Dick Heldar, a London artist, is gradually losing his sight. He struggles to complete his masterpiece, the portrait of Bessie Broke, a cockney girl, before his eyesight fails him.Dick Heldar, a London artist, is gradually losing his sight. He struggles to complete his masterpiece, the portrait of Bessie Broke, a cockney girl, before his eyesight fails him.Dick Heldar, a London artist, is gradually losing his sight. He struggles to complete his masterpiece, the portrait of Bessie Broke, a cockney girl, before his eyesight fails him.
Jimmy Aubrey
- Soldier
- (uncredited)
Charles Bennett
- Soldier
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaLupino was so anxious to play the part, that she stole a copy of the script and stormed into William Wellman's office demanding a chance to audition. She convinced Wellman but not co-star Colman, who wanted Vivien Leigh to play the role. Because Wellman held out for Lupino, the actor unsuccessfully tried to have him replaced. The actor and director maintained a chilly relationship on the set.
- GoofsAt c.16 minutes the English newspaper displays the American spelling of the word "vigour".
- Quotes
Dick Heldar: Painting is seeing, then remembering better than you saw.
- ConnectionsEdited into Hedda Hopper's Hollywood No. 3 (1942)
Featured review
My Cruel Lady
There is more than a hint of misogyny in this Rudyard Kipling story where both educated careerist (Marie Angelus) and streetwalker (Ida Lupino) are placed in less than complimentary light while artist (Ronald Colman) loses his. Colman gives one his finest performances but it is Lupino who remains memorable.
Aspiring conscripted artist Dick Heldar is wounded in Africa saving Topenhow's (Walter Huston) life. Mustered out he moves in to Topenhow's adjoining studio a starving artist and emerges a famous illustrator of the horrors of battle that gain recognition but then as now realizes medium cool is what the public wants and sells out. He becomes insufferable then begins to lose his sight. He takes on the conniving Betsy Broke (don't you just love it) to model and then to complete the portrait of the love of his life who rejected him who briefly returns to once again disappoint.
Powell is outstanding as he stretches from his usual noble self at first to an arrogant, obnoxious successful artist and into decline as a terrified man losing his sight. Marie Angelus as an ambitious driven artist wanting nothing to do with the traditional 19th century women comes across both selfish and immature. Huston delivers his usual well crafted performance as the kindhearted, generous, truly loyal writer as the self serving Kipling character perhaps revealing more than he thinks while Duddley Digges makes no bones about being a male chauvinist pig. It is Lupino's Ms. Broke who really raises the emotional tenor in most scenes first at the abuse of Healder and then while exacting cruel revenge in which Ida serves it like a French chef, coldly.
Opening and closing with some rousing battle scenes,( the first an impressive overhead of the battle square, the last a powerful reoccurring image realized) the film is basically a stage play with half a dozen characters moving between a few rooms which might make it claustrophobic were it not for the sonorous voices of Colman and Huston in discussion or Lupino's raging Eliza Dolittle raising the roof.
Aspiring conscripted artist Dick Heldar is wounded in Africa saving Topenhow's (Walter Huston) life. Mustered out he moves in to Topenhow's adjoining studio a starving artist and emerges a famous illustrator of the horrors of battle that gain recognition but then as now realizes medium cool is what the public wants and sells out. He becomes insufferable then begins to lose his sight. He takes on the conniving Betsy Broke (don't you just love it) to model and then to complete the portrait of the love of his life who rejected him who briefly returns to once again disappoint.
Powell is outstanding as he stretches from his usual noble self at first to an arrogant, obnoxious successful artist and into decline as a terrified man losing his sight. Marie Angelus as an ambitious driven artist wanting nothing to do with the traditional 19th century women comes across both selfish and immature. Huston delivers his usual well crafted performance as the kindhearted, generous, truly loyal writer as the self serving Kipling character perhaps revealing more than he thinks while Duddley Digges makes no bones about being a male chauvinist pig. It is Lupino's Ms. Broke who really raises the emotional tenor in most scenes first at the abuse of Healder and then while exacting cruel revenge in which Ida serves it like a French chef, coldly.
Opening and closing with some rousing battle scenes,( the first an impressive overhead of the battle square, the last a powerful reoccurring image realized) the film is basically a stage play with half a dozen characters moving between a few rooms which might make it claustrophobic were it not for the sonorous voices of Colman and Huston in discussion or Lupino's raging Eliza Dolittle raising the roof.
helpful•12
- st-shot
- Sep 6, 2017
- How long is The Light That Failed?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Runtime1 hour 39 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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