Mourning Becomes Electra (1947) User Reviews (45)

Her Best Accolade

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 14 February 2007]

Mourning Becomes Electra did for Rosalind Russell what Nightmare Alley did for Tyrone Power. It established her as an actress with range not previously realized and in her case she got an Oscar nomination for Best Actress. But it was an absolute financial flop.

Dudley Nichols in his adaptation of Eugene O'Neill's marathon play about the Mannon family of New England managed to get it down to almost three hours in length. In its first release that's about how long it was and later when the public proved indifferent to it, it was cut further rendering it totally unintelligible for O'Neill purists.

Rosalind Russell had a three picture deal going with RKO films and one of those films she wanted to do was Sister Kenny whom she had met and was very impressed with. According to her memoirs Dudley Nichols agreed to help with Sister Kenny if she would do Mourning Becomes Electra. She actually wanted to play the role of the mother that Katina Paxinou did, but had to settle for daughter Lavinia.

The film got good critical acclaim and should have stayed in the art house circuit. But RKO put it in general release and it lost money big time. Russell's Sister Kenny biographical film also went the same route and she also got an Oscar nomination. However when Howard Hughes bought RKO he took one look at the red ink beside both of those films and told her to forget that third picture on the deal. No more art house stuff would come out of RKO while Hughes was in charge.

O'Neill work is always long on characterization, but this one could have been better. A very static camera was at work here, always filming scenes from a single perspective. Both the films of Long Day's Journey Into Night and The Iceman Cometh though they are both taking place on one set are far better done for the cinema than Mourning Becomes Electra.

Russell mentioned that her best accolade was a handwritten note from Eugene O'Neill himself about how much he liked her performance. It was better than the Academy Award that everyone thought she would get, but Loretta Young got for The Farmer's Daughter.

Michael Redgrave was nominated for Best Actor, but he also lost to Ronald Colman for A Double Life. It was back to the British cinema for him after this.

Russell and Redgrave are brother and sister, children of Raymond Massey and Katina Paxinou. Paxinou has a lover on the side in Leo Genn who's also courting Russell. Russell finds out and sets loose a whole chain of events that witness the destruction of the family.

Kirk Douglas and Nancy Coleman are another brother and sister named Niles who get involved with the Mannon offspring. This was an early film for Douglas, had he been a bigger movie name then, he might have taken on the role Redgrave had.

No matter how badly executed Mourning Becomes Electra was for the screen if I had a note from Eugene O'Neill praising my performance, that would be all the accolade I'd ever need.

Rosalind owed a favor

[jjnxn-1 · 6/10 · 30 April 2013]

Miscast, stagnant version of something that's heavy going to begin with. Redgrave is good as Orin the haunted son. Rosalind tries but is just the wrong actress for the part, ideally it should have been Katharine Hepburn or Olivia de Havilland. She owed Dudley Nichols a favor for adapting and directing the story of Sister Kenny, a dream project for her and this was his but could only get it made with her participation, she even admitted that she was wrong for it but felt a sense of loyalty and went forward. Katina Paxinou gives an overblown operatic performance in a part that would have fit Garbo perfectly. The play is really too complex for a standard film version, the extended PBS production in the late 70s with Joan Hackett and Roberta Maxwell got it right but that one clocks in at just under five hours.

One example of something Film can offer, and so rarely does

[Jack_Me · 10 February 2005]

I found this film fascinating, stimulating, and a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Though I have not ever seen a stage production of the O'Neil original, this nearly 3 hour long film seemed to be essentially a filmed version of that play. And for that I thank the filmmakers of this production, actors, directors, producers and studio. In reviewing other's opinions about this film, I am amazed that so often the negative criticisms concern exactly those strengths I found in this film. That it was not full of artificially cooked-up "atmosphere" from Steiner (whom I do truly respect and enjoy elsewhere), that it was not full of quick cuts and microscopic closeups was something I found wonderful. That it was confined essentially to a very few sets was also wonderful. Those sets were very detailed and not skimpy at all. This was a filmed play! That some should state that as a negative is beyond me. There are so many films (even in this film's release era of 1947) available to so many people in so many areas, but how many of us have been lucky enough to experience a great playwright's work, brought to life by great acting and delivery? Far far fewer folks, in far far fewer venues, and far far fewer locations. This then is what I mean when I say that this film was one example of something Film can offer and so rarely does. The opportunity to experience a play!

And what a wonderful experience it was. The acting was terrific. After more than one scene between Christina and Lavinia, I fairly exclaimed with pleasure at the dramatic interplay between the two. What some called disdainfully "overacting", I found thrilling and stimulating. After all, one is not watching a home movie of one's family or friends. So called "realism" in many modern films is in my mind vastly overrated. A work of film, or of the stage, should be "realistic" it is true, but should not ever be so real as to distract from the art itself.

