dir. William Wyler

1939 // 1 hr 43 min // Digital Projection

Starring: Merle Oberon, Laurence Olivier, David Niven

Considered by many the definitive screen adaptation of Emily Brontë’s novel, Samuel Goldwyn’s 1939 prestige production stands out in a year renowned for prestige productions, marrying the doomy sturm und drang of the source material with a Dream Factory sheen. Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon are ideally cast as the dashing, tormented Heathcliff and the beautiful, fickle Cathy, lovers whose obsessive passion leads to tragedy on the Yorkshire moors. The poetic art direction; Gregg Toland’s evocative, Oscar-winning cinematography; and William Wyler’s sensitive direction come together in what remains a paragon of classic Hollywood craftsmanship.

ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOODLAND... is a series hosted and programmed by KCAI lecturer Kara Heitz looking at classic Hollywood films and history from the advent of sound to the birth of New Hollywood.