Love is a Many-Splendored Thing (1955)

Love is a Many-Splendored Thing is, perhaps, one of William Holden’s best-loved films… Therefore it is hard for me to explain why it is one of my least favourite. However, I would find it difficult to recommend this film to anyone, as a film student and as a William Holden fan.

Holden plays Mark Elliott, an American news correspondent in Hong Kong during the Communist revolution in China. He meets and falls in love with (or at least he says he falls in love with) a Eurasian doctor played by Jennifer Jones. They traipse over some hills, proclaiming their love, yadda, yadda, yadda. Actually, when the inevitable tragedy strikes I was almost glad for it.

This film attempts to deal with some significant issues – interracial romance, war, prejudice… and love, which is no small topic. But what it ends up doing is churning out a truck load of Readers’ Digest quality platitudes and some boring stretches.

To say that William Holden is fine in this picture is a safe bet, but, all-in-all, the two stars never seem to mesh. They say they love each other. They kiss. They cry. But what is behind all this? Likely Bill is wondering when he can have a cocktail break, and Jones is wondering if she is lit adequately. You can almost hear them making their grocery lists in their heads. They are bored, and so are we.

Holden is well known for usually having affairs with his leading ladies. Actually, one almost wonders if he thought this was necessary to the job, it happened so frequently. However, this certainly was not the case on the set of Love is a Many-Splendored Thing. The two did not like each other, nor were they able to perk up the smallest bit of chemistry.

One is left disappointed that they did not have an affair behind the scenes, then maybe the film would have been better. What ever happened to closing your eyes and thinking of 20th Century Fox? Clearly these two did not have the appropriate loyalty to their art.

Now this review does not reflect a lot of popular and critical opinion of this film. It often shows up on “most romantic films of all times” lists, and many fans adore it. However, I am not one of them, and I can only call em as I see em, folks.

And this film is about as romantic as a plate of cold fish, despite the many shots of Holden in his swim trunks.


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