Tastes change and film-making is an industry to make money like other manufacturing methods. But part of the admiration for what is often called the "Golden Age of Hollywood" is attributable to the then less uncommon understanding that "Art" was as valid the goal as earning a profit! At least by the people involved in the acting and production, if not by the investors themselves. Sure there are occasionally great films made today, and there were plenty of "B" pictures made then too, but to critically dismiss this film for not being something other than what it was, is to miss the point I feel.

Rosiland Russell Rules! JACK in Maine

Great Actors at Their BEST

[whpratt1 · 6/10 · 28 March 2007]

This is a very interesting Eugene O'Neill story with a great cast of actors who spin a very mysterious and dark side of a very respectable family with plenty of hateful secrets in the hearts of many family members. It takes place in a large New England home before and after the Civil War with Raymond Massey playing the role of (Brig.General, Ezra Mannon) who lives with his wife and son, Michael Redgrave, (Orin Mannon) along with his daughter Rosalind Russell, (Lovinia Mannon) who all do not get along like a normal family and live very morbid lives behind closed doors. The only person who offered a great deal to his hometown was Brig. General, Ezra Mannon who was the local Mayor and was very well respected, as for the rest of the family, you will have to see this film to learn just what all these dark secrets managed to change the peoples lives in this story. Rosalind Russell along with Michael Redgrave put their hearts and soul into their roles and made this a great picture.

would that it had been what they predicted

[lee_eisenberg · 7/10 · 21 March 2021]

I read Aeschylus's "Oresteia" in a college course about ancient Greek literature, but I only loosely remember it, so I can't compare Eugene O'Neill's "Mourning Becomes Electra" to it, much less Dudley Nichols's Academy Award-nominated movie adaptation. On its own, the movie really packs a punch, with the wealthy family discovering all sorts of dirty secrets.

One line in particular caught my attention. This version takes place right after the US Civil War. During a greeting at the train station, someone expresses hope that the United States will never again see the sort of oppression that we had under slavery. Unfortunately, the north won the war but the south won the narrative, resulting in a century of institutionalized racism.

But that's tangential. The movie's no masterpiece, but worth seeing just for the intensity of the performances. Seeing these adaptations of plays makes me want to catch stage productions of them (unlikely though that is, especially during the COVID pandemic). I recommend the movie.

Mourning Becomes Electra - Rare Tough Going

[krocheav · 7/10 · 3 January 2019]

RKO made a brave foray into difficult-to-sell movie country with this interesting Dudley Nichol's (The Long Voyage Home '40) adaptation of Eugene O'Neil's scorching study of a New England Family's extended fall from grace! All the shame, forbidden longings and ensuring tragedy are unravelled as these, at times, shameless family members wreak emotional havoc upon each other. O'Neil's studied dialogue and characters turn each other's lives inside out while he makes his rather obvious attack on the morays of some of New England's well-to-do social elite. O'Neil's observations on primitive islanders and their attitudes towards free love are somewhat simplified in his own search for sexual enlightenment but, he perhaps overlooks the code of ethics that even these primitive folk also eventually need to live by. The fabric of family bonds and respect are never far removed from solid sexual unions in any social structures.

The excellent handpicked international cast work hard delivering the barbed and biting vitriol that flows from O'Neil's pen and Dudley Nichol's expert direction guides them unfalteringly towards their inescapable fates. Veteran director of photography George Barnes (Rebecca '40) gives it all a classy look. After being hidden away in forgotten vaults - I've waited many decades for this film to make its way onto DVD and can probably recommend it to those who have the patience to stay with its earnest treatment of the involving subject matter. At 2 ½ + Hrs it covers many emotional entanglements along the way.

Not Very Electric

[qormi · 1/10 · 9 June 2013]

I couldn't believe the over-acting on Russell' part...those flashbacks and then the look of alarm on her face....you expected to hear, "DA-DA- DAAA!!!" every time this happened. The part at the beginning when there was a tour of the mansion and all those portraits hanging on the walls of prominent family patriarchs...those portraits were obviously painted in about a half an hour...pretty lame. Good depictions overall of the the time period...I particularly liked the two-wheeled carriage where the driver'seat was located above the rear and the doors in front were opened automatically by a lever. Kirk Douglas, in only his third film, displayed his superior acting ability and made the rest of the cast seem like amateurs by comparison. This film was confusing, boring, poorly directed and paced, and with the exception of Douglas, the acting was laughably atrocious - like a Saturday Night Live parody.

An Unjustly Forgotten Movie

[Dave Godin · 8/10 · 9 October 1999]

It is difficult to understand why this film is SO rare and forgotten. I myself had to wait over 40 years to finally see it, when, one of our TV channels, realising what a rare and unusual film they had (!), screened it at 4:00 a.m. in the morning! Thank goodness for video!

