Ava Gardner Movies
Ava Gardner began her career first as a model, then as a contract player at MGM, where her gawky, unsophisticated demeanor was totally made over by the studio into an image of inaccessible glamour. Gardner toiled in tiny bit roles, finally getting a worthwhile one on loan-out to Universal in The Killers (1946). MGM was never very comfortable with the bad-girl persona she displayed so well in this film, and, thus, most of her starring appearances at her home studio were relatively sympathetic roles in The Hucksters (1947) and Show Boat (1951). Her cinema reputation as The World's Most Beautiful Animal (in the words of a '50s publicity campaign) was once again manifested in loan-out movies like Pandora and the Flying Dutchman (1951) and The Snows of Kilimanjaro (1952).MGM eventually came to terms with the elements that made Gardner popular, notably in the gutsy Mogambo (1953), in which she made an excellent partner to the equally earthy Clark Gable. Director George Cukor was much taken by Gardner and cast the actress in her best and most complex MGM role in Bhowani Junction (1956), in which she was torn not only by love but also clashing East Indian cultural values. Gardner was equally well served in The Barefoot Contessa (1954), which, in many ways, was a replay of her own rags-to-riches personal story. The actress was cast in some of her best parts during the '60s, notably in Seven Days in May and Night of the Iguana (both 1964), but the pace of her jet-setting lifestyle and increasing personal problems began to show. With roles and public appearances steadily decreasing, she died on January 25, 1990. She was married and divorced three times -- to Mickey Rooney, Frank Sinatra, and Artie Shaw. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1963
Samuel Bronston produced this extravagant blockbuster, shot in Super Technirama 70. Nominally directed by Nicholas Ray (who makes a brief appearance as the U.S. ambassador), Ray was taken off the film and replaced by the more pliable directorial touches of Andrew Marton. Charlton Heston stars as Maj. Matt Lewis, the leader of an army of multinational soldiers who head to Peking during the infamous Boxer Rebellion of 1900. As the film unfolds, the foreign embassies in Peking are being held in a grip of terror as the Boxers set about massacring Christians in an anti-Christian nationalistic fever. Inside the besieged compound, the finicky British ambassador (David Niven) gathers the beleaguered ambassadors into a defensive formation. Included in the group of high-level dignitaries is a sultry Russian Baroness (Ava Gardner) who takes a shine to Lewis upon his arrival at the embassy compound with his group of soldiers. As Lewis and the group conserve food and water and try to save some hungry children, they await the arrival of expected reinforcements, but the tricky Chinese Empress Tzu Hsi (Flora Robson) is, in the meantime, plotting with the Boxers to break the siege at the compound with the aid of Chinese recruits. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charlton Heston, Ava Gardner, (more)
- 1985
Filmed in Tunisia on a budget of 30 million dollars, the five-part, 12-hour miniseries A.D. was the final installment in a historical trilogy which included Moses the Lawgiver and Jesus of Nazareth. Covering the years 30 to 69 A.D., the teleplay, co-written by Anthony Burgess, chronicled the political intrigue which plagued the Roman Empire, with such key players as the emperors Tiberius (James Mason in his final role), Caligula (John McEnery), Claudius (Richard Kiley), and Nero (Anthony Andrews) calling the shots. Meanwhile, the death of Jesus Christ (played by Michael Wilding, son of Elizabeth Taylor) not only sparked a widespread monotheistic religious movement, but also resulted in devastating factionalism amongst the various Jewish sects of the era. Offsetting the true events are a number of fictional subplots, among them the romance between Jewish slave girl Sarah (Amanda Pays) and Roman soldier Valerius (Neil Dickson), and the tempestuous relationship between male and female gladiators, Caleb (Cecil Humphreys) and Corinna (Diana Venora). The huge cast included Ava Gardner, making her TV-movie debut as the scheming Agrippina. The winner of an Emmy award for Best Film Editing, A.D. was broadcast by NBC from March 31 through April 4, 1985. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anthony Andrews, Colleen Dewhurst, (more)
