Excellent, a Must See

Brilliant and touching

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

The Indiscretion of an American Wife from 1953 is directed by Vittoria de Sica, Italian realist par excellence. The movie is something of a departure for him because it doesn't involve Italians struggling against poverty, loneliness, or rejection. Instead, we have two American actors, Jennifer Jones as Mary, and Montgomery Clift, as Giovanni--two lovers caught up in a whirlwind American-Italian romance. Both Jones and Clift display the raw emotions of two people in a love affair that seems destined to end. Behind the exterior of a gracious lady who dotes on her nephew Paul, played by Richard Beymer, there is a woman longing for the forbidden fruit. But she is married with a young daughter and she feels she has no choice. Clift is equally passionate and cannot be kept from the pursuit. I have trouble liking the character played by Montgomery Clift, for reasons that should be clear to anyone who sees the film. He does redeem himself by risking his life to see her one last time. What he has is charisma. It's purely physical but he is loaded. The movie is played out in a short drama inside Rome's vast train station, housing young families, migrant workers, priests, schoolchildren and these star-crossed lovers. Family members, onlookers and even the local authorities seem to deny them their last few moments together. While it seems dated in many ways, the tension is as riveting as ever.

Even with one third missing presumably butchered this is still a fine film. I've never been particularly enamoured of Jennifer Jones, finding her a tad sultry from my taste but I have to confess that here I can find little fault with her and she almost equals Monty Clift in both acting skill and intensity. There is enough evidence both from the photography, set-ups, imagery and even the way De Sica fills the frame with other people, some recurring, others just passing, to regret what might have been although on the other hand what we have is pretty tasty and on the whole is illustrative of what can be done with a run-of-the-mill story of doomed love when you have people of this calibre involved. Very well worth seeking out.

Indiscretion of an American Wife (1953)This is such a contained, focused film, and demands so much of its two actors, every little nuance matters in a kind of exciting dramatic way. The closest thing this compares to, as two lovers or would be lovers talk in a train station, is Brief Encounter (1945), and that's a masterpiece of acting and cinema both.Here, with Montgomery Clift and Jennifer Jones, it comes close. I found the slowness of it magical, and the filming, in the ultra modern station, very beautiful. If director Vittoria De Sica clearly has a different style than David Lean (though both pile on the romanticism), the effect is still one of longing and loneliness. The weakness here, most of all, is simply the writing, which is so important when two people are sitting around in conversation most of the time.Oddly, and sadly, it was the producer (Selznick) who got in the way. He was married to Jones at the time, and she was unhappy both during the filming and in her marriage. She also seems to be overacting sometimes--she can be marvelous, and nuance magnified might be exactly what was needed, but it often seems distracting. Clift, for his part, liked De Sica and he did what he could with what he had to work with under the director. It was Selznick who interfered with De Sica, and who altered the script using a series of screenwriters, and even though Truman Capote was one of them, the whole thing was hampered.The fact it is still a marvelous film is something to wonder at. Flawed, yes, but short and intense and it has a special feeling that Hollywood (and British counterparts) were unable to pull off. The whole atmosphere and mood are enough alone to make it worthwhile. I saw the short version, and I think it's probably plenty, but if you find the original, with 20 minutes extra, and you like this one, give it a try.

This is without doubt the worst film I can remember! I also cannot believe some of the other rave reviews for it here. It took me about 1 minute of viewing to realize what a looser this film is. It's so unrealistic and poorly done as to be laughable. If you want to see acting that is so overdone as to be ridiculous see the scene where Jones is leaving on the train. I am,as I write this , watching it for the first (and last) time. It is also a short film lasting less then 70 minutes. And it has a distinct film noire look that is very appropriate to it's overall affect. IF you have to visit the dentist soon, see this film first and the dental work will seem fun. Some of the other reviews here indicate that this is a diamond in the rough. Those reviewers are obviously legally blind!