WATERLOO BRIDGE (1940) B/W 103m dir: Mervyn LeRoy

w/Vivien Leigh, Robert Taylor, Lucille Watson, C. Aubrey Smith, Maria Ouspenskaya, Virginia Field, Leo G. Carroll, Clara Reid, Steffi Duna, Leonard Mudie

On the eve of WWI in London, an upper-class officer has an affair with a beautiful young ballerina.

From The Movie Guide: "Leigh is stunning in this second cinematic version of author [Robert E.] Sherwood's hit play. (A fine first version was made in 1931 by James Whale and starred Mae Clarke and Douglass Montgomery.) WATERLOO BRIDGE was Leigh's first movie following the record-breaking David Selznick production of GONE WITH THE WIND, which had made her the most visible, most desirable actress in the world. Selznick had loaned Leigh to MGM for the picture in repayment for help that studio's head had given him for the previous picture. Leigh was in the midst of a divorce from her husband Leigh Holman at the time, her romance with Laurence Olivier --- also wed at the time --- a continuing scandal. She and Olivier had both invested every farthing they had in their planned theatrical production of William Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet,' and both were desperately in need of money. Olivier accepted the male lead in PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, and the lovers were forced to separate temporarily. Leigh was irate about the parting, believing Olivier should have gotten the role assigned to Taylor. Taylor drew kudos for his mature, restrained performance, which revitalized his then-fading career by demonstrating that he was more than just another pretty face, although critics were none too tolerant of his 'Nebraska accent.' Of all his seventy-plus screen performances, this was Taylor's personal favorite. The story was filmed again in 1956 as GABY, a disappointing version starring Leslie Caron and John Kerr."

WATERLOO BRIDGE was nominated for two Oscars: Best Cinematography (Joseph Ruttenberg) and Score (Herbert Stothart).