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Dodsworth is a satiric novel written by American novelist Sinclair Lewis, published in 1929. The popular novel was adapted by Sidney Howard into a play in 1934 starring Walter Huston and Fay Bainter. Two years later, the story was adapted for the screen by Howard with Huston continuing in the lead role of Dodsworth. William Wyler directed the film with supporting performances by Ruth Chatterton, Paul Lukas, Mary Astor, and Maria Ouspenskaya. The film was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and acting nominations for Walter Huston and Maria Ouspenskaya. Richard Day won the award for Best Art Direction. For his role, Huston won the year's Best Actor award from the New York Film Critics Circle Awards. In 1990, Dodsworth was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry. Fifteen years later, Time.com named it one of the 100 best movies of the last 80 years.
Plot Samuel Dodsworth (Walter Huston) is an ambitious automobile designer, who builds his fortunes in Zenith. In addition to his success in the business world, he succeeds in winning the hand of Fran Voelker (Ruth Chatterton), a beautiful socialite. At the age of fifty, he sets out to do what he had always wanted - take a leisurely trip to Europe with his wife. His forty-one year old wife, however, is dissatisfied with married life and wants to live in Europe, not just visit. Passing up advancement in his company, Dodsworth leaves for Europe with Fran. Soon, both Sam and Fran are caught up in vastly different lifestyles. Fran falls in with a crowd of frivolous socialites. Sam meets Edith Cortright (Mary Astor), a woman who is everything his wife is not: self-assured, self-confident, and able to take care of herself. As they follow their own pursuits, their marriage is strained to the breaking point. Both Sam and Fran are forced to choose between marriage and the new lifestyles they have pursued. Cast Won | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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