Ajouter une intrigue dans votre langueWomen from various backgrounds volunteer as nurses in France at the outbreak of World War I.Women from various backgrounds volunteer as nurses in France at the outbreak of World War I.Women from various backgrounds volunteer as nurses in France at the outbreak of World War I.
- Frank
- (as Edward Nugent)
- French Surgeon
- (uncredited)
- Frank and Wally's Buddy
- (uncredited)
- Nurse in VA Hospital
- (uncredited)
- Wounded French Soldier
- (uncredited)
- French Medical Officer
- (uncredited)
- French Chanteuse
- (uncredited)
Avis en vedette
War Nurse follows a group of women who volunteer for nursing duties in France at the outbreak of the First World War. The film is a perfect companion piece to All Quiet on the Western Front, released the same year. Similar to how the young army recruits in All Quiet... have a distorted, glamorised view of what war will be like, so do the nurses at the beginning of War Nurse (some of them are barely into adulthood) expecting to be "holding hands all night with good looking sick officers" and to spend "Moonlight nights up on no man's land, with a general in each arm". Little do they expect the extremely strenuous work, horrendous conditions, the lack of supplies and the near insanity caused by the constant firing of shells.
One scene in which the nurses retreat to bed for the night only to be woken up shortly afterward by the arrival of injured troops during the middle of the night, I can feel just how tired and physically exhausted these people must be. War Nurse is full of powerful moments both big and subtle such as when a soldier played Robert Montgomery asks a nurse played by Anita Page out on a date, literally seconds after she told him one of his close comrades just died; death is that common of an occurrence
The copy of War Nurse I watched was not of the greatest of quality so I couldn't always distinguish the cast members apart. Yet I was still fully engaged and can say the production values are superb. I don't have any information on the filmmaking locations for War Nurse but the exteriors feature lush countryside backdrops to large-scale recreations of baron no man's land with shells constantly exploding.
Get this baby onto the Warner Achieve Collection!
The film is about how the war brings together people from all walks of life - a society woman (Hedda Hopper credited only as "matron"), a homely schoolteacher interested in art not men (Helen Jerome Eddy as Kansas), an American girl in a French convent school forced to close because of the war (Anita Page as Joy, who thinks this is going to be far more glamorous than it is), etc. All of these come to France as war nurses for the Allies.
But after they've scrubbed enough latrines, run out of PPE, run out of morphine, dealt with enough death and men with their faces, arms, and legs blown off the nurses learn to emotionally distance themselves from the horror and sleep through the gunfire at night. As for the men, it makes them want to live for now because there may be no tomorrow. Apparently that explanation - given as part of the dialog between nurses - is supposed to be absolution for a French doctor accosting one of the nurses, and for all of the flyers/soldiers lying about marital intent or even current marital status.
Robert Montgomery plays a flier who relentlessly pursues Babs - one of the nurses and a plain spoken girl with a good head on her shoulders. She becomes good friends with Joy, who is going to need a friend before this film is over. Robert Ames plays a no good snake. My apology to snakes everywhere. Zasu Pitts is not playing her familiar dithering blithering persona, but is instead an assertive wise cracker that trades barbs with Marie Prevost's character.
The odd thing about this film? June Walker, mainly a stage actress, is playing the leading lady here and Robert Montgomery's love interest rather than the better known MGM star Anita Page. Walker had not made a movie since 1921. She did not make another until 1942, and yet her performance holds up.
In this film, Anita loses her heart to an American soldier she meets, only to find herself bitterly disappointed later. Suave, sexy Robert Montgomery provides the love interest for a nurse named Babs. Look also for Edward Neugent, playing another of his many "best buddy" roles, as a friend of Montgomery. This movie looks like it's used stock WWI war footage to document the war, but that only adds to the realism. Things look dark, dirty and, well, like a war is going on! Contrast these scenes with one later in the picture of the wild party at the nightclub, and I imagine you have some idea of what things were like at some point during WWI.
Like WATERLOO BRIDGE (1930), this movie provides viewers of today with a look back at the WWI era--it's conventions, morals, worries, and fascinating stories. If you can find this movie, it's worth the time it takes to see it.
Le saviez-vous
- AnecdotesLoretta Young was replaced by Anita Page midway through filming, which led to her scenes being deleted and re-shot. Young can briefly be seen in a long shot.
- GaffesSet during World War I (1914 - 1918), at about 30 minutes into the movie, there is a scene where Robert Montgomery lands his plane and approaches some fellow pilots who are talking nearby. As they talk, contemporary 1920s vehicles can be seen passing on a distant road (at the upper left of the screen, over Robert Montgomery's shoulder).
- Citations
Cushie: Funny the way the men have changed. They used to talk about what they'd do when the war was over and things like that.
Rosalie: Yeah, now all they talk about is women.
Babs: Yes, women. It seems to be the only thing the men are interested in. Why even the youngsters are so afraid they'll die before they've ever lived.
Joy: Well, it makes me awfully nervous the way they always want to look at you and touch you. Why, even the doctors are getting so...
Cushie: Well, even the doctors are human, I suppose.
- ConnexionsReferences Three Weeks (1914)
- Bandes originalesWhen I Saw Sweet Nelly Home
(1859) (uncredited)
Music and Lyric by John Fletcher
Sung a cappella by Robert Ames and Anita Page
Meilleurs choix
Détails
- Date de sortie
- Pays d’origine
- Langues
- Aussi connu sous le nom de
- Enfermeras de guerra
- Lieux de tournage
- société de production
- Consultez plus de crédits d'entreprise sur IMDbPro
- Durée1 heure 21 minutes
- Couleur