Razzle-dazzle showman Michael Todd hocked everything he had to make this spectacular presentation of Jules Verne's 1872 novel Around the World in 80 Days, the second film to be lensed in the wide-screen Todd-AO production. Nearly as fascinating as the finished product are the many in-production anecdotes concerning Todd's efforts to pull the wool over the eyes of local authorities in order to cadge the film's round-the-world location shots--not to mention the wheeling and dealing to convince over forty top celebrities to appear in cameo roles. David Niven heads the huge cast as ultra-precise, supremely punctual Phileas Fogg, who places a 20,000-pound wager with several fellow members of London Reform Club, insisting that he can go around the world in eighty days (this, remember, is 1872). Together with his resourceful valet Passepartout (Cantinflas), Fogg sets out on his world-girdling journey from Paris via balloon. Meanwhile, suspicion grows that Fogg has stolen his 20,000 pounds from Bank of England. Diligent Inspector Fix (Robert Newton) is sent out by the bank's president (Robert Morley) to bring Fogg to justice. Hopscotching around the globe, Fogg pauses in Spain, where Passepartout engages in a comic bullfight (a specialty of Cantinflas). In India, Fogg and Passepartout rescue young widow Princess Aouda (Shirley MacLaine, in her third film) from being forced into committing suicide so that she may join her late husband. The threesome visit Hong Kong, Japan, San Francisco, and the Wild West. Only hours short of winning his wager, Fogg is arrested by the diligent Inspector Fixx. Though exonerated of the bank robbery charges, he has lost everything--except the love of the winsome Aouda. But salvation is at hand when Passepartout discovers that, by crossing the International Date Line, there's still time to reach the Reform Club. Will they make it? See for yourself. Among the film's 46 guest stars, the most memorable include Marlene Dietrich, Charles Boyer, Jose Greco, Frank Sinatra, Peter Lorre, Red Skelton, Buster Keaton, John Mills, and Beatrice Lillie. All were paid in barter--Ronald Colman did his brief bit for a new car. Newscaster Edward R. Murrow provides opening narration, and there's a tantalizing clip from Georges Méliès' A Trip to the Moon (1902). Offering a little something for everyone, Around the World in 80 Days is nothing less than an extravaganza, and it won 5 Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Cinematography. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Niven, Cantinflas, (more)
- 1990
This biographical documentary depicts the life and loves of Ava Gardner, a country girl who took Hollywood by storm. Interviews, film footage and commentary on her marriages to Mickey Rooney and Frank Sinatra are all part of this country girl/city girl story. ~ Tana Hobart, All Movie Guide
- 1956
Ava Gardner was never more alluring than as the half-caste heroine of Bhowani Junction. Set during India's battle for independence from Britain, the film begins with Gardner returning to her native land after spending several years in England. Her true loyalties, and her own sense of who she really is, are put to the test by the two men in her life: Stewart Granger, whose job it is to prevent saboteurs from destroying the trains at Bhowani Junction, and Bill Travers, another half-caste. When she kills a potential rapist in self-defense, Gardner is given comfort by Communist insurrectionist Peter Illing, further dividing her fidelities. A climactic attempt on the life of Mahatma Gandhi provides a rousing finish to this romantic melodrama. Bhowani Junction was adapted from the novel by John Masters. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ava Gardner, Stewart Granger, (more)
- 1944
MGM's notion of a "B" picture would be an "A" production at any other studio, and Blonde Fever is no exception. Philip Dorn heads the cast as restauranteur Peter Donay, happily married to the pleasant but plain Delilah (Mary Astor). Approaching "that certain age", Donay's head is turned by curvaceous waitress Sally Murfin (Gloria Grahame, in her first important film role). At first only mildly amused by the flirtatious Donay, Sally begins turning on the charms herself when she finds out that he's won a $40000 lottery. It takes six reels, but Donay finally realizes how much he loves and needs his faithful wife, and how little Sally truly cares about him. Blonde Fever is based on a play by Ferenc Molnar, though it must have taken a lot of cutting to cram the original into 65 minutes' running time. PS: Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy, personal friends of director Richard Whorf, show up in unbilled cameos. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Philip Dorn, Mary Astor, (more)