It was such a commercial flop in Britain when first shown in 1947, that after a brief showcase screening in London, it sank without a trace and has remained a "lost" film ever since. Based on Eugene O'Neill's play, it is slightly flawed in places I must admit, but what is so staggeringly remarkable is that it ever got made in the first place!

Clocking in at almost three hours running time in the days when a 75 minute feature might induce ennui, and 95 minutes was a marathon, and so WORDY, and, in a climate just slowly emerging from WW2, so GLOOMY, one should not perhaps be surprised that it did flop commercially, but, seen now, one can realise just how very good it is. Perhaps RKO were motivated by, and mindful of the fact that O'Neill had then just recently been awarded the Nobel Prize for literature, but could they ever in their wildest dreams have imagined such a film would ever go into profit? Had they learned nothing from CITIZEN KANE five years earlier?

What was also remarkable however, considering when the film was made, was its frank and quite powerful depiction of the Oedipal/Electra complex. No doubt the American censors at the time felt they could be more than customarily lenient with a "classic" work, (as they indeed had been with GONE WITH THE WIND), and, no doubt, in 1947, Freud's teachings were still pretty much the esoteric, clinical knowledge of a small minority, so perhaps the censors of the day "read" these dark passions merely as melodrama, but the ensemble playing is so strong and competent that the film leaves you know doubt about just what forces are in play, even if most people at that time weren't perhaps universally aware of them.

Also, it so vividly confirms my long-held contention that any film is only ever as good as its script!!! What rare bliss it is nowadays to hear intelligent, thoughtful, meaningful dialogue! To witness characters riven by dark, deep passions of the heart and soul rather than by mere carnal lust Unfortunately, Rosalind Russell as Lavina wasn't too competent in the strong passion department, and regrettably was way out of her depth in her part, but Michael Redgrave (making his Hollywood debut) was a revelation, and his performance is one of the very best I have ever seen from him. But, in this particular work, all the acting parts are difficult, demanding swift changes of emotion, and the need to depict turbulent psychological undertows through body language. Vivien Leigh was probably the only screen actress from that era who could have done full justice to the role of Lavina.

Katina Paxinou undertakes her role as the unfaithful mother with flourish and conviction, and Raymond Massey as the father is, as always, reliable and sound, and even the incomparable Sarah Allgood makes an all too brief appearance. A very young Kirk Douglas acquits himself well, and although technically you can see the studio budget wasn't huge, the overall result is extremely satisfying, and illustrates well what a great debt the world owes to American playwrights of O'Neill's calibre, and too, to Hollywood for making them available to a world-wide audience.

It is a genuinely moving and powerful film, and it is a shame that it has become such a neglected and forgotten orphan. No doubt had it been made in France or Britain, it would now be hailed by movie snobs as a great Art Film, which it is, and just because it originated through the Hollywood studio system doesn't make it in the least bit less brilliant and dynamic. And whatever else, it is certainly one of the most LITERATE films ever made! Well worth searching for. Or, come to that, waiting 40 years for!

Aeschylus reduced to humdrum quarrels of bleak provincialism.

[clanciai · 7/10 · 20 October 2017]

A stylish show with great performances of the best actors is not enough to varnish over the shortcomings of this mammoth mummy version of a great story. If you know the Aeschylus original, you just have to compare him with O'Neill and find O'Neill dwarfed to almost nothing.

The Aeschylus play dramatizes a true story of flesh and blood and towering passion, Agamemnon is the lord of the world and returns home after ten years of absence in war with even a prisoner for a mistress, and his wife and queen Clytamnestra axes him to death in his bath out of long built up fury. She murders the mistress too. Her children are Electra and Orestes, and there is a younger daughter as well. Orestes has a close childhood friend Pylades, who helps Orestes and Electra to avenge their father. Orestes kills both his mother and his mother's lover, and that's the story.

There is no Pylades in the O'Neill version and no younger sister. There is no chorus, which is vital in the Greek play for reflecting universal sentiment, and no poetry. Pylades is replaced by Kirk Douglas, who loves Electra but ultimately abandons her to her mourning.

The axing of Agamemnon is by O'Neill replaced by Mrs Mannon stealing poison into her husband's medicine, who suffers from heart failure.

Raymond Massey is impressing as usual as the general, Rosalind Russell gives her life's performance as Electra finally sealing herself up in mourning when both her mother and brother have shot themselves, she is actually innocent to any crime in the family while she accepts all the blame all the same, Michael Redgrave makes another of his many virtuoso performances of eccentricity and madness, Kirk Douglas is himself, Leo Genn is the murdered lover but don't get much to do or say before he is murdered, while perhaps the most impressing is Katina Paxinou as the mother, the only convincing character in this film, for her beauty and very expressive acting, more evident in her vibrations than in her talk.

