The Barefoot Contessa (1954)

Average rating

(60%)

Starring:	Humphrey Bogart \| Ava Gardner \| Edmund O'Brien \| Marius Goring \| Rossano Brazzi \| Elizabeth Sellars \| Valentina Cortese \| Warren Stevens \| Franco Interlenghi \| Mari Aldon
Director:	Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Studio:	MGM ENTERTAINMENT
Run time:	125 mins
Genres:	Drama
Languages:	English
Dubbed:	French, German, Spanish
Hearing-impaired:	English
Subtitles:	Danish, Dutch, English, French, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish
Released:	April 15, 2002

In one of the last films before his death in 1957, Humphrey Bogart plays washed-up film director Harry Dawes, who sees another chance at success when he meets Spanish dancer Maria Vargas (Ava Gardner) and recognizes her star potential. Harry's willingness to let Maria keep her independence, and his steadfast character, wins him her undying friendship; the two weather the Hollywood seas, made stormy by Maria's own tempestuous spirit and the greedy nature of the film business. Maria's final break from Hollywood throws her into the arms of a Prince Charming whose secrets lead her down a destructive path. Impatience with Hollywood is evident in every line of director-writer Joseph L. Mankiewicz's dialogue (as in the unforgettable ALL ABOUT EVE), but he carefully plants the seeds of Maria's decline in her character rather than simplistically painting her fate as a reaction to fame. Bogart, in an role atypical for him of platonic friend to his female costar, is the touchstone of the movie and its most sympathetic character, while Gardner's eyes snap with passion as she searches for her fairy-tale ending.

Rating of 4 stars out of 5

“The world's most beautiful animal,” shrieked the ads for this mordant satire on the movie business. Unsurprisingly, nobody disputed the fact, for “the animal” was none other than Ava Gardner in her prime, playing a character based on her glamorous predecessor Rita Hayworth, while Humphrey Bogart plays her cynical director, Harry Dawes: “I made her,” he snarls witheringly, and you believe him. Director/writer Joseph Mankiewicz had previously satirised Broadway in the multi-Oscar-winning All about Eve, and this is similar, but far less theatrical. Edmond O'Brien collected an Oscar here as the sweaty publicist, and there's a star-making performance from Rossano Brazzi. By the way, the bare feet belonged not to Gardner but to Margo Lorenz, who was also the foot-double for Gardner in The Little Hut, and went on to star in some British B-movies.

Rating of 1 stars out of 5
Halliwell's Film Guide

A fascinating farrago of addled philosophy and lame wisecracks, very typical of a writer-director here not at his best, decorated by a splendid gallery of actors and some attractive settings.

Highest rated reviews

Rated 4 stars
Rare for the 50's!

GaryT from , 11th July, 2008

Unlike lots of factory films from the 50's this one kind of bites the hand that feeds it. Many references and dark allusions to the studio/startlet scene of this era and not all of them kind. Kind of a 1950's version of the 'Player'. Overall much more enjoyable for this fact. The latter third looks almost like they've grafted it on to the move to make it appeal on a romance/love interest basis. Largely forgetable but some good scenes with Bogart doing great 'suit' acting. Bogart's girlfriend in the film (sorry, don't remember the name) is gorgeous and within the constraints of acting against the name of Ava Gardner she's great! Overall - take a look it will pleasantly surprise you.

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Rated 5 stars
Customer Review

A Customer from UK, 23rd June, 2008

The Barefoot Contessa is one of the best films of the 1950's.Ava Gardner gives a magnificent performance as a beautiful Spanish nightclub dancer Maria Vargas who is catapulted to instant stardom in Hollywood from a poverty stricken background in Spain.Humphrey Bogart is superb as Harry Dawes the producer who discovers Gardner and becomes her friend and confidante.The film explores the darker side of fame in spite of Maria's fame, celebrity and desirability as a woman she craves a quieter simpler life with 'real ordinary,' people instead of the fake people she meets in showbiz and high society circles. Marriage to an Italian counts provides Maria with the escape she needs but with tragic consequences.

I really adored this film. When I watched it and I saw how Ava Gardner's character looked sad and lonely at the height of her fame even though she was popular and desired by so many men I realised that fame is not all that it's supposed to be. If you want to discover the magic behind Ava Gardner and Hollywood of a by-gone era then I recommend that you see this film.

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Rated 5 stars
Customer Review

A Customer from UK, 23rd June, 2008

It's been about a week since I viewed this film, and it's managed to stay with me since. I'm fairly new to Bogart, who manages to live up to his Film God hype with a classy performance full of believable empathy. Ava Gardner, as expected, steals the show with a brave, spit-on-the-ground performance of a character that was, in some ways, just like herself. Just a stunning, remarkable film with a tender friendship between the two lead characters, and a framework story that doesn't seem contrived. The beauty of this film is that Ava and Gardner carry the film together. Neither character is more important and both performances respect that.

Interesting tidbit: the statue of Gardner that features prominently in the film was also prominent in Gardner's ex-husband Frank Sinatra's garden in his Palm Springs home for over 20 years after their divorce. Sinatra's last wife demanded it be removed.

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