- 1942
When Lew Ayres' wartime conscientious-objector status caused MGM to drop the actor like a hot potato, Ayres' "Dr. Kildare" series became the sole responsibility of Lionel Barrymore as the crusty Dr. Leonard Gillespie. In the first Kildare-less entry, Calling Dr. Gillespie, the ageing medico has a new assistant, refugee Dutch surgeon Dr. John Hunter Gerniede (Philip Dorn). Both Gillespie and Gerniede tackle the case of schizophrenic homicidal maniac Roy Todwell (Phil Brown), who is quite a handful to say the least. The story comes to a more suspenseful conclusion than usual as Todwell stalks Gillespie in the dead of night. MGM star-to-be Ava Gardner has a tiny, uncredited bit role. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lionel Barrymore, Philip Dorn, (more)
- 1978
- R
City on Fire, a disaster thriller filmed in Canada with dialogue in both French and English, tells the story of an oil-refinery explosion in a small town. Dr. Frank Whitman (Barry Newman) and his co-workers, including Nurse Harper (Shelley Winters) and Dr. Matwick (Donald Pilon), fight bravely to save the victims even when they, themselves are endangered by the fire. The film also features cameos by Ava Gardner and Henry Fonda. The film moves at a fast pace and creates a great deal of suspense as the fire closes in on the survivors. Director Alvin Rakoff uses creativity instead of a big budget and, aided by the splendid cinematography of Rene Verzier, succeeds in creating an exciting disaster film. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barry Newman, Susan Clark, (more)
The racy, ribald Cole Porter musical Du Barry Was a Lady is here given a thorough dry-cleaning by prudish MGM. Richard "Red" Skelton takes over the role of Louis Blore (played on Broadway by Bert Lahr), while Lucille Ball steps into the shoes of the original play's Ethel Merman. The story proposes that Blore is a men's room attendant in a New York nightclub who has a yen for gorgeous showgirl May Daly (Lucille Ball). After drinking a potent mixture, Louis dreams that he is King Louis XV of France, and May is the magnificent Madame Du Barry. Also showing up in Louis' dream is Alex Howe (Gene Kelly), who in "real life" is the guy who ends up with May at fade out-time. It's hard to determine what's more fun to watch in Du Barry Was a Lady: the three stars, the antics of supporting player Zero Mostel, or the incredible sequence in which Tommy Dorsey & His Band -- including drummer Buddy Rich -- perform in 18th century garb and powdered wigs. Five of the original Cole Porter songs are retained for this Technicolor-ful film: "Katie Went to Haiti," "Do I Love You, Do I?," "Well, Did You Evah?," "Taliostro's Dance,", and, best of all, "Friendship." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Red Skelton, Lucille Ball, (more)
Los Angeles is the natural site for a film about earthquakes: they happen there frequently, and the landscape is familiar to moviegoers from thousands of films. A huge number of ongoing vignettes which include cameos from numerous celebrities and stars are tied together by the ongoing efforts of architect Graff (Charleton Heston) to rescue his estranged spoiled-rich-girl wife (Ava Gardner), while helping out with the ongoing rescue efforts taking place around him and while trying to determine what has happened to his mistress Denise (Genvieve Bujold). The rumbling sound effect designed for this film (Sensurround) won a "Best Sound" Oscar for the film in 1975. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charlton Heston, Ava Gardner, (more)
Director Mervyn Leroy lends a burnished MGM gloss to this sordid tale of infidelity among rich New York East Siders. Barbara Stanwyck stars as Jessie Bourne, a charming society woman whose finds out that her husband Brandon (James Mason) is guiltily indulging in an illicit affair with the earthy Isobel Lorrison (Ava Gardner). Jessie bears her husband's indiscretion with a gallant dignity, and when Isabelle is killed, Jesse realizes that she doesn't care for Brandon anyway. Van Heflin is also on hand as ex-cop Mark Dwyer, who admires Jessie's stoic dignity. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Stanwyck, James Mason, (more)
