Gentleman's Agreement (1947)
Genre: Drama
Duration: 118 minuten
Country:
United States
Directed by: Elia Kazan
Stars: Gregory Peck, Dorothy McGuire and John Garfield
IMDb score:
7,2 (19.419)
Releasedate: 11 November 1947
Gentleman's Agreement plot
After the death of his wife, journalist Phil Green and his son Tommy move in with his mother. He hopes to write an interesting piece for magazine publisher John Minify. Unfortunately, he is offered a series on anti-Semitism. The subject doesn't appeal to Phil at all, but he decides to take up the challenge anyway. In order to get the first-hand information for the article, Phil impersonates a Jew and is confronted with a lot of prejudice. Moreover, he has just started a relationship with Minify's niece Kathy and their fledgling love affair is put under a lot of pressure by the assignment...
Actors and actresses
Philip Schuyler Green
Kathy Lacy
Dave Goldman
Anne Dettrey
Mrs. Green
Elaine Wales
John Minify
Jane
Tommy Green
Dr. Craigie
Reviews & comments
scorsese
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- 13658 messages
- 11426 votes
Excellent film about a writer who pretends to be Jewish to write a piece about anti-Semitism. Undoubtedly much more controversial at the time, but the film has lost little of its power and shows particularly well how prejudice and racism are embedded in society. Good dialogue and the whole premise reminded me of BlacKkKlansman.
Translated from Dutch · View original
Film Pegasus (moderator films)
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- 31486 messages
- 5624 votes
Gregory Peck once let slip that the film caused quite a stir in his time, but is now dated. He is right about that. I can imagine that in 1947, a few years after the war, the theme of antisemitism was even more prevalent than it is now. Even though it has never really gone away. Nevertheless, several members of the film crew (including director Elia Kazan) had to answer to the 'House Un-American Activities Committee,' which is comparable to McCarthyism. For years, there was a blacklist in Hollywood on which people from the entire entertainment industry were placed because of political beliefs that did not align with those of the American government.
Despite the controversy surrounding the film, it was nominated eight times at the Oscars, winning Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actress for Celeste Holm. Or perhaps it was because of it. The attention given to the theme also helped somewhat at the box office, making it one of Fox's most successful films. The film actually mixes two themes, as we see Phil Green's job, in which he clashes with prejudice against Jews and antisemitism in various forms. But there is also his relationship and the pressure of being in a mixed-race couple. Although that is relatively light in itself—after all, he was 'only' pretending to be Jewish—a film like *Guess Who's Coming to Dinner* (1967) is much stronger in that regard.
A theme that is interesting in itself and can also be extended to people of a different skin color. Think of the recent Blackkklansman. The approach is somewhat outdated and the film no longer really makes an impression. The acting is decent, but certainly not brilliant. Peck has done better. Still enjoyed it, but no more than average.
Translated from Dutch · View original
starbright boy (moderator films)
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- 22739 messages
- 5352 votes
In the 1930s, antisemitism was hardly ever openly addressed in Hollywood films. For according to the Hays Code, that was quickly considered "a religiously or racially sensitive theme." And that was not allowed. During the war, there was occasionally a little bit in the context of war propaganda and showing how terrible the Nazis were. Daryll Zanuck, who often commissioned directors to make socially critical films, sensed that after the war, a film could be made that exposed antisemitism close to home. Kazan, who was quite an idealist himself, directed it.
Peck stays true to his true character as an idealistic Christian journalist who pretends to be Jewish for a time in a new environment. Eventually, he experiences everyday antisemitism, and those around him suffer as well (girlfriend, young son).
The film is entirely dedicated to the message, and it remains somewhat curious that the premise of the film is that a non-Jewish person must experience what antisemitism is, and that the film is not a portrait of what a Jewish man experiences. John Garfield (whom I hold in very high regard, but who does not have much to do here) plays a Jewish friend of Peck in a supporting role, but not much is done with that. The film is well acted but not very dynamic and a bit stiff.
Kazan has always maintained a fairly high basic quality, and after having seen 10 of his films, I suspect he never made a bad movie. This isn't one either, yet one of his films that won the Oscar for Best Picture turns out to be a weaker film.
Incidentally, Peck's son is played by a 10-year-old Dean Stockwell, who was a sought-after child actor at the time.
8 more Best Picture Oscars to go.
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