It's an interesting film, of course, but it's like a stranded whale, hopelessly dead and morbid and void of the original Greek zest, which is preserved and delivered only by Katina Paxinou.

In brief, Aeschylus is to be preferred to this banal americanization of a great story reduced to petty humdrum provincialism. Not even the music constantly repeating itself manages to bring this show to any inspiring level. It's worth seeing though for the splendid dresses of the 1860s. The director did not make another film.

Avoid it like the plague

[MOscarbradley · 1/10 · 29 May 2017]

Eugene O'Neill may be considered one of the greatest playwrights of the 20th century but apart from "Long Day's Journey into Night" you would never guess if from the films made from his plays. The epic "Mourning Becomes Electra" came out in 1947 under the turgid direction of Dudley Nichols. It was O'Neill's transference of "The Orestaia" to a post-Civil War New England and it's unbelievably bad with a great cast foundering on the almost unspeakable dialogue and it lasts forever. Amazingly both Rosalind Russell and Michael Redgrave were nominated for Oscars and more amazingly still Russell was the favourite in her category, (she lost to Loretta Young). Actually Redgrave isn't that bad, considering it may be the worst part he was ever given, and he did win the National Board of Review's Best Actor prize. This is the kind of filmed theatre in which the actors all shout at the top of their lungs so as to be heard at the back and as if by shouting the lines it gives them relevance. It doesn't and this monstrosity should be avoided like the plague.

A Film That Transcends Its Own Flaws

[gftbiloxi · 10/10 · 3 February 2008]

The script reduces the stage original by approximately two-thirds. The cinematography is clunky and the production values are weak. Direction is indifferent and the acting styles are all over the map. Even so, the 1947 MOURNING BECOMES ELECTRA is a startlingly powerful film, a melodrama that leaps and crackles and which will hold the attention of discerning viewers through two and a half hours to its remarkably bitter end.

Loosely based on the ancient Greek tragedy THE ORESTIA, Eugene O'Neill's 1931 drama was and is an extraordinary creation. Strangely ritualistic in tone and requiring approximately six hours to perform, it stunned audiences upon its debut, was a powerful factor in O'Neill's winning of the Nobel Prize for Literature, and remains one of the great pinnacles of American theatre to this day. It is also a warped, sick, and twisted tale of adultery, incestuous affections, blackmail, murder, and suicide, and as such it held Hollywood at bay for close to twenty years.

The story concerns the Mannons, a family that has dominated a small New England town for more than a hundred years, dominating through social status and supposed family and civic duty even as they conceal several internal scandals. The film opens with father Ezra (Raymond Massey) away from home, acting as a leader in the Civil War; in his absence wife Christine (Katrina Patinoux) has taken a lover who visits the house under the guise of courting daughter Lavinia (Rosalind Russell.) When Lavinia discovers the truth, she attempts to blackmail her mother into giving up the relationship--but the attempt backfires into a horrendous cycle of murder and revenge that ultimately destroys the family and drives Lavinia to her her doom.

The script actually does manage to encompass all the primary plot points of O'Neill's original, and although the result is a bit talky in a forced sort of way the story itself possesses a relentless quality that does indeed approximate the stage original. Even more surprisingly, the script makes no effort to soften the incestuous nature of the various relationships that characterize the tale, relationships that increasingly pervert and twist the family as the story progresses. This is dark, dark stuff indeed.

As previously noted, the cast is all over the map in terms of acting style and indeed each of the principles seem to be performing for a different film. Rosalind Russell is distinctly "classic Hollywood;" Michael Redgrave is distinctly "English theatre." Katrina Patinoux, a memorable performer, is Greek and therefore somewhat out of place as the matriarch of a New England family; Raymond Massey, an equally memorable performer, seems to reprise his earlier portrayal of Abraham Lincoln. Each and every one of them, in their own different ways, play at white-hot intensity, and many find the resulting mix too uncomfortable. I myself did not: if anything, I felt it added to and intensified the overall strangeness of the piece.

Eugene O'Neill dramas do not, as a rule, film extremely well: they are too clearly designed for the stage and as such they work best in front of a live audience. All the same, and in spite of its numerous flaws, this is one of the few film versions of an O'Neill play that actually manages to capture the intensity of the stage original. Dark, brooding, and deeply disturbing, MOURNING BECOMES ELECTRA deserves a great deal more attention than it has ever received.

