the guerilla band, including the great Akim Tamiroff, unfortunately come off as cartoonish.
This review of For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943) was written by Bill C on 01 Jun 2013.
For Whom the Bell Tolls has generally received positive reviews.
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