glossy sentiment

during the lull after christmas, in between work days when the twilight was in its overpowering form, i decided to view one of the simmering films kept in the sky plus cupboard. i've always been intrigued by ingrid bergman, she was not only a quintessential swedish beauty who conquered hollywood but the most international of actresses who spoke five languages and acted in each of the languages in various stages. she's well known for the film that i haven't seen yet in its entirety, Casablanca (1942). not to mention she's the fourth greatest female star of American cinema in the AFI's list.

of course, only the foolish has not seen Casablanca (1942). but i'm finding my way through the backlogs. Anastasia (1956) is her comeback hollywood film after years of living and acting in Italy with her second husband Roberto Rosselini and in which she won her second Academy Award for Best Actress. directed by Ukrainian-born Anatole Litvak, it looks like a romantic melodrama at the outset but due to Bergman's depth and skills, it turned out to be a cinematic acting achievement, a masterpiece of range and emotions. it's a story of an amnesiac claiming to be the Grand Duchess Anastasia, the youngest daughter of the murdered Romanov family. Yul Brynner plays Bounine, the emigre' general who wants to stake a claim for the 10 million pound inheritance. Helen Hayes is the dowager empress. the film is part fact and fiction. the recent findings have the remains of the four grand duchesses accounted for including anastasia. but to some of us who are such suckers for fairy tales coming true, this is one fairy tale that proves that great actresses always rise above froth and puerility, that talent prevails despite the platitudes.