United Artists
Not part of a collection.
The Barefoot Contessa
The world's most beautiful animal!
A washed-up filmmaker gets a second chance at stardom when he discovers stunning peasant Maria Vargas dancing in a Madrid nightclub. Goaded by his producer, the director convinces Maria to screen test for, and then star in, his next big picture. But as the producer's possessive nature and the realities of stardom weigh on Maria, she seeks a genuine lover with whom she can escape.
- Original title
- The Barefoot Contessa
- Language
- EN
- Country
- US
- Budget
- —
- Revenue
- $6,600,000
CinemaSerf
Jan 11, 2024 · via TMDB
Occasionally narrated by Humphrey Bogart, he regales us with his story as the down on his luck Hollywood writer/director "Dawes" who alights on a tavern dancer in Madrid. "Maria Vargas" (Ava Gardner) is a woman with striking good looks and an aloofness that he immediately sees stardom in. Luckily his spoilt rich-kid backer "Edwards" (Warren Stevens) agrees to give her a screen test, but a combination of his own fecklessness and some competitive manoeuvring from "Dawes" creates quite an interest, an interest well fanned by PR man "Muldoon" (Edmond O'Brien). We know right from the start that she has died - we turn up at her funeral - and this film has something of a piece of musical vinyl to it. The first half side illustrates her rise to fame and fortune, her marriage and her death. Flip it over and we get a tale of just how she fell in love with "Count Torlato-Favrini" (Rossano Brazzi) and ultimately came a cropper. The constant being the increasing affection "Dawes" and "Vargas" share as their professional paths diverge and their friendship - entirely platonic - solidifies. Gardner could look quite cold sometimes on screen, but here she and Bogart exude a certain warmth through their characters, goaded nicely by the increasingly exasperating and brattish "Edwards" and also by the rather cruel and bullying "Bravano" - another solid effort from Marius Goring. It takes quite a swipe at the film industry - people obsessed with finding the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow - regardless of whether there's any gold or any rainbow, and the threads tie rather poignantly, if a little sadly, at the conclusion. It's a stylishly photographed production that looms great and showcases a strong ensemble of talent.
User reviews courtesy of TMDB.
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Humphrey Bogart
Harry Dawes
Ava Gardner
Maria Vargas
Edmond O'Brien
Oscar Muldoon
Marius Goring
Alberto Bravano
Valentina Cortese
Eleanora Torlato-Favrini
Rossano Brazzi
Count Vincenzo Torlato-Favrini
Elizabeth Sellars
Jerry
Warren Stevens
Kirk Edwards
Franco Interlenghi
Pedro Vargas
Mari Aldon
Myrna
Enzo Staiola
Busboy
Bill Fraser
J. Montague Brown
Alberto Rabagliati
Proprietor
Maria Zanoli
Maria's Mother
Renato Chiantoni
Maria's Father
John Parrish
Mr. Max Black
Jim Gérald
Mr. Blue
Diana Decker
Drunken Blonde
Riccardo Rioli
Gypsy Dancer
Tonio Selwart
Pretender
Gertrude Flynn
Lulu McGee
Bessie Love
Mrs. Eubanks
Jack Cardiff
Director of Photography
Bernard Vorhaus
Assistant Director
Jean-Pierre Mocky
Assistant Director Trainee
Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Director
Angelo Rizzoli
Associate Producer
Michał Waszyński
Production Manager
Mario Nascimbene
Original Music Composer
Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Writer
To Live and Die and Live
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Johnny Apollo
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The Other Side of the Wind
Roma
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My Dearest Señorita
Our Dancing Daughters
Dangerous Game
Mad About Mambo
Clandestinos
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Myth
The Dreamer Cinderella
Sunset Boulevard
Flamin' Hot
Where Hope Grows
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Peaceful Warrior
Faith Like Potatoes
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Starving in Suburbia
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TalhotBlond
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Sky
Holy Lands
Goal II: Living the Dream
Hot Milk
Come Sunday
The Girl in the Book
Sep 29, 1954
Jan 1, 1990
VHS (exact date unknown)
Jan 1, 1999
VHS re-release (exact date unknown)
Jan 1, 2001
DVD (exact date unknown)
Dec 13, 2016
HD Blu-ray (limited)
