Love Letters | |
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Promotional poster
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Directed by | William Dieterle |
Produced by | Hal B. Wallis |
Written by | Ayn Rand |
Starring | Jennifer Jones Joseph Cotten Ann Richards Cecil Kellaway Gladys Cooper Anita Louise |
Music by | Victor Young |
Cinematography | Lee Garmes |
Edited by | Anne Bauchens |
Production
company |
Hal Wallis Productions
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Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release date
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October 26, 1945 |
Running time
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101 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Love Letters is a 1945 American film noir. The screenplay was adapted by Ayn Rand from the novel Pity My Simplicity by Christopher Massie. It was directed by William Dieterle and stars Jennifer Jones, Joseph Cotten, Ann Richards, Cecil Kellaway, Gladys Cooper and Anita Louise. The plot tells the story of a man falling in love with an amnesiac woman with two personalities who is supposed to have killed his soldier friend.
The film was nominated for four Academy Awards, including a Best Actress in a Leading Role for Jones.
Reception
Although critical reviews were mostly negative, Love Letters succeeded at the box office. New York Times reviewer Bosley Crowther berated it as “sentimental twaddle”, calling Jones’ performance “fatuous”, Rand’s writing “a mucky muddle”, and Dieterle’s direction “mushy and pretentious”.
Accolades
The film was nominated in several categories at the 18th Academy Awards:
- Best Actress: Jennifer Jones
- Best Art Direction (Black-and-White): Art Direction: Hans Dreier, Roland Anderson; Interior Decoration: Sam Comer, Ray Moyer
- Music (Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture): Victor Young
- Academy Award for Best Original Song: “Love Letters,” Music by Victor Young; Lyrics by Eddie Heyman
In 2002, the American Film Institute nominated this film for AFI’s 100 Years…100 Passions.
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