The Proud and Profane *** (1956, William Holden, Deborah Kerr, Thelma Ritter) – Classic Movie Review 10,029

The, er, fairly entertaining 1956 World War Two Pacific Island romantic drama film The Proud and Profane gets a lift from stars William Holden, Deborah Kerr and Thelma Ritter. 

Director George Seaton’s 1956 World War Two Pacific Island romantic drama film The Proud and Profane stars William Holden, Deborah Kerr and Thelma Ritter. It is a Paramount Pictures release of a William Perlberg-George Seaton Production, released in cinemas on 13 June 1956.

This attempt to mix the military movie with the soap opera to appeal to both male and female audiences worked nicely at the mid-1950s box-office thanks to the sheer hard work and professionalism of cast, writer and director.

Holden stars as tough married marine officer Lieutenant Colonel Colin Black, who falls for Roman Catholic Red Cross war widow Lee Ashley (Kerr), who is, at least at first, resistant to his charms, in this at least vaguely intriguing storyline based on a novel by Lucy Herndon Crockett. Thelma Ritter plays brisk nursing supervisor Kate Connors, Dewey Martin plays simple serviceman Eddie Wodcik, and William Redfield plays the chaplain, Lieutenant Holmes, with Ross Bagdasarian as Louie.

The material is not great but it is quite interesting and the movie is fairly entertaining, and the well-cast Holden, Kerr and Ritter all are expectedly effective. If only Rodgers and Hammerstein had written some tunes for it! Now that would have been a show.

The Proud and Profane is shot by John F Warren in black and white on location in Puerto Rico (San Juan) and the US Virgin Islands, as well as in the studio at Paramount Studios, 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, re-creating New Caledonia in 1943. It was made with the essential US Defense Department cooperation.

Also in the cast are Ross Bagdasarian, Adam Williams, Marion Ross, Theodore Newton, Richard Shannon and Ray Stricklyn in his film debut.

It was nominated for two Oscars: Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White (Hal Pereira, A Earl Hedrick, Sam Comer, Frank R McKelvy) and Best Costume Design, Black-and-White (Edith Head).

It is produced by William Perlberg, with George Seaton writing the screenplay based on the 1953 novel The Magnificent Bastards by Lucy Herndon Crockett. She was a Red Cross worker in the Pacific in World War Two, working as secretary and speechwriter to the chairman of the American Red Cross, Later she wrote nine books, including The Magnificent Bastards about her experiences with the US Marine Corps. When Paramount bought the film rights, they hastily announced it would be filmed with a different title. They always had Deborah Kerr in mind as the star, after her success in From Here to Eternity.

Victor Young writes the score, and Ross Bagdasarian wrote the tie-in song The Ballad of Colin Black. Ross Bagdasarian (January 27, 1919 – January 16, 1972) is best known for creating the cartoon band Alvin and the Chipmunks.

The cast are William Holden as Lieutenant Colonel Colin Black, Deborah Kerr as Lee Ashley, Thelma Ritter as Kate Connors, Dewey Martin as Eddie Wodcik, William Redfield as Chaplain Lieutenant Holmes, Ross Bagdasarian as Louie, Adam Williams as Eustace Press, Marion Ross as Joan, Theodore Newton as Bob Kilpatrick, Richard Shannon as Major, Peter Hansen as Lieutenant Hutchins, Ward Wood as Sergeant Chester Peckinpaugh, Geraldine Hall as Helen, Evelyn Cotton as Beth, Ann Morriss as Pat and Ray Stricklyn.

© Derek Winnert 2020 Classic Movie Review 10,029

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