The Seventh Sin

"The Seventh Sin" from 1957 stars Eleanor Parker, Bill Travers, George Sanders, Jean-Pierre Aumont, and Francoise Rosay.

Parker plays Carolyn Carwin, living in postwar Hong Kong with her husband, Dr. Walter Corwin (Travers) but is having an affair with Paul (Aumont). She never really loved her husband - she used him to get away from her family - but he has always loved her. For reasons known only to herself, she finds him physically repulsive. Bill Travers? That was the first dumb thing.

Walter is going into a remote village to fight the cholera epidemic. He gives Carolyn a choice - she can accompany him or he will cause a huge scandal in the divorce. Then he suggests a third option - if Paul will divorce his wife and marry her immediately, he won't give her any trouble. He knows full well that Paul won't divorce his wife and is proved correct. The two leave for the village.

Once there, they meet Tim Waddington (Sanders) who picks up on their marital problems. Gradually Carolyn becomes aware of her husband's dedication to his work and her own selfishness and narcissism.

Previous versions of The Painted Veil take place in an earlier time, and the trip to the village is harrowing. It becomes obvious that Walter hopes his wife dies, or he doesn't care, and he certainly doesn't care if she contracts cholera when they arrive. Post- WWII, they don't have a bad time of it travel-wise.

Parker is beautiful as the imperious Carolyn, who finds the village a growing experience, and Sanders cast against type is a real bright spot, giving a wonderful performance. There are nice scenes between Carolyn and the nun at the orphanage (Rosay) who understands Carolyn better than she thinks. Travers is sympathetic as the hard-working doctor who only wanted to love his wife and have her love him.

The Maugham story of The Painted Veil is a strong one, but it's hard for this version to compete with either version, the 1934 with Greta Garbo or the 2006 with its brilliant cinematography. Though it's not as good, it is still absorbing. I haven't read the story, so I'm not sure what the original ending is - all three versions have different endings.