When the film failed at the box office, RKO responded by cutting it in re-release. This Image Entertainment DVD restores those cuts, and that is a very good thing indeed. Unfortunately, it is also the only good thing that one can say for the DVD. The print quality is at best mediocre, a bit fuzzy, occasionally streaked, and riddled with artifacts. There are no extras of any kind. But just as the film transcends its own flaws, so too does it transcends this poor transfer. Strongly recommended.

GFT, Amazon Reviewer

Rosalind Russell plays the title role in this updated Greek tragedy

[jacobs-greenwood · 6/10 · 9 December 2016]

Academy Award winning screenwriter Dudley Nichols also produced four films and directed three, this was the last time he did either; his previous effort in both capacities also featured Rosalind Russell in the title role, Sister Kenny (1946). For both efforts, the actress received Best Actress Oscar nominations, this being her third of four (unrewarded) nominations for her career. Nichols also wrote the screenplay from the Eugene O'Neill play. In addition to Russell, Michael Redgrave (whose character doesn't appear until the drama's second act, one hour into the movie) received his only Academy recognition, a Best Actor nomination.

The story is basically an updated version of the classic Greek tragedy of Agamemnon, the commander who returned from Troy hungry for a renewed life with his spouse only to find that his wife has strayed with a younger man (that could be his own son). She poisons him and then (she and her lover) must suffer the wrath of her own son and daughter, who are then haunted by guilt and their own demons (including near incestuous jealousy) for their vengeful act.

In this case, Raymond Massey plays Union General Ezra Mannon who's returned home from the Civil War to his loving daughter Lavinia aka 'Vinnie' (Russell), the titled Electra, with his injured son Orin (Redgrave). Shortly before he's murdered, Ezra learns that wife Christine (Katina Paxinou, looking quite a bit younger and more attractive than she did in her Academy Award winning Best Supporting Actress stint as Pilar in For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943)) is in love with the son of a former Mannon family maid that he'd thrown out of the house for diddling his brother; Leo Genn plays Adam Brant. The drama plays out in three overwrought and overlong acts: The Homecoming, The Hunted, and The Haunted.

Also in the cast are Kirk Douglas (in his third film) as Peter Niles, who courts Lavinia, Nancy Coleman as his sister Hazel Niles, who's in love with Orin, Henry Hull as the Mannon's 40 year groundskeeper (that does what he's told) Seth Beckwith, Sara Allgood as a landlady, and Thurston Hall as the family doctor named Blake. Additionally, Elisabeth Risdon, Erskine Sanford, and Jimmy Conlin also appear briefly.

Stagy and ridiculous.

[ricknorwood · 2/10 · 8 September 2006]

I had heard about this play all my life, and so when it finally came out on DVD, I bought it. I wish I'd saved my money. This tale of incestuous longing, patterned after the Orestia Trilogy, must have been shocking in its day. But today the dialog seems ridiculous, the acting overblown, and the plot preposterous. Whether the Eugene O'Neill play is as bad, I can't say. There are a lot of ways the movie fails as a movie. Chapter titles. Highlighted close-ups like those in a silent film. Static camera. But the plot also doesn't work, because the murder and incest are motivated by an old man unable to satisfy a young wife -- a far cry from Agamemnon's sacrifice of his daughter that motivates Clytemnestra's revenge. It's soap opera, and not very good soap.

This movie has had a bad rap for years....

[bogator · 1 November 2004]

This is one of the best acted, entertaining movies I've ever seen. I don't know why it is so bashed by the media. Rosalind Russell is perfect as the overwrought Lavinia, whose hatred gets the best of her. Russell is simply superb. Michael Redgrave, while not as good as Russell, nevertheless gives substance to a weak role. I thought Katina Paxinou, of "For Whom the Bell Tolls" fame, was excellent too and her scenes with Russell crackle with bitchiness that O'Neill probably didn't intend.

And the best news of all, this magnificent film is finally being released on DVD in December 2004. Never on VHS, laserdisc, or any form except, for God bless it, TCM, this film needs exposure to help its reputation as a great drama and a well-acted film that has been mistreated by the years.

Odd Casting Distracts From Great Story

[scarlet812-593-111967 · 6/10 · 4 March 2019]

The story was excellent, but the acting and casting bogged it down. From the beginning, there were distracting aspects with the cast. The characters are supposed to be New Englanders, but one of the nosy visiting ladies in the opening scene sounded very hillbilly-ish, pronouncing "pretty" as "purty," sounding more like Granny Clampett than a New Englander. In the same scene, the caretaker of the house frequently used the Maine-style "ayuh" expression - it was a bizarre contrast in accents. Unfortunately, the main character, played by Russell, was ruined because Russell seemed so out of place, much too old for her part. She didn't seem much younger than the actress playing her character's mother; when I looked them up, I found the age difference was only 7 years! I was very surprised to read that she, and many others, expected her to win the Oscar for Best Actress; there were only a few scenes where I felt she was believable. Russell seemed to have the same haughty expression on her face, with her chin in the air, through most of the film. She was either wooden, or excessively emotional. All the main characters played their parts "over the top" much of the time. I felt this could have been a superb film, but the acting and mis-cast performers

