Dark Victory (1939)

A young socialite is diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour, and must decide whether she'll meet her final days with dignity.

Director:

Edmund Goulding

Writers:

Casey Robinson (screen play), George Emerson Brewer Jr. (from the play by),

Stars:

Bette Davis, George Brent, Humphrey Bogart

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 1 win.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Bette Davis	...	Judith Traherne
George Brent	...	Dr. Frederick Steele
Humphrey Bogart	...	Michael O'Leary
Geraldine Fitzgerald	...	Ann King
Ronald Reagan	...	Alec
Henry Travers	...	Dr. Parsons
Cora Witherspoon	...	Carrie
Dorothy Peterson	...	Miss Wainwright
Virginia Brissac	...	Martha
Charles Richman	...	Colonel Mantle
Herbert Rawlinson	...	Dr. Carter
Leonard Mudie	...	Dr. Driscoll
Fay Helm	...	Miss Dodd
Lottie Williams	...	Lucy

Storyline

Judith Traherne is at the height of young society when Dr. Frederick Steele diagnoses a brain tumor. After surgery she falls in love with Steele. The doctor tells her secretary that the tumor will come back and eventually kill her. Learning this, Judith becomes manic and depressive. Her horse trainer Michael, who loves her, tells her to get as much out of life as she can. She marries Steele who intends to find a cure for her illness. As he goes off to a conference in New York failing eyesight indicates to Judith that she is dying.

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Plot Keywords:

love | doctor | brain tumor | vermont | horse | 

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Taglines:

"I've Crammed EVERY MINUTE SO FULL of waste. And now there's so little time. I don't know what to do. I'm afraid!"

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 April 1939 (USA)

Also Known As:

Amarga victoria

Filming Locations:

San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

During the filming of the emotionally-charged scene when Bette Davis' character needs to find her way upstairs to her room after the brain tumor has caused her blindness, the cast and crew and several visitors were watching as Davis grasped the banister and began to feel her way up the steps, one-by-one. Halfway to the top of the staircase, Davis paused, stopped the scene, briskly walked back downstairs, and addressed director Edmund Goulding. "Ed," Davis said, "is Max Steiner going to be composing the music score to this picture?" Goulding, surprised by the question, replied that he didn't know, and asked Davis why the matter was important enough to stop the filming of the scene. "Well, either I'm going to climb those stairs or Max Steineris going to climb those stairs," Davis responded, "but I'll be God-DAMNED if Max Steiner and I are going to climb those stairs together!"

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Goofs

In a scene in the upstairs bedroom, a character is on the telephone and the legs of the script girl can be seen reflected in the mirror above the fireplace.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Michael O'Leary: [on the phone] Hello, there. Is this the house? I've been trying to get you.

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Connections

Featured in Great Performances: Bacall on Bogart (1988)

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Soundtracks

"Vienna Blood"
(1873) (uncredited)
Music by Johann Strauß
Played at the restaurant

User Reviews

Davis' portrayal of the lead character, Judith Traherne, was one of the most memorable in her screen history…

Judith is a wealthy Long Island society girl given to a dizzy lifestyle… Self-assured of her affluence and her faculty over men, she is unprepared for tragedy, which strikes in the form of a brain tumor… The underlying bravery and courage with which she faces this physical suffering eventually demonstrates the woman of substance that she is…

Among her friends is Ann King (Fitzgerald), her secretary, and handsome young Alex Hamm (Reagan), who directs her toward brain specialist Dr. Frederick Steele (Brent). The doctor diagnoses her illness as one which will end her life within a year… Judith falls in love with him and accepts his proposal of marriage… When she discovers that her tumor is calamitous, she rejects the doctor's proposal considering it an act with compassion…

Davis provides scene after scene with the special magic only she was able of bringing vividly…

Swept into the current of events was Bogart playing an Irish horse trainer, who fails in an attempt to make love to her, yet encourages her to enjoy her time with her true love, George Brent…

The film was remade in 1963 as "Stolen Hours" with Susan Hayward, and as a 1976 TV movie under its original title with Elizabeth Montgomery…