Director: Henry King
Gene Tierney, John Hodiak, William Bendix, Glenn Langan, Richard Conte, Stanley Prager, Harry Morgan, Monty Banks, Reed Hadley, Roy Roberts
A Bell for Adano is directed by Henry King and stars John Hodiak, Gene Tierney, William Bendix, Richard Conte, Harry Morgan & Glenn Langan. The screenplay by Norman Reilly Raine is adapted from the novel A Bell for Adano by John Hersey, which won the Pulitzer Prize in 1945. The story concerns Italian-American U.S. Army Major Joppolo {Hodiak}, who is stationed in the Italian town of Adano during the invasion of Sicily. The title is in reference to Joppolo's attempts to replace a 700 year old bell that was taken from the town by the Fascists at the start of the war. But he has to win the trust of the confused and almost broken townsfolk before he can implement a new way of life for Adano. The character of Joppolo is based on real life military governor Frank Toscani, who was based in Licato, Sicily after the Allied invasion. With the source as good and as well regarded as it is, it's something of a given that the story is of high quality. But does it transfer well to the screen? Personally I found the whole experience rather heavy, almost unpalatable in parts. Yet the acting, and the directing are not really at fault {cept for Tierney's miscast blonde love interest that is}. It's just that for all its obvious adherence to a low-key, slow burn approach to the effects of war on a ravage town, it fails to deliver anything resembling potency. Particularly with its ending, where if it wasn't for a bit of emotional gusto from the excellent Hodiak & Bendix, would have rendered the time spent staying with the film a complete waste of time. There's also moments of over doing the melodrama, with one, as Conte's Nicolo tells a horror story to a grief stricken Tierney, almost embarrassing in its delivery. It's not a waste of time to be sure, for the lead male performances it deserves a look: and also a listen with Alfred Newman's tight score. While the smouldering structure on offer here has garnered it some supporters over the years {the film is decently rated at 7 on IMDb}. But ultimately it's an uneasy recommendation to fans of 1940s war film's
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