Sorry, this movie sucks

A Masterpiece!

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

'Letter from an Unknown Woman' is the first Max Ophüls I have seen. The film certainly gave me a lot of things to think about. In a nutshell, I thought the screenplay and plot written by Ophüls and Howard E. Koch which is based on the novella of the same name is good, but what makes the film special is Ophüls' direction and choice of camera movements and visual rhythm.The screenplay is not something that completely blew me away. There are a lot of things that felt familiar due to my acquaintance with some other films belonging to the label of 'melodrama' made during the 40s, 50s and 60s. The film does give off the familiar vibe of inevitable tragedy right from the early scenes. The screenplay for the most part works, but there are moments which felt a bit weak. The strength of the film lies in the way Ophüls beautifully gives us the elaborate sequence of Lisa's ever growing infatuation for Stefan, it is believable and sweet, Ophüls doesn't shy away from the bitter eventualities of a doomed infatuation,etc. Ophüls also somewhat handles the potentially sexist element in the film well and gives the character of Lisa growth and strength as she gradually matures. Although initially her life seems to completely revolve around the man and she is shown to pretty much worship him, but later she gets to take a bold decision to uphold her self-respect which undercuts the lack of layers in her character in the initial part of the film. But there are certain elements in the screenplay that felt a bit weak, for example there is a scene where one character departs via a train with the promise that he/she will return after two weeks, we then suddenly jump to another scene with a jump in the timeline which felt rushed and not seamless. There is another railway station sequence which comes later in the film which does a callback to the previous railway station scene, but the scene ends with a bit of a foreshadowing of what's to come and it felt a bit too on the nose, and heavy handed.For me the best part of the film is Ophüls' sophisticated use of the camera. He composes and choreographs a lot of scenes in a beautifully symmetrical fashion. Music plays an important role in the narrative as Stefan is a musician and it is his musical prowess that initially attracts Lisa to him even before she has seen him in person. I believe Ophüls' intention was using a symmetry that is found in classical musical pieces in the way he stages movement and composes frames by referencing,mirroring and juxtaposing earlier scenes. Apart from the aforementioned railway station scene, every other scene involving symmetrical touches work. Some examples of this visual symmetry is the sequence in Linz which starts with the dialogue being muted out by the noise of a horse drawn cart and ends with the dialogue being muted out again by the marching band playing the 'Radetzky March'. Another brilliant pair of symmetric scenes are the stair case scenes where the camera captures movement from the same position in both scenes but with completely different perspectives. Even the first and last shot of the film are beautifully symmetric and bookend the film very well. There is a famous scene in an amusement park where Stefan and Lisa have a conversation on a virtual train ride which pretty much succinctly summarises the theme of the film which is how love can be an illusion just like the illusion of visiting different cities and countries that they were enjoying with the ride.Joan Fontaine is brilliant. In the initial part of the film, she plays the adorable girl next door. Although she plays a simple woman who pretty much thinks about nothing but catching the attention of Stefan, but she is so sweet, that one can't help but like her in spite of the thin nature of character at the beginning of the film. However thankfully she does go through a transformation and becomes this regal character belonging to high society who takes bold decisions and she goes through this transformation effortlessly. Although the character of Stefan is not the most likable character, but Louis Jourdan emotes a sense of disillusionment and dissatisfaction extremely well which makes us care a bit about him too so that Stefan doesn't just become the stereotypical handsome jerk. 'Letter from an Unknown Woman' by Max Ophüls is a very stylishly made film. Ophüls' style of camera movements and scene composition is very musical in its rhythm and symmetry. The storyline itself was something the likes of which I am familiar with, but it is Max Ophüls' directorial style that impressed me and I certainly intend to explore his filmography further.

