The Divine Lady (1929)

Winner of 1 Academy Award:

Best Directing

Frank Lloyd

Nominated for 2 Academy Awards:

Best Actress

Corinne Griffith

Best Cinematography

John F. Seitz

It won 1 Oscar out of a total of 3 nominations in 1928-29.


The Divine Lady is the story of the love and destiny of England's greatest beauty and England's greatest sailor.  Set amidst the dawn of the French revolution, a cook's daughter transforms from being an unpolished gem into a rare jewel after playing a pivotal role in the ongoing war efforts.

This film accomplished the extremely rare feat of winning an Academy Award for Directing without having also been nominated for Best Picture.

The film's theme song, "Lady Divine," would go on to become quite a popular tune in 1929 and would be covered by numerous artists.


Editorial:

This film is standard fare for the time, presenting a narrative arc based around a "love conquers all" ideal.  Story-wise, it was a little lackluster.  However, the periodic occurrences of naval battles and mob riots were engaging enough.  The overall production quality was impressive enough, which seemed to strive for an epic scope - even if it was only mildly successful.

Score  |  03/10  |  This motion picture may be worth trying.