Having created the character of Gator McKlusky in 1973's White Lightning, Burt Reynolds reprises the role in the appropriately titled Gator. Once again, ex-convict McKluskey is strong-armed into helping the feds nab a dangerous criminal, who turns out to be an old high-school chum (Jerry Reed). He is aided and abetted by TV reporter Aggie Maybank (Lauren Hutton) and comedy-relief FBI agent Irving Greenfield (Jack Weston). Talk-show host Mike Douglas makes his film debut as a Jimmy Carter-style governor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Burt Reynolds, Jack Weston, (more)
Ghosts on the Loose (which features no ghosts whatsoever) is perhaps the best-known of Monogram's "East Side Kids" series. This time, Muggs (Leo Gorcey), Glimpy (Huntz Hall), and the rest of the kids offer to decorate the honeymoon cottage of Glimpy's sister, Betty (Ava Gardner), and her new husband, Jack (Rick Vallin). Unfortunately, the boys end up at the wrong house, a sinister mansion that serves as the headquarters for a Nazi spy ring headed by Emil (Bela Lugosi). The rest of the film is an extended chase -- first the Nazis chasing the boys, then the boys chasing the Nazis. Incidentally, this is the film in which Bela Lugosi allegedly sneezes out an obscenity. Ghosts on the Loose has been reissued under several titles, notably The East Side Kids Meet Bela Lugosi. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bela Lugosi, Ava Gardner, (more)
- 1941
MGM was doing so well in 1941 that it could afford the occasional "prestige" film with little box-office appeal. Based on the novel by J.P. Marquand, H.M. Pulham, Esq., stars Robert Young as a successful but stuffy Boston businessman. The glimmer of sadness in Young's eyes indicates that his ascension to the top was not without its cost. In flashbacks, we see how Young considered changing the track his life was on in order to marry Hedy Lamarr. After marrying his wife, however, the man never strays. The film utilizes the Strange Interlude approach of interior monologues heard on the soundtrack, and anticipates Citizen Kane (which hadn't yet been released when Pulham was filmed) by building its entire narrative on the flashback structure. H.M. Pulham, Esq. contains what may well be Robert Young's best performance, though few filmgoers in 1941 were interested enough to see it. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hedy Lamarr, Robert Young, (more)
- 1986
The classy made-for-TV Harem managed to get away with plot devices that dated back to the days of Rudolph Valentino. Nancy Travis heads the cast as Jessica Gray, a turn-of-the-century American woman who is kidnapped and ensconced in the harem of Turkish sultan Hasan (Omar Sharif). Jessica immediately runs afoul of Kadin (Ava Gardner, in her TV-movie debut), Hasan's jealous head wife. All petty squabbles are forgotten as the plot picks up momentum, incorporating murder, political revolutions, and near-escapes. Sumptuously photographed in such locations as London, Tunis and Spain, Harem originally aired in two parts on February 9 and 10, 1986. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1943
Hitler's Madman is based on an all-too-real wartime atrocity. John Carradine portrays Heydrich, the vicious SS officer put in charge of Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia. Heydrich is killed by the Czech underground, prompting the Nazis to plan a horrible retaliation. The Gestapo selects the Czech village of Lidice for annihilation: They kill all the male villagers, throw the women and children into concentration camps, and torch Lidice into nonexistence. The victims of Nazi tyranny become martyrs to the underground cause, ending the film on a note of triumph. Based on a narrative poem by Edna St. Vincent Millay, Hitler's Madman was produced by the "poverty row" PRC studio, but was sold to MGM and given a class-A presentation at choice theatres throughout the U.S. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patricia Morison, John Carradine, (more)
- 1942
This upbeat war-time tale chronicles the ordeal of ardently American munitions plant worker Joe Smith (Robert Young), whose access to the U.S. military's plan for a new bomb-sight leave him victim to an abduction from Nazi agents. Knowing that Joe (Young) has vital information, the German soldiers hold nothing back in their attempts to force it out of him, including vicious, unending rounds of torture. The captured patriot, however, reveals nothing, opting instead to visualize happy times from his past as a means to escape his agonizing ordeal. Luckily, Joe manages to escape, contact the FBI, and bring his Nazi captors to justice. Directed by Richard Thorpe, Joe Smith, America also features actors arsha Hunt and arryl Hickman as Joe's beloved family.