Letter from an Unknown Woman has the classic recipe for a romantic drama – the early stages of infatuation, the eventual realization of mutual feelings, and finally, heartbreak. However, the film uses this typical template in an over-the-top fashion to the point of making the film a dramatic clichéd romance flick.The level of Lisa's infatuation with Stefan at her early age is the understandable puppy love, school girl crush – which gives it the effect of being obsessive. Perhaps this is simply the difference between American and Viennese culture. However, her abandonment of her family at the train station simply to stay in Vienna, where Stefan resides, is pretty ridiculous. This was the point of the movie where I began to become restless, with the rest of the film becoming predictable – Lisa and Stefan finally get together, Stefan is a typical man whore and has a one night fling with Lisa, and promptly forgets about her. This plot is borrowed in modern movies left and right, and personally, while this film was created long before today's modern films, it's a cornerstone (and I use this term sardonically) that writers can't seem to shake.The "twist" so to speak, when Lisa and Stefan cross paths at the opera, provides for a break in the stagnancy and predictability in the plot. Lisa, who is married, decides to go home with Stefan, despite that she fears he forgets who she is. This is indeed the case; Stefan uses the same "lines" on Lisa during their tryst as he did during their first encounter. Lisa recognizes this and slips out of his apartment, leaving Stefan confused as to why what seemed to be a sure thing had disappeared in front of him. The cliffhanger ending was somewhat flat, because either outcome wasn't very interesting – either Stefan lived, or he allowed himself to be killed in what was presumably a duel with Lisa's husband. Once again, the film provides a cliché and not a very stimulating one at that.Overall, I found the clichés tiresome and the film, for me, dragged on. Perhaps it is that I have seen modern films that have similar romantic plots, complete with the "unexpected twist" at the end. However, because the film was released in 1948, it was something fresh – at least on the silver screen.If it was unclear, I personally did not enjoy this film, but I can appreciate the culture of Vienna at the time that is portrayed throughout. References to the opera, and especially the music of the time, were some of the components that shined through what I thought to be otherwise a very dull 87 minutes.

Letter from an Unknown Woman is directed by Max Ophuls, who also co- adapts the screenplay with Howard Koch from the novella written by Stefan Zweig. It stars Joan Fontaine, Louis Jordan, Mady Christians, Art Smith and Howard Freeman. Music is by Daniele Amfitheatrof and cinematography by Franz Planer. Masterpiece, the very definition of classic cinema is right here, a film that is both beautiful and tragic, a piece of cinema that's crafted with such great skill by all involved it's hard to believe some critics turned their noses up at it back on its original release. Story is set in Vienna at the turn of the century and finds Lisa Berndle (Fontaine) as a teenager who has a crush on one of the neighbours in her apartment complex. That neighbour is concert pianist Stefan Brand (Jourdan), but Lisa will not get to know Stefan until some years later, and then only briefly, yet true love never dies does it? The scene is set right from the off, the superb set designs of period Vienna come lurching out of the screen. Jordan stands straight backed and handsome, and then Fontaine a picture of angelic beauty. Ophuls brings his euro eye for details and flair to the party, his camera work fluid, yet compact, personal but still a distant and caustic observer to the corruptible folly of romantic obsession. And Planer mists up the photogenics as Amfitheatrof drifts delicate and dramatic sounds across the unfolding drama. Narratively most of the picture is played out in the past, showing how Stefan Brand came to be reading a heart aching letter from a woman who loved and adored him. Not that he would know, such was his life of womanising and narcissistic leanings. Oh he could romance the best of them, charm a snake out of the basket, but quite frankly he's a cad, and a coward to boot. Maybe this letter from the unknown woman will shake him out of his self centred world? Give him a chance at redemption? Or maybe not... The characterisation of Lisa Berndle (Fontaine simply magnificent) is stunning in its coldness. This is a woman who for the briefest of moments in her life, derails her shot at potential happiness, and the stability afforded her son, in the belief that Stefan Brand is the destined love of her life, that love will find a way. Her foolish obsession borders on insanity, she's so driven by a self-destructive persona she can't see this is no fairytale. There is much beauty on show, but the devilish hand of fate and some tragic realisations wait for the principal players here, Ophuls brilliantly blowing a blackened cloud over the culmination of tale. Grand and opulent, heartbreaking and sad, Letter from an Unknown Woman is pure cinema, its narrative strength lies in the realisation that the vagaries of love has to be a two way thing. Brilliant film making. 10/10

I guess I ain't got no class. I'm one of those who don't particularly appreciate this film. Not a bad film, and there are things I quite admired about it, but it didn't quite capture my fancy.The pluses: 1. A lot of care was taken here to make it seem authentic to Germany in that era. The street bands and the imaginary train travel. And a few of the sets are downright enchanting. Very nice touches...the type you rarely see.2. The link between the beginning and the end of the film. I won't mention what it is, but it did surprise me. And, it's clever.The minuses: 1. As with one of her other films, I had difficulty believing Joan Fontaine as a teenager in the beginning of the film...when she was actually 31 years old. Perhaps they should have just used a child actor for that part of the film.2. I didn't feel that Louis Jourdan's character was developed very well.In terms of acting, Joan Fontaine does well as the lead actress...once she becomes an adult. However, I don't feel this is close to being her best role; try instead "Suspicion" or "Rebecca". Louis Jourdan was fine as the cad, and I must admit that his piano playing seemed almost real. Art Smith had an interesting role as a mute servant. The remainder of the roles here are short, and the supporting actors do their jobs. But all the focus is really on Fontaine and Jourdan.It's a good film, but in my view, not a great film.