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Body and Soul (1947 film)

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Body and Soul
Theatrical release poster
Directed byRobert Rossen
Written byAbraham Polonsky
Produced byBob Roberts
StarringJohn Garfield
Lilli Palmer
Hazel Brooks
Anne Revere
William Conrad
CinematographyJames Wong Howe
Edited byRobert Parrish
Francis Lyon (supervising)
Music byHugo Friedhofer
Production
company
Distributed byUnited Artists (United States and Canada)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer[1] (International)
Release date
  • November 9, 1947 (1947-11-09)
Running time
104 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$1,800,000[2][3]
Box office$3,250,000 (US rentals)[4]
$4,700,000 (total)[2]

Body and Soul is a 1947 American film noir sports drama directed by Robert Rossen and starring John Garfield, Lilli Palmer, Hazel Brooks, Anne Revere, and William Conrad.[5] The screenplay by Abraham Polonsky is partly based on the 1939 film Golden Boy.[6] With cinematography by James Wong Howe, the film is considered by some to be one of the best films about boxing.[7][8] It is also a cautionary tale about the lure of money—and how it can derail even a strong common man in his pursuit of success. The film uses the song Body and Soul for the main musical theme and underscoring throughout.

Plot

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Charley Davis, against the wishes of his mother, becomes a boxer. As he becomes more successful the fighter becomes surrounded by shady characters, including an unethical promoter named Roberts, who tempts the man with a number of vices. Charley finds himself faced with increasingly difficult choices.

When talented fighter Ben Chaplin finds himself blacklisted from a title shot because of his race, Davis hires him as a well-paid sparring partner. Davis begins to have a moral awakening when Chaplin has a seizure and dies in the training camp ring.

Davis finds the moral courage to win a title fight that he was supposed to throw and shrugs off Roberts' post-fight threats.

Cast

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Reception

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Critical response

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When the film was released, critic Bosley Crowther praised the film, writing, "Body and Soul has up and done it, with interest and excitement to spare, and we heartily recommend it in its present exhibition at the Globe ... Still [Abraham Polonsky has] written his story with such flavor and such slashing fidelity to the cold and greedy nature of the fight game, and Robert Rossen has directed it with such an honest regard for human feelings and with such a searching and seeing camera, that any possible resemblance to other fight yarns, living or dead, may be gratefully allowed."[9]

Film critic Dennis Schwartz discussed that the film had a definite sociopolitical point of view and praised Garfield's work. He, wrote, "Robert Rossen's Body and Soul becomes more than a boxing and film noir tale, as screenwriter Abraham Polonsky makes this into a socialist morality drama where the pursuit of money becomes the focus that derails the common man in his quest for success ... Garfield is seen as a victim of the ruthless capitalistic system that fixes everything including athletic events, as the little guy is always at the mercy of the big operator. It's the kind of liberalism that was common in the dramas made in the 1930s. It's more a film about corruption and the presence of violence everywhere in America rather than a straight boxing film ... Body and Soul viewed at this late date lacks much relevancy and now only seems gripping because of Garfield's gritty performance, and not because of the intense script that once made waves in powerful circles.[10]

TV Guide comments: "The fight sequences, in particular, brought a kind of realism to the genre that had never before existed (James Wong Howe wore skates and rolled around the ring shooting the fight scenes with a hand-held camera). A knockout on all levels."[11]

Accolades

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Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref.
Academy Awards Best Actor John Garfield Nominated [12]
Best Original Screenplay Abraham Polonsky Nominated
Best Film Editing Francis D. Lyon and Robert Parrish Won
New York Film Critics Circle Awards Best Actor John Garfield Nominated
Saturn Awards Best DVD or Blu-ray Collection Body and Soul[a] Nominated [13]
  • The film was voted as the Greatest Boxing Movie Ever in 2014 by the Houston Boxing Hall Of Fame (Polonsky and Garfield, as well as Rossen, were blacklisted, essentially ruining the careers of the former two, though Rossen was reinstated after naming names in his second HUAC grilling).[14]

The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ As part of the Pioneers of African-American Cinema collection.

References

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  1. ^ "Body and Soul (1947)". BBFC. Retrieved March 5, 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Variety (July 1948)". New York, NY: Variety Publishing Company. February 2, 1948 – via Internet Archive.
  3. ^ "Inside Stuff - Pictures". Variety. November 10, 1948. p. 22.
  4. ^ "Variety (January 1948)". New York, NY: Variety Publishing Company. February 2, 1948 – via Internet Archive.
  5. ^ Body and Soul at the TCM Movie Database.
  6. ^ Boddy, Kasia (2013). Boxing: A Cultural History. Reaktion Books. p. 88. ISBN 9781861897022.
  7. ^ "The 50 Best Boxing Movies of All Time". pastemagazine.com. March 24, 2017.
  8. ^ "The 25 Best Boxing Movies Ever - Page 3 of 5". theplaylist.net.
  9. ^ Crowther, Bosley. The New York Times, film review, "Exciting Story of Prizefighting, Starring John Garfield, at Globe", November 10, 1947. Accessed: July 16, 2013.
  10. ^ Schwartz, Dennis Schwartz Archived May 8, 2008, at the Wayback Machine. Ozus' World Movie Reviews, film review, March 23, 2004. Access: July 16, 2013.
  11. ^ TV Guide Archived September 10, 2014, at the Wayback Machine. Staff, film review. Access: July 16, 2013.
  12. ^ "The 20th Academy Awards (1948) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on July 6, 2011. Retrieved August 18, 2011.
  13. ^ Siegel, Lucas (June 29, 2017). "Marvel, Star Wars, The Walking Dead win big at 2017 Saturn Awards". Syfy Wire. Archived from the original on June 22, 2020. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  14. ^ Fristoe, Roger (January 19, 2021). "John Garfield - Tuesdays in February". www.tcm.com. Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  15. ^ "AFI's 10 Top 10 Nominees" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 16, 2011. Retrieved August 19, 2016.
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