Wem die Sterne leuchten

From its animated opening credits to the presence of such icons as George Nader and Julie Adams, this is one of those movies which could only have come out of the 1950s. It's glossy, it's superficial, it's utterly unconvincing in its depiction of behind-the-cameras Hollywood, and yet it has the sort of entertaining, audience-pleasing quality which a number of current movies seem to have lost. Of the four women who come to Hollywood via a talent search, each gets involved in a subplot which is neatly tied up before the final fade-out. Gia Scala gets lost in the shuffle but the other three women come across well, especially Elsa Martinelli who dominates every scene she's in with a slightly over-the-top performance. She and Julie Adams and Marianne Cook all have swimsuit scenes but Gia Scala does not.

George Nader also has a swimsuit scene but the other two "hunks" whom Universal was grooming for stardom -- John Gavin and Grant Williams -- do not.

Very little is actually shown of the film-making process and what is depicted is almost laughably unconvincing. Hollywood has always had a problem in filming "Hollywood" and this curio from the 1950s is no exception.

Hollywood never seemed to have the knack of looking at itself with a reasonable eye,preferring to show the public what the public itself perceived as Hollywood. Still,this is an entertaining little epic with attractive stars and reasonably entertaining story.Nice color and pretty costumes with four lovely leading ladies to wear them.The drama is a bit glossed over but still makes a good movie as an example of the fifties type of movie.

This Hollywood drama begins with a world-wide search for an actress to play the title role in an upcoming epic "The Story of Esther", since Manning Studios is having issues with their temperamental star Rita Holloway (Helene Stanton). Four are finally chosen: an Austrian (Marianne Cook (Koch)), an Italian (Elsa Martinelli), a Frenchwoman (Gia Scala) and an American (Julie Adams), all brunette beauties. There's some fascinating backstage, back-lot sequences, all shot on the Universal-International sets. Some of the women find love after some trials and tribulations. The men include George Nader, John Gavin, Sydney Chaplin, Grant Williams, Maurice Marsac. There's also an unexpected denouement at the end. The story receives tremendous boost by being photographed in color and Cinemascope (although I haven't seen it in widescreen). The day and night beach scenes are striking, the music by Alex North is fascinating, costumes by Rosemary Odell beautiful. The supporting cast is filled with familiar faces, all excellent, with Mabel Albertson in particular a standout as Adams' pushy stage mother.

When the movie begins, the studio is trying to sign a temperamental actress for an upcoming Biblical epic. However, her demands are so excessive, the studio decides instead to use a publicity stunt to cast the lead actress. They'll have a contest where women from around the world will be brought to Hollywood for screentests to find the perfect Esther in the epic.

Four unknown actresses are chosen...an Italian, an Austrian, a French woman and an American. THe story consists of their efforts to secure the roles and focuses mostly on how studios operate (or want the public to think they operate) and offers a lot of interesting stories.

The acting is generally very good, though I do think Elsa Martinelli was a poor choice in the film because her accent was too heavy. I am glad I had captions though audiences of 1957 must have struggled with her. The story is clever...with dramatic, humorous and romantic potions throughout. Overall a most enjoyable film...one which is better than I expected.

If only the life of a starlet in the 50s was this bland. No Hollywood wolves, no casting couch, etc.

The film is still boring with a plot stretched thin. There are no good lines. This film is so dull it doesn't even have camp value.

It does give jobs to Universal contract players. It got Julie Adams out of the Black Lagoon. It was a start for John Gavin who went on to become Universal's male beauty for the next seven years. Grant Williams was soon dropped after this picture.

Others along for this sleepwalk are the three European actresses and body builder turned wooden actor George Nader.

YouTube saved this film from total oblivion.