George Cukor directed most of Song Without End, subtitled The Story of Franz Liszt, is a romantic biopic made by Columbia Pictures.
Grade: C+ (** out of *****)
| Song Without End | |
|---|---|
|
|
Charles Vidor began shooting, but he died during the shooting of the film and was replaced by George Cukor.
It was produced by William Goetz from a screenplay by Oscar Millard, revised (uncredited) by Walter Bernstein and based on screenwriter Oscar Saul’s original 1952 script.
The music score was by Morris Stoloff and Harry Sukman with music by Franz Liszt, and the cinematography by James Wong Howe and Charles Lang (uncredited).
The film also features music of contemporaries of Liszt whom he championed by featuring them in his numerous performances (Richard Wagner, Hector Berlioz, among others).
The film stars Dirk Bogarde as Liszt, Capucine (in her acting debut) as Princess Carolyne zu Sayn-Wittgenstein, and Geneviève Page as Marie d’Agoult, with Patricia Morison as George Sand, Alexander Davion as Frédéric Chopin, Lyndon Brook as Richard Wagner, Albert Rueprecht as Prince Felix Lichnowsky, Erland Erlandsen as Sigismond Thalberg, Ivan Desny, Martita Hunt, Lou Jacobi, and Marcel Dalio.
Columbia Pictures had plans to film The Franz Liszt Story back in 1952. Studio head Harry Cohn hired his friend, acclaimed screenwriter Oscar Saul (A Streetcar Named Desire), to produce his own original screenplay with William Dieterle set to direct.
When the studio delayed going forward with the project due to production and casting issues for three years, Oscar Saul backed out, and Columbia announced in 1955 that Gottfried Reinhardt had been commissioned to write a new screenplay.
In 1958, vet producer William Goetz took over the project with Oscar Millard as screenwriter. Charles Vidor, who previously directed A Song to Remember (1945), a biopic of Frédéric Chopin, was assigned to direct using elements of all three scripts.
As nearly 40 musical pieces were selected, Morris Stoloff, head of Columbia’s music, began immediate work on the soundtrack. After selecting the pieces to be played, he engaged piano virtuoso Jorge Bolet, the Roger Wagner Chorale and the Los Angeles Philharmonic to perform the score.
Harry Sukman was in charge of the music editing and adaptations that were required for the musical score. Musicologist Abram Chasins was a musical consultant on the film.
The recording of the music (by Earl Mounce) was completed before the start of production so that Bogarde could learn the finger movements necessary to make him appear to be playing the piano realistically in the film. Musical adviser Victor Aller spent three weeks rehearsing Bogarde in proper piano technique.
Critics complained that the filmmakers made Dirk Bogarde look more like Elvis Presley, sticking not to historical accuracy, but to popular trends of the late 1950s.
The movie was a commercial failure.
Cast
Dirk Bogarde as Franz Liszt
Capucine as Princess Carolyne Wittgenstein (debut)
Geneviève Page as Countess Marie D’Agoult
Patricia Morison as Georges Sand
Ivan Desny as Prince Nicholas
Martita Hunt as Grand Duchess
Lou Jacobi as Potin
Albert Rueprecht as Prince Felix Lichnowsky
Marcel Dalio as Chelard
Lyndon Brook as Richard Wagner
Walter Rilla as Archbishop
Hans Unterkircher as Czar
Erland Erlandsen as Sigismond Thalberg
Alexander Davion as Frédéric Chopin
Katherine Squire as Anna Liszt
Credits:
Directed by Charles Vidor, George Cukor
Written by Oscar Millard
Produced by William Goetz
Cinematography James Wong Howe
Edited by William Lyon
Music by Morris Stoloff, Harry Sukman, Franz Liszt
Distributed by Columbia Pictures
Release date: August 11, 1960
Running time: 141 min.
Budget $3.5 million
Box office $1,500,000 (US rentals)
