The original Cyrano de Bergerac is incredibly famous, and even though there have been other versions that have become beloved in their own ways, the 1950 still holds a very high bar. If you haven't seen it yet, you might wonder why. It's a low-budget movie, with producer Stanley Kramer doing as much as he could with very little studio support. The battle scenes in particular show that not much money went into the movie, and those with supporting roles weren't the greatest actors. The reason why it's such a great version is because of José Ferrer. He played the role on Broadway and reprised it for the screen with infinite polish, making acting look easy. It's been said that Laurence Olivier spoke Shakespeare as naturally as if he were breathing, but José Ferrer played Cyrano more naturally than blinking.
From his first scene, you can tell he's an accomplished, trained actor with great talent. It doesn't matter if he has subpar costars, or if the sets behind him are cheap; he's the only one you're paying attention to and the only one you remember when the movie's over. Joe won an Oscar for his fantastic performance, and also a Rag award - a very rare occurrence. Very few people win both the Academy and Hot Toasty Rag awards, so he should be very proud.
I had seen three other versions before watching the original, and even though I loved Gérard Depardieu in 1990, I was still extremely impressed by José Ferrer. If you like the basic story, even if old movies aren't typically your preference, try this one out to see a master at work.
From his first scene, you can tell he's an accomplished, trained actor with great talent. It doesn't matter if he has subpar costars, or if the sets behind him are cheap; he's the only one you're paying attention to and the only one you remember when the movie's over. Joe won an Oscar for his fantastic performance, and also a Rag award - a very rare occurrence. Very few people win both the Academy and Hot Toasty Rag awards, so he should be very proud.
I had seen three other versions before watching the original, and even though I loved Gérard Depardieu in 1990, I was still extremely impressed by José Ferrer. If you like the basic story, even if old movies aren't typically your preference, try this one out to see a master at work.