Director: Mitchell Leisen
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Top Billed Actors: Charles Boyer, Olivia de Havilland, Paulette Goddard
Won 0 Oscars
Nominated for 6 more:
Outstanding Motion Picture - Paramount
Best Actress - Olivia de Havilland
Best Screenplay - Charles Brackett and Billy Wilder
Best Scoring of a Dramatic Picture - Victor Young
Best Art Direction - Interior Decoration, Black-and-White - Art Direction: Hans Dreier and Robert Usher; Interior Decoration: Samuel M. Comer
Best Cinematography, Black-and-White - Leo Tover
Plot: A Romanian gigolo schemes to marry an American so he can get his papers to cross the border all the while baking in the Mexican heat.
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Top Billed Actors: Charles Boyer, Olivia de Havilland, Paulette Goddard
Won 0 Oscars
Nominated for 6 more:
Outstanding Motion Picture - Paramount
Best Actress - Olivia de Havilland
Best Screenplay - Charles Brackett and Billy Wilder
Best Scoring of a Dramatic Picture - Victor Young
Best Art Direction - Interior Decoration, Black-and-White - Art Direction: Hans Dreier and Robert Usher; Interior Decoration: Samuel M. Comer
Best Cinematography, Black-and-White - Leo Tover
Plot: A Romanian gigolo schemes to marry an American so he can get his papers to cross the border all the while baking in the Mexican heat.
Nominated for six Academy Awards but coming up empty handed, Hold Back the Dawn (1941) tells the story of an immigrant essentially gridlocked in a border city in Mexico hoping to enter the United States legally. I'm not sure what the immigration sentiment was like in 1941, if it was as politically divisive as it is today, but this screenplay is able to weigh the difficulties of an incoming immigrant set against a romantic backdrop with typical Hollywood drama as well. The writers of this screenplay, adapted from a novel published the year prior, includes one Billy Wilder. Apparently, Wilder became incredulous at a cut scene and he was convinced to start directing his own writing efforts; this is the final screenwriting credit for Wilder in which he did not direct. The screenplay was good enough for an Oscar nod and so was the lead actress, Olivia de Havilland. This became the first time two siblings competed for the same award as her sister, Joan Fontaine, won for her performance in Suspicion (1941). The film is framed in flashback with Charles Boyer recounting his story to a movie director. The director is played by, well, the director of this film, Mitchell Leisen. This is the only one of his films to be nominated for Best Picture but the actual film that is being portrayed here was the Best Special Effects winner at the 14th Awards, I Wanted Wings (1941). This is a very cool opening for me as I am watching all of the other Academy Awards winners in release date order in addition to these Best Picture nominees so I was familiar with the scene being reproduced.
I briefly touched upon this in my opening paragraph, but the most impressive aspect about this film is how immigration policy is weaved so naturally into this narrative. It allows the audience to make their own judgment about the quota process or even becoming eligible to cross by marriage. Some people might agree with de Havilland's character by stating the policies in place are to "keep out the scum" or some may side with Boyer's character in that Americans are "building pretty high dams to stop those streams." Whether you are for more stringent or less restrictive immigration policy, this film will neither offend or bludgeon you over the head with a stance. Perhaps some may disagree with a film's leaning to be so centrist but for me, the story feels a lot more reasonable without an overt political message. Essentially, it's there if you want to dig it out but it's not overwhelming. Plus, the incorporation of minor characters filled out the hotel setting and never got in the way of the main melodrama. Kudos to these screenwriters. I also enjoyed de Havilland's performance. At first, I found her character to be so naive and silly to fall for Boyer's charms but their excursion outside of the border town made me fall in love with her in the real time that Boyer was. She plays the innocent school teacher so well so her scene with the immigration inspector came as a pleasant surprise. It takes a special actress to play a fool and gain my sympathy and she succeeded at that.
There isn't much in this film that is poor by any means. Looking at the nominations, I would never think this was top-tier in the technical categories like Art Direction and Cinematography. In a year that Gregg Toland truly came onto the scene, it is hard to break free from a camerawork perspective. However, I did enjoy the high speed car chase near the end of the movie. The cutting back and forth between the drivers' points of view and the sense of speed took me by surprise. This is a typical romantic melodrama that blindsides you with this thrilling sequence. And although the runtime feels a little too long, I could have used even more background for Boyer's character. There's a lot of telling rather than showing and in a movie in which we could go to any time in Boyer's flashbacks, I think a scene that shows him at his most conniving gigolo ways would have added even more depth to his character once he eventually overcomes and succumbs to love.
Overall, this is a telling tale that involves immigration into the United States but never clubs you with an overt message about it. Olivia de Havilland plays the believable romantic fool and Billy Wilder learns that it may be best to step out on his own after turning in this wonderful script.
My Score: 7/10
I briefly touched upon this in my opening paragraph, but the most impressive aspect about this film is how immigration policy is weaved so naturally into this narrative. It allows the audience to make their own judgment about the quota process or even becoming eligible to cross by marriage. Some people might agree with de Havilland's character by stating the policies in place are to "keep out the scum" or some may side with Boyer's character in that Americans are "building pretty high dams to stop those streams." Whether you are for more stringent or less restrictive immigration policy, this film will neither offend or bludgeon you over the head with a stance. Perhaps some may disagree with a film's leaning to be so centrist but for me, the story feels a lot more reasonable without an overt political message. Essentially, it's there if you want to dig it out but it's not overwhelming. Plus, the incorporation of minor characters filled out the hotel setting and never got in the way of the main melodrama. Kudos to these screenwriters. I also enjoyed de Havilland's performance. At first, I found her character to be so naive and silly to fall for Boyer's charms but their excursion outside of the border town made me fall in love with her in the real time that Boyer was. She plays the innocent school teacher so well so her scene with the immigration inspector came as a pleasant surprise. It takes a special actress to play a fool and gain my sympathy and she succeeded at that.
There isn't much in this film that is poor by any means. Looking at the nominations, I would never think this was top-tier in the technical categories like Art Direction and Cinematography. In a year that Gregg Toland truly came onto the scene, it is hard to break free from a camerawork perspective. However, I did enjoy the high speed car chase near the end of the movie. The cutting back and forth between the drivers' points of view and the sense of speed took me by surprise. This is a typical romantic melodrama that blindsides you with this thrilling sequence. And although the runtime feels a little too long, I could have used even more background for Boyer's character. There's a lot of telling rather than showing and in a movie in which we could go to any time in Boyer's flashbacks, I think a scene that shows him at his most conniving gigolo ways would have added even more depth to his character once he eventually overcomes and succumbs to love.
Overall, this is a telling tale that involves immigration into the United States but never clubs you with an overt message about it. Olivia de Havilland plays the believable romantic fool and Billy Wilder learns that it may be best to step out on his own after turning in this wonderful script.
My Score: 7/10