~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Young, Marsha Hunt, (more)
- 1942
Kid Glove Killer is an expanded remake of They're Always Caught (1938), a 2-reel entry in MGM's "Crime Does Not Pay" series. Van Heflin stars as criminologist Gordon McKay, at present investigating the murder of of reform mayor Daniels (Samuel S. Hinds). What the audience knows, but McKay doesn't, is that the the culprit is district attorney Gerald Ladimer (Lee Bowman), ostensibly a crusader against organized crime. Thickening the plot is the fact that McKay and Ladimer are rivals for the affections of McKay's pretty lab assistant Jane Mitchell (Marsha Hunt). The question: Will McKay be able to piece together the fragmentary clues in his forensic lab before Ladimer is able to strike again? An excellent example of MGM's "B" unit at the height of its powers, Kid Glove Killer served as the feature-film directorial debut of Fred Zinnemann, who obviously was destined for bigger things. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Van Heflin, Marsha Hunt, (more)
MGM's first CinemaScope production was the lavishly appointed Knights of the Round Table. Without overlapping into any copyrighted material (specifically T.H. White's The Once and Future King), the film spins a lucid account of the King Arthur legend. The good king is played by Mel Ferrer, while Queen Guenevere is essayed by Ava Gardner. Arthur's efforts to create a perfect society in Camelot are compromised when Guenevere falls in love with trusted knight Sir Lancelot (Robert Taylor). The ambitious Mordred (Stanley Baker) uses his knowledge of the Queen's indiscretion to destroy both Camelot and King Arthur's round table. Most of the story material in Knights of the Round Table is lifted from Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ava Gardner, Robert Taylor, (more)
- 1951
- NR
During the 1845 battle for Texas' independence, a cattle baron (Clark Gable) spars with an evil senator (Broderick Crawford) over the state's future and for the affections of newpaperwoman Ava Gardner. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Clark Gable, Ava Gardner, (more)
- 1944
Margaret O'Brien, MGM's newest child sensation, was given her first starring vehicle with Lost Angel. O'Brien plays Alpha, who has been groomed to be a genius by a trio of well-meaning but misguided professors (Philip Merivale, Henry O'Neill and Donald Meek). Taking pity on the reluctant prodigy, police reporter Mike Regan (James Craig) takes it upon himself to "deprogram" Alpha and transform her into a normal, healthy child. In an effort to inflate this B picture into "A" proportions by increasing the running time, the scriptwriters contrive a silly subplot involving a gang of Runyonesque gangsters (headed by the ineluctable Keenan Wynn). Margaret O'Brien's appeal may be elusive to modern viewers, but she was a proven audience favorite back in 1944. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Margaret O'Brien, James Craig, (more)
- 1944
In this eighth film in MGM's "Maisie" series, Ann Sothern is back as ever-stranded chorus girl Maisie Revier. As the story opens, Maisie has a steady non-showbiz job as a defense plant riveter (it's wartime, of course); still, she utilizes a two-week vacation to take a singing job in a Reno night spot. This small Nevada town being the Divorce Capital of America, Maisie finds herself involved in the crumbling marriage between a GI (Tom Drake) and his wealthy wife (Ava Gardner). Meanwhile, Maisie's own well-being is threatened by a conniving businessman who has her committed to an asylum when she threatens to squeal about his crooked business practices. Like most "Maisie" pictures, Maisie Goes to Reno suffers from a surfeit of plotting, but is redeemed by the insouciant Ann Sothern. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Sothern, John Hodiak, (more)
- 1968
This romantic tragedy concerns the Archduke Rudolf (Omar Sharif) and his mistress, the Baroness Maria Vetsera (Catherine Deneuve), and their untimely demise at Mayerling, the sight of the Austrian royal family's hunting lodge. Rudolf verbally spars with his father Emperor Franz-Josef (James Mason) about wanting to implement progressive policies for his country. Ava Gardner plays his mother Empress Elizabeth. Rudolf also contends with the fallout from a loveless marriage with Princess Stephanie (Andrea Parisy). Respectful of the centuries-old Hapsburg family rule over Austria, Rudolf soon feels he is a man born at the wrong time in a country that will not realize the need for social reform. The Prince of Wales (James Robertson-Justice), later to become Britain's King Edward VII, provides the only comic relief with his dialogue. The deaths remain a mystery, but director Terence Young suggests the two lovers made a suicide pact when they decided they could not live in a world without love where the prospects for peace were dubious at best. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Omar Sharif, Catherine Deneuve, (more)
- 1942
Just when it seemed that the MGM Our Gang series was going to continue wallowing in mediocrity, along came the one-reel gem Mighty Lak a Goat. In this consistently funny outing, the Gang members try to clean off their clothes after being splattered with mud. The "miracle" cleaning solution devised by Billy "Froggy" Laughlin works beautifully, but with one major drawback: The stuff stinks to high heaven! Oblivious to their putrid pungency, the kids manage to empty out a bus, a classroom, and a movie theater (even the actors on the screen can't stand the smell) before they sniff out the reason for their sudden unpopularity. Watch for Ava Gardner in a tiny role as a movie-house cashier. The last truly worthwhile Our Gang comedy, Mighty Lak a Goat was originally released on October 10, 1942. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George "Spanky" McFarland, Bobby Blake, (more)