A review of Image's DVD, i.e. the British version

[JohnHowardReid · 7/10 · 12 December 2013]

The full British version of this movie is now available on an excellent Image DVD, but I must admit I was disappointed. I'm very glad I wasn't subjected to the original USA release version of 173 minutes, but in my opinion the British release of 159 minutes is still too long. I would have eliminated the whole of the final act, namely the whole of the Kirk Douglas episode which is not only an anti-climax and a poor recapitulation of events we have already witnessed, but actually a complete waste of time. I think the melodrama reaches the right climactic height and comes to a really satisfying conclusion before Kirk Douglas finally has his say. Mind you, it's not Kirk's dialogue that is so boring, but Rosalind Russell's. She is forced to recapitulate sentiments and speculations that she has already broached far more effectively in previous confrontations earlier in the play. And although director/screenwriter Dudley Nichols allows Russell tends to dominate the action, she is forced, alas, to play one of the least interesting characters. Only Henry Hull has an equally boring role, but he's in the movie for only a fraction of the time allotted to Miss Russell, and what's more, he shares just about all his scenes with other players. I was also not always happy with Katina Paxinou's interpretation. I thought she handled most of her scenes very astutely indeed, but at other times I felt she was giving a performance more suitable for a stage presentation. By contrast, Leo Genn opted for the opposite approach and tended to underplay his role. Mind you, he has an extremely difficult part but he approaches it the way he would on a stage. When his character is playing a deceptive role, he attacks it with vigor. When he wants to present Adam Brant free of deception, he underplays – as he would in a theatre. Unfortunately, this stratagem doesn't always work in movies – and for me, it didn't work here. But that's the way it struck me. You may think differently and feel that Genn handled both aspects of his characterization extremely well. Raymond Massey, of course, is perfect as always; but I wasn't over-happy with Michael Redgrave who seemed to pass up many of his opportunities in order to keep the spotlight on Rosalind Russell. As I intimated above, Rosalind Russell was already dominating the movie and she really needed someone to bring her down to size occasionally. Only Katina Paxinou had a good try at this, but I felt at times that director Dudley Nichols in collaboration with cameraman George Barnes and make-up artist Gordon Bau, was doing his best to sabotage Katina's efforts to upstage Roz.

Sara Allgood

[MagSmithfan · 6/10 · 18 July 2023]

One of my favorites, Sara Allgood got 9th billing in this and she walked up a flight of stairs. Not a word uttered, zero. That's a great agent! Otherwise yes yes yes it's O'Neil with daughter and stepmother fighting in black dresses. 367 more characters to describe this. I love boring but this overly so and happy Loretta Young won over Roz. I've watched all the other nominees for best actress except Susan Hayward in Smash Up. Young would still have my vote. All I wanted to do was point out the Sara Allgood credit but I have to continue giving a review about a movie I don't care about. I'm almost done!

Egads

[evanston_dad · 2/10 · 3 December 2019]

Oh good heavens was this film dreadful.

The Eugene O'Neill play might be brilliant on stage, but who would ever know from this turgid and DOA screen adaptation that makes every single line sound like nonsense. Rosalind Russell, Michael Redgrave, Katina Paxinou, Raymond Massey, and Kirk Douglas -- all of whom were either nominated for or won Oscars at some point during their careers, some for this movie! -- deliver absolutely terrible performances here. They clearly have no idea what to do with O'Neill's text and clearly aren't given much direction by Dudley Nichols, so they settle for screeching and opening their eyes really wide, like a bunch of high schoolers performing in a play that they don't remotely understand. Russell and Redgrave received Best Actress and Best Actor Oscar nominations, respectively, for this film, but neither has ever been worse. Russell was considered the odds on favorite but lost to Loretta Young. It's a good thing in the long run for Russell, or she would have joined the long and dubious list of actresses who were given Oscars for bad movies as a way to atone for not giving them Oscars when they actually deserved it.

Grade: D-

Intense and depressing, but far from dull

[critic-2 · 9/10 · 27 February 2002]

Most of the professional reviews of this unjustly neglected film dismiss it as "stagy", "wordy", and "dull". Yes, it is wordy, if you consider a film entirely propelled by dialogue wordy, and yes, it is stagy if you consider a film largely confined to a single set stagy, with no fancy cutting, camera tricks, or quick editing to disturb or interrupt the flow of language. And yes, at nearly three hours, it is one of the longest film versions of a classic Eugene O'Neill play ever made. (The original play clocks in at six hours!)

