Il grande peccatore

Perhaps it's his fine acting, his delivery style or his distinguished good looks. Whatever it is, Gregory Peck had displayed it in all his films. Here is one of his best, called " The Great Sinner. " If you've read Dostoyevsky's novel 'the Gambler', penned in 1867, you will have a pretty good idea where the movie came from. It's the story of a successful young writer named Fedja (Gregory Peck) who, while traveling through Europe, meets and is immediately struck by Pauline Ostrovsky (Ave Gardner) the daughter of a retired General. Through her, he discovers, she and her father are in great debt to the Casino owner, Armand de Glasse (Melvyn Douglas). Once in love, he realizes there is only one way to win her and that's to pay off her family's notes. With great but innocent naiveté he cautiously enters the world of gambling and is surprised by his extraordinary luck when he continues to win, win and eventually break the bank. Believing he can quit, he begins making plans to wed and move to the countryside. Unfortunately as most gamblers realize there is a subtle, yet, powerful addiction to winning and slowly it compels him to return to the alluring and enticing realm of the roulette wheel. This early Black and White movie is nearly a forgotten Classic of Peck's early career and were it not for his co-stars like, Walter Huston, Ethel Barrymore, Agnes Moorehead and Frank Morgan, it may have remained in obscurity. Instead, this wonderful, (albeit lengthy) and dramatic film has become a milestone for Gregory Peck and one which created an enduring legacy for this great actor. ****

Even when he adapts Dostoievski,Robert Siodmak's fondness for film noir can be felt.In the first scene,when Fedor meets Pauline ,how not to think of that scene in "the killers" when Swede sees Kitty for the first time?In both films ,Ava Gardner is the femme fatale.Ditto for the last scene in the pawn shop where you can see the reflections of the crosses on the ceiling.

Fedor's motive is first love ,but little by little,he realizes he is actually in love with gambling,with the numbers.His desire for an "8 " is almost sexual;in the hotel,every number (the key number, etc) calls him to the casino.The depiction of the place where people are feverishly waiting for the stopping of the roulette is absolutely extraordinary.Gregory Peck gives a riveting performance as the gambler down on his luck,and Ava Gardner's beauty shines all along the film.The supporting cast is up to scratch: Melvyn Douglas is like a puppeteer (the scene when he pretends he can't find Ostrovsky's notes belongs to him); Frank Morgan as a fallen mathematic teacher and Agnes Moorehead as the owner of a seedy pawn shop make all their scenes count.Ethel Barrymore is so talented an actress she does not need any words (except "banco" ) to express her gambling fever.

Like this ?try these.....

"Le Joueur" Claude Autant-Lara 1958 another Dostoievski adaptation,inferior to Siodmak's version.

"lo scopone scientifico" Luigi Comencini 1972

"La dame de Pique" Leonard Keigel 1965

Gregory Peck, Ava Gardner, Walter Huston, Melvyn Douglas, Ethel Barrymore, and Frank Morgan star in "The Great Sinner" about a writer who gets the gambling bug big-time. Set in the 1860s, the story concerns a writer (Peck) who falls for a woman (Gardner) whose life, and that of her father's (Huston), is dedicated to gambling. They're waiting for the matriarch of the family (Barrymore) to die so that they will no longer be beholden to the owner of a casino (Douglas). He has 200,000 (francs, I think) of the father's notes, and in return, he wants Gardner. One can hardly blame him - she's so gorgeous in this movie, and her costumes so stunning, she nearly burns up the celluloid. The writer tries his hand at gambling and soon becomes a complete addict.

The gambling scenes in this film are quite exciting, as anyone who has tasted the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat at a slot machine will attest. Unfortunately, other than that, it's a rather talk-heavy movie without much action and seems to go on too long. Nevertheless, there are some good performances. Was Walter Huston ever anything but great? Peck is handsome and convincing as the fallen man. Agnes Moorhead has a small part, but she's excellent, as the nasty owner of a pawnshop. Frank Morgan also makes an appearance as an unlucky gambler.

Worth seeing for Gardner's looks and gowns alone.

At first glance, the writers of this unusual Hollywood film took the characters, location, period and premise of Dostoyevsky's novel "The Gambler" and reworked them in outrageous fashion in order to bring even more sex, moralizing guilt, titillation, debauchery and fun into the mix. It works and is very entertaining on that level. Anyone curious about the real thing might want to check out the French film "Le Joueur" by Claude Autant-Lara (1958), starring Gérard Philipe, which actually names it source, and its innumerable remakes. On the plus side, it gives Ava Gardner one of her most articulate roles and composer Bronislau Kaper a chance to incorporate a record number of light classics into his score.

Well, if it has Gregory Peck, Ava Gardner, Melvyn Douglas, Walter Huston, Ethel Barrymore, Frank Morgan, and Agnes Moorehead, I'm there. But the fact is, this costume epic aims for the grandeur and tragedy of 19th century European literature without laying the groundwork. It's a listlessly plotted gambling melodrama, with Noble Writer Peck succumbing to the charms of Gambling Lady Gardner (and she was never more luscious), then reversing roles with her as he becomes addicted to the roulette wheel and she comes to her senses. Some lively bitch-dialogue from Christopher Isherwood helps, and the starry supporting cast contributes incisive miniatures; Barrymore, who pops in 90 minutes into the running time, is a special hoot, subtler and less grand than usual. But as so often happens in late-'40s Hollywood, the production values are stultifying, and a God-will-provide fadeout is tacked on to provide Moral Redemption where there logically should be none. It's a painless two hours, and good for stargazing -- but hardly the serious look at a decadent aristocracy it might have been.