Magnificent Obsession (B+ or 3.5/4 stars)
In the mood for a soapy melodrama where you can grab 3 hankies, wipe away tears, & blow your nose ... I offer up 1954's 'Magnificent Obsession' (directed by melodrama-magician, Douglas Sirk). Bob Merrick (Rock Hudson) is a reckless, millionaire playboy who cheats death after a high-speed motorboat accident ... only to discover that the resuscitating equipment used to save him was, as a result, unavailable to save the life of much-beloved Dr. Wayne Philips. The dead doctor's wife, Helen (Jane Wyman), refuses to accept Bob's sincerest apologies. Helen's stepdaughter & her best friend (Barbara Rush, Agnes Moorehead) continually turn him away from her doorstep. And matters are further complicated when Bob inadvertently causes a 2nd accident which leaves Helen blind!!
Horrified by all of this, Bob decides to "do right" by her. He visits her under an assumed name (she has no idea that he is the man who was partly responsible for her husband's death & for her blindness) & helps out with her finances. She appreciates his companionship & generosity. They start to fall in love. In a matter of mere months, Bob becomes a brilliant physician (ahhh, only in the movies); and it winds up being HE who performs eyesight-restoring surgery on Helen. Will she ever see again? Will her condition actually get worse? Will she ever discover that this man she loves is the very man she detested before her accident? Oh, the ironies.
I must say, the plot for this film is completely BONKERS: high-speed motorboat crashes, resuscitating machines, philanthropic Christ-like figures, accidental deaths, accidental blindness, cases of mistaken identities, expedited medical degrees, life-saving surgeries in Switzerland, tears, tears, & more tears. All that said, in spite of the preposterous premise & credulity-straining plot developments ... I believe 'Magnificent Obsession' is a minor classic. Douglas Sirk is a master of these 1950s melodramas - I enjoyed many of them (Written on the Wind, All that Heaven Allows, Imitation of Life, just to name a few) - and this film is no different.
With a slightly hardened look & severe hairdo, Jane Wyman wasn't the most gorgeous actress of her era. And yet, she had a certain je nais se quoi. She was strong, yet sweet. You wanted her to overcome her adversities. And that was never more the case than in THIS film. With what happens to her, you yearn for her to find happiness. As for Rock Hudson, well, he was obviously an incredibly handsome guy. Many people probably wondered how a man like him could fall for a woman like Wyman. But he makes it work. That's a testament to the actors, as well as the screenplay. Luxuriously produced (beautiful cinematography, sets, & costumes) & tenderly rendered, 'Magnificent Obsession' was one of the most successful big-budget "weepers" of the 1950s ... and now I can certainly see why.
Horrified by all of this, Bob decides to "do right" by her. He visits her under an assumed name (she has no idea that he is the man who was partly responsible for her husband's death & for her blindness) & helps out with her finances. She appreciates his companionship & generosity. They start to fall in love. In a matter of mere months, Bob becomes a brilliant physician (ahhh, only in the movies); and it winds up being HE who performs eyesight-restoring surgery on Helen. Will she ever see again? Will her condition actually get worse? Will she ever discover that this man she loves is the very man she detested before her accident? Oh, the ironies.
I must say, the plot for this film is completely BONKERS: high-speed motorboat crashes, resuscitating machines, philanthropic Christ-like figures, accidental deaths, accidental blindness, cases of mistaken identities, expedited medical degrees, life-saving surgeries in Switzerland, tears, tears, & more tears. All that said, in spite of the preposterous premise & credulity-straining plot developments ... I believe 'Magnificent Obsession' is a minor classic. Douglas Sirk is a master of these 1950s melodramas - I enjoyed many of them (Written on the Wind, All that Heaven Allows, Imitation of Life, just to name a few) - and this film is no different.
With a slightly hardened look & severe hairdo, Jane Wyman wasn't the most gorgeous actress of her era. And yet, she had a certain je nais se quoi. She was strong, yet sweet. You wanted her to overcome her adversities. And that was never more the case than in THIS film. With what happens to her, you yearn for her to find happiness. As for Rock Hudson, well, he was obviously an incredibly handsome guy. Many people probably wondered how a man like him could fall for a woman like Wyman. But he makes it work. That's a testament to the actors, as well as the screenplay. Luxuriously produced (beautiful cinematography, sets, & costumes) & tenderly rendered, 'Magnificent Obsession' was one of the most successful big-budget "weepers" of the 1950s ... and now I can certainly see why.