I myself have never been able to understand those critics who claim to appreciate great achievements in film and theatre, and yet grow restless at the thought of too much dialogue in a film. Who cares, when the dialogue is written by one of the greatest playwrights this country has produced, and when the storyline is as riveting as this?

O'Neill never actually wrote a suspense drama, but this updated revision of the Electra-Orestes-Agamemnon myth is as close as he ever came to it. The story features elements of murder, revenge, insanity, and more than a hint of incest, and when Rosalind Russell as Lavinia and Michael Redgrave as Orin, her beloved brother, plot together to carry out their scheme, the story becomes as gripping as any suspense film ever made.

There are very few completely calm moments in this film; nearly all of the performances take on a quality of seeming to be on the verge of a total nervous collapse. Some of Rosalind Russell's acting, particularly during the first hour or so, may strike you as slightly over-the-top, especially her facial expression (accompanied by an ominous musical chord) when she sees her thoroughly evil mother Christine (Katina Paxinou) in a lover's clinch with Adam Brant (Leo Genn), an illegitimate relative of the Mannon family, while Christine's husband (Raymond Massey) is off fighting the Civil War, but once Russell becomes the cold, scheming avenger, she is magnificent. Michael Redgrave is slightly uncomfortable with his attempt an an American accent, but he effectively conveys the essential goodness of a conscience-stricken young man on the verge of madness who only wants to do the right thing. Katina Paxinou is despicably nasty and self-dramatizing as the utterly selfish Christine Mannon. Raymond Massey ,so often cast as a villain, gives what is one of the best, most dignified and most restrained performances of his career as Ezra Mannon, head of the family, a man who is supposedly unfeeling and callous (according to Paxinou's character, but then, can we trust her?), but who in the story reveals only a genuinely sympathetic and tragic side of himself. Leo Genn is sincere as Christine's misguided and basically kind lover, and Kirk Douglas, in one of his first film roles, plays Lavinia's bewildered and decent suitor.

Because of the film's disastrous reception at the box office, a barbaric decision was made to cut an entire hour by simply lopping off the entire final section, unnecessarily mutilating a film that deserves to take its place as one of the great dramatic stage-to-film adaptations of all time, and certainly one of the few great film adaptations of a Eugene O'Neill play. His plays, on the whole, have been frequently distorted and/or mutilated for the big screen, unlike Tennessee Williams's, whose works made it relatively unscathed, and even sometimes improved, to film. O'Neill's plays have not fared as well on film as they have on television, but along with 1962's "Long Day's Journey Into Night", and 1940's "The Long Voyage Home", "Mourning Becomes Electra" can be rightfully considered a film classic.

LONG film... so many family secrets

[ksf-2 · 6/10 · 10 August 2020]

Rosalind Russell and brit Peter Redgrave, and they were both nominated for oscars for their roles! and Ray Massey. the Mannon family, with their dark family secrets. Period piece, just after the civil war, up in new england. with Kirk Douglas as Niles, just his second or third film role, according to wikipedia dot org. there's murder, revenge, suicide, broken hearts. something for everyone. they fit a lot of drama into this story, just under three hours. wow, long film! when someone steals Lavinia's boyfriend, the scheming wheels start turning. Directed by Dudley Nichols, who had won the oscar for "The Informer". Original story by Eugene O'neill. Film is okay. way too long for me.

Plenty to mourn

[st-shot · 5/10 · 24 November 2010]

America's greatest 20th century playwright, Eugene O'Neill, never transferred well to screen. Not enough car chases and gun fire perhaps over the healthy running time ( two hours and beyond) usually accorded his works which uncoiled at a challenging but well metered pace suited for theatre. Watching a live actor treading the boards, slowly disintegrating before our eyes can make for a powerfully emotional experience, but on film the dynamic changes and it is left up to the director to breathe life and give form in the transfer. In Mourning Becomes Electra director Dudley Nichols plays it safe and sorry with over top stagy performances and filmed backdrops that have a look of canvas. Bereft of its immediacy and natural state Nichols fails to capitalize with the cinematic tools he has to counter balance and Mourning becomes one big moan.

Lavinia Manon makes no bones about the love she feels for her father returning home after the Civil War. General Manon is a taciturn mover and shaker in the sea side community and though cold and remote with his wife he seeks to re-establish the love they felt for each other before the marriage. Wife Christine, however, has taken up with a sea captain that Lavinia had a brief fling with and still carries a torch for. When the General dies from a coronary (enabled by Christine's halfhearted attempt to get his medication) Lavinia turns her rage against mom and the sea captain with homicidal intent. Enlisting her weak, probably shell shocked brother Orin to exact revenge she ultimately destroys what was once the noble house of Manon before shuttering herself inside the barren cold museum.

