The Great Vivien Leigh

[DallasFanForever]

I’ve seen REBECCA once and I thought Joan Fontaine was good in it. I enjoyed her performance but I think I would’ve liked to have seen Vivian in the role instead.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

 

[Toni]

Once I read that "Lady Olivier" was actually a nickname for Larry from his (maybe not so dear) friend actors. I wonder why...

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[Karin Schill]

I love Vivien Leigh and I also love Vivien Leigh & Laurence Olivier as a couple. I used to have a thread dedicated to them on here before the forum crash.

They were both talented actors but I think she sacrificed her movie career to do theatre with him. It was great for the people who lived in the 1940s and 1950s and could watch them live at the theatre. But not so great for us fans who were born decades later who only can enjoy them on film. I also find Vivien to be a better screen actress than Larry. My guess is that he was a better stage actor.

My favorite movie is Gone With The Wind (1939).
But another underrated gem is "That Hamilton Woman" (1941) that Vivien & Larry starred in together. It's about Lord Nelson's love story with Lady Hamilton. It's just a shame the movie was not in color.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

I don't consider it a problem per se, but Fleming -- under Selznick's guidance -- did push Leigh to give a more florid performance. Perhaps her acting would have been more delicate under Cukor, but a garish soap seems to justify a florid performance. It's unlikely any of the other contenders -- especially Davis, known for going theatrically hammy -- would have given a more subtle performance under the circumstances.

Leigh was capable of turning "gritty" but that never really happened on GWTW , despite their pretending she did. I think it hurt the character of Scarlett on-screen, for her to stay so shrill throughout the movie.

 

[ClassyCo]