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DVD Review: THAT HAMILTON WOMAN

Studio: The Criterion Collection
Year: 1941
Cast: Vivien Leigh, Laurence Olivier, Alan Mowbray, Sara Allgood, Gladys Cooper
Director: Alexander Korda
Release Date: September 08, 2009
Rating: Not Rated for (mild war violence, adult themes)
Run Time: 02h:05m:30s
Genre(s): drama

"My darling, why do we always meet just to say good-bye?" - Emma, Lady Hamilton (Vivien Leigh)

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Life imitates art imitates life, as Laurence Olivier and Viven Leigh recreate a notorious episode from history that evokes their own real-life romance, in Alexander Korda's first Hollywood picture.

Movie Grade: A-

DVD Grade: B+

The romance of Lord Horatio Nelson and Emma, Lady Hamilton, was the subject of the Georgian equivalent of tabloid notoriety, with their blatant adultery being the subject of much gossip and tut-tutting. However, when one is also the savior of the British Empire, allowances can be made, disapproval notwithstanding. Similarly, Olivier and Leigh fell in love despite both being married to other people, and they married a few years before That Hamilton Woman (or Lady Hamilton, as it's known in the UK) was made. There's even a child that she disregards and puts out of sight (much as Leigh did with her own daughter when she took up with Olivier). It's interesting that the salacious story was happily devoured by the American filmgoing public, who would moralistically tut tut and exile Ingrid Bergman for similar conduct a few years later.

The story is told in flashback, as Emma, Lady Hamilton (Leigh), is reduced to destitution and jailed for stealing a bottle of wine. Telling her tale to a kind-hearted fellow prisoner who does not believe one word of what she says, Emma reviews her great successes as the most beautiful woman in the Empire. Cornered into a loveless but convenient marriage with the much-older Lord William Hamilton (Alan Mowbray), the British ambassador to the Kingdom of Naples, she is charmed by the dashing Captain Nelson (Olivier), and arranges for troops to be provided to him. After years pass and he has been maimed in warfare, their fondness turns to love, to the ire of Lord Hamilton and sneering Lady Nelson (Gladys Cooper). When Nelson learns that the Neapolitan royal family and the Hamiltons are trapped in a revolution, he disobeys orders and rescues them, bringing the Hamiltons back to London as he faces the combined disdain and exuberant affection of the British public.

Certainly the best thing about the film is the central romance; Leigh and Olivier have a sparkling chemistry that makes it clear just how much they loved one another in real life, as it just pours off the screen. They can say more with a glance than most actors and actresses can manage with a ream of dialogue. At the same time, the underlying passions are not easy-going ones, but provide a dramatic tension that keeps the viewer's interest up: their relationship is a violently passionate one that has an edgy undercurrent to it. The notion of adulterous affairs of this nature (including a child born out of wedlock) surely was controversial in the days of 1941, but there was a definite need to make the picture for propaganda purposes; it served the dual role of being a morale booster for the English trying to ward off an invading force, and also to garner support of Americans for the British support. Recall that this was before the days of Pearl Harbor, when the best efforts of Republicans were directed to supporting the fascist cause and keeping America out of the war, leaving the British to their doom. It succeeded admirably on both counts, being declared by Churchill to be his favorite film.

Although the movie was nominated for an Oscar for special effects, they're fairly unconvincing, from tacky models in the Battle of Trafalgar to painted backdrops in the Naples sequences. The film was clearly made on a shoestring, but it nevertheless conjures up some stunning visuals on occasion, most notably the sequence of the dying Nelson, which fits well into the hero's iconography and makes him a larger-than-life figure. Miklos Rosza contributes a score that's unrelentingly romantic and provides a fine foundation for the dramatic action.

Several scenes stand out in particular as being moving: Lady Hamilton's slow realization of what five years of war has done to Nelson, and what it has cost him personally, is moving, and the discomfort in the sequence at which she and Lady Nelson finally meet, face to face, will both stick with the viewer for a long time. The script seems a little ambivalent about Lady Hamilton; in one sense she is almost a proto-feminist, taking action when her ambassador husband counsels slow and steady negotiations, and helping make possible Nelson's great victories over Napoleon. At the same time, she is utterly dependent upon the men in her life, who let her down badly; Hamilton dies penniless and Nelson dies still married to Lady Nelson. There's a clear sense of injustice about her circumstances, though the moral codes also dictate a sentiment that she made the bed that she faced in later life. Whichever way one goes, there's plenty of thoughtful and powerful romance at work here, and it's good to such two screen legends in such fine form together.

Criterion provides a solid special edition, starting with a very nice transfer (throw out those PD discs right now). There's excellent greyscale and detail, with plenty of glamour shots of Leigh as well as meticulous attention paid to the costumery. Alas, the audio is typical early British sound, with a good deal of crackle and noise. A substantial 16-page booklet includes the usual thoughtful essays. A radio promotional spot includes large chunks of dialogue from the film (ostensibly recorded live on-set, though the musical soundtrack is present, giving the lie to this little bit of ballyhoo). It's still an interesting bit of film history, as is the British trailer. A lengthy interview with Michael Korda (nephew of the director) discusses the making of the picture as well as its significance and quite insightful remarks. That trend continues with the commentary from film historian Ian Christie. Christie's commentary welcomely supplies the actual history of Nelson and Lady Hamilton, which is otherwise in rather short supply here.

Posted by: Mark Zimmer - September 10, 2009, 8:38 pm - DVD Review
Keywords: lord nelson, trafalgar, napoleonic wars, naval battles