The Magnificent Ambersons (1942)

The Magnificent Ambersons
Directed by Orson Welles
Written by Orson Welles from the novel by Booth Tarkington
1942/USA
Mercury Productions
Repeat viewing/Netflix rental
#162 of 1001 Films You Must See Before You Die
IMDb users say 7.9/10; I say 9/10

[box] Narrator: Something had happened. A thing which, years ago, had been the eagerest hope of many, many good citizens of the town, and now it had come at last; George Amberson Minafer had got his comeuppance. He got it three times filled, and running over. But those who had so longed for it were not there to see it, and they never knew it. Those who were still living had forgotten all about it and all about him.[/box]

Even in its studio-edited state, The Magnificent Ambersons is a worthy follow-up to Citizen Kane.

At the turn of the last century, the wealthy Amberson family are the social lions of their home town.  Pretty Isabel Amberson (Dolores Costello) is being courted by young inventor Eugene Morgan (Joseph Cotten) but she breaks it off when he embarrasses her with a drunken serenade.  She marries the equally rich but boring Wilbur Minifer instead.  The town gossips predict that their children will be spoiled rotten, reasoning that since Isabel does not love Wilbur, she will pour all her love into them.  This proves to be all too true. George Minifer (Tim Holt), their only son, is a spoiled and obnoxious child who grows into a pompous young man with a strong sense of entitlement and no manners.

Eugene is widowed and comes with his daughter Lucy (Anne Baxter) to a dance hosted by the Minifers.  George begins courting Lucy while strongly disapproving of her father and his “useless” horseless carriages.  It is clear that Isabel and Eugene have never lost their affection for each other.  When Wilbur dies, they take up where they left off.  But George is a mama’s boy and is not about to let anyone come between himself and Isabel.  His meddling is encouraged by his Aunt Fanny (Agnes Moorehead), who is sweet on Eugene herself.  Eventually, the modern world exacts a comeuppance from all but its champions.

The film is really more about the way modern optimism, ambition, and speed sweeping away the the grace and propriety of a bygone era than it is about the love story at its core — sort of like a New England Gone with the Wind.  All the elements from acting to art direction are exceptional.  Some of the compositions are as breathtaking as anything in Citizen Kane. Unfortunately, we will never see Welles’s original vision.  What we have will certainly do, however.

If I were asked to give my favorite words in the English language, “comeuppance” would certainly be near the top!  And there was never a character who so richly deserved one as George Minifer.

The Magnificent Ambersons was nominated for Academy Awards in the categories of Best Picture, Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Moorehead), Best Black-and-White Cinematography (Stanley Cortez), and Best Art Direction-Interior Decoration, Black-and-White.

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