Rosalind Russell is a bit long in the tooth and over the top as the incestuous Lavinia, screeching center stage through most of the film. Russell has the chops to get at Lavinia's emotional center and she does in moments that are once again better suited for the stage, far from close-ups in natural form and in real time. Ray Massey as the patriarch is glacial and unapproachable while Katina Paxinou is an ill fit in her hysteria as Christina. MIchael Redgrave's Orin suffers from the same malady as Roz's erratic Lavinia in form and content. Revealingly it is Kirk Douglas in a supporting role as Lavinia's suffering suitor that comes across the most natural and suited for the camera.

Were it possible I would be more than willing to shell out good money to see Russell and Redgrave repeat these performances in the arena they were tailored for, the stage. The power and intensity of these fine actors in these roles would no doubt make for compelling theatre, but this filmed version is as flat as the screen it's projected on.

Great performances!

[sdave7596 · 8/10 · 31 December 2007]

I caught this film on TCM about six months ago and recorded it on my DVR. I loved it! "Mourning Becomes Electra" made in 1947, is long, at just about three hours. At first glance, Rosalind Russell (at age 40) is a bit long in the tooth to play Lavinia; but once you get past that, she is quite good in the part. The scenes between Russell and Katina Paxinou (playing Russell's mother, Christine) were mesmerizing. Michael Redgrave (playing the son Orrin) is a bit stiff in the first part of the movie, but once he goes "crazy" with guilt in the last part, he is brilliant. Raymond Massey, playing the father, is in the film only a short time, but is memorable as Ezra, the war weary husband to Christine. A young Kirk Douglas is good too as Lavina's suitor. This film has it all - murder, greed, dark family secrets, revenge, lust. It is too bad this film is sadly forgotten. It flopped when it opened in 1947 - probably too long and involved for audiences a that time. And too bad Rosalind Russell did not win the Oscar for it - what an injustice. Russell had been considered the favorite to win, but a long shot nominee, Loretta Young won for "The Farmer's Daughter" a far lesser film than this one, in my opinion.

The most disturbing old movie ever

[HotToastyRag · 1/10 · 16 January 2018]

If you're up for a two-and-a-half hour disturbing, heavy domestic drama starring Rosalind Russell and Katina Paxinou, you're a better man than I. I fell asleep twice during Mourning Becomes Electra, the film that was supposed to win Roz her Best Actress Oscar; a surprising upset brought Loretta Young to the podium instead for her silly, likable role in The Farmer's Daughter. I don't usually like Roz, so it's understandable that I couldn't make it all the way through, but even if you appreciate her style of dramatics, you won't like this movie.

Eugene O'Neill wrote the original play, but he based it off the Greek tragedy Oresteia, so you should know what you're getting into. At the start of the story, Roz and her mother Katina are waiting for her father, Raymond Massey, and her brother, Michael Redgrave, to return home from the Civil War. Even though Kirk Douglas is courting Roz, she has feelings for Leo Genn-what will she do when she sees Leo kissing her mother?

I know, that plot synopsis sounds pretty disgusting and uncomfortable, but believe me, that's only the start of the gross-and I mean that in both definitions of the word-dysfunction of the film. Mourning Becomes Electra is hands-down the most disturbing old movie I've ever seen. I had to split it up over the course of three days, because I kept falling asleep or feeling nauseous. It doesn't matter that Rosalind Russell had to perform an extremely heavy, emotional role; she shouldn't have won the Oscar in 1948. No one should have been rewarded for being a part of this film. It's horrible.

A stagy if ultimately gripping presentation of O'Neill's play

[Newflo2VL · 13 August 2003]

This is a photographed play, and the staginess is especially noticeable during the exposition. But once the four principals begin to interact, the drama is gripping. I think it was Pauline Kael who said that this family is a very recent gathering given the diversity of accents. Yes. And some diversity of acting styles. Raymond Massey, as always, plays Raymond Massey but does so here with extraordinary passion. And passion is hardly the word for the vigorous performance of Katina Paxinou who won the Oscar (cr)as Pilar in FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS and would star later for Rossellini and Visconti. Michael Redgrave, whom we would later recognize as one of the fine actors of our time, is somewhat thin emotionally here but gains strength as O'Neill plods on and is probably giving as much as could be expected in a Hollywood film of this era. Rosalind Russell, who won the Golden Globe for her performance and was publicized as the Oscar (cr) favorite, gives a three hour performance consisting of one facial expression, one ramrod posture and one tone of voice. (Is the story apocryphal that when from the stage came the words, "And the winner is..." Russell had risen from her seat and stepped into the aisle when Loretta Young's name was called?) -- It is always interesting to see later stars when, in their early days, before typing, they were still trying to act. Kirk Douglas, minus gritting teeth, is good in his small role.