The Bridge of San Luis Rey (1944 film)

Infobox Film
name = The Bridge of San Luis Rey


caption = Original film poster
director = Rowland V. Lee
producer = Rowland V. Lee
Benedict Bogeaus
writer = Howard Estabrook
Herman Weissman
Thornton Wilder (novel)
starring = Lynn Bari
Francis Lederer
Akim Tamiroff
Alla Nazimova
music = Dimitri Tiomkin
cinematography = John W. Boyle
John J. Mescall
editing = Harvey Manger
distributor = United Artists
released = flagicon|USA 11 February 1944
runtime = 107 min
country = U.S.
awards =
language = English
budget =
preceded_by =
followed_by =
amg_id =
imdb_id = 036672

"The Bridge of San Luis Rey" is a 1944 drama film made by Benedict Bogeaus Productions and released by United Artists. It was produced and directed by Rowland V. Lee with Benedict Bogeaus as co-producer. The screenplay was by Howard Estabrook and Herman Weissman, adapted from the novel "The Bridge of San Luis Rey" by Thornton Wilder. The music score was by Dimitri Tiomkin and the cinematography by John W. Boyle and John J. Mescall.

The film stars Lynn Bari, Francis Lederer, Akim Tamiroff, Alla Nazimova and Louis Calhern.

Despite a low budget and several notable deviations from the Thornton Wilder novel, the film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Score (Dimitri Tiomkin).

Background and production

The film and novel are very loosely based on the real life story of Micaela Villegas (1748—1819), a famous Peruvian entertainer known as "La Perichole", whose life was also the inspiration for the novella "Le Carrosse du Saint-Sacrement" by Prosper Mérimée, an "opéra bouffe", "La Périchole" by "Jacques Offenbach", Jean Renoir’s 1953 film "Le Carrosse d'or" (The Golden Coach) and an earlier part-talkie film version of "The Bridge of San Luis Rey" (1929) starring Lili Damita.

The film was remade once more in 2004 with the title "The Bridge of San Luis Rey" and starring F. Murray Abraham, Kathy Bates and Pilar López de Ayala.

Cast

* Lynn Bari "as" Micaela Villegas
* Akim Tamiroff "as" Uncle Pio
* Francis Lederer "as" Esteban / Manuel
* Alla Nazimova "as" Doña Maria
* Louis Calhern "as" Don Andre
* Donald Woods "as" Brother Juniper
* Blanche Yurka "as" The Abbess
* Emma Dunn "as" Doña Mercedes
* Barton Hepburn "as" Don Rubio
* Joan Lorring "as" Pepita

External links

*imdb title|id=0036672|title=The Bridge of San Luis Rey