For Whom the Bell Tolls

Starring: Gary Cooper, Ingrid Bergman, Katina Paxinou, et al.

Product Description

Based on the best-selling controversial novel by Pulitzer and Nobel Prize-winning author Ernest Hemingway, For Whom the Bell Tolls graces the screen with legendary stars Gary Cooper and Ingrid Bergman. The story follows expatriate American demolition expert Robert Jordan (Cooper) who aides anti-fascist freedom fighters of Spain. Assisting him is a band of warriors including the strong-willed Pilar (Katina Paxinou in an Academy Award-winning performance), the dangerously undependable Pablo (Akim Tamiroff) and the lovely, innocent Maria (Bergman). As danger mounts, Robert and Maria develop a closeness that blossoms into one of the screen's greatest love stories.Epic in scope yet intimate in feeling, For Whom the Bell Tolls remains a shining example of Hollywood

• Format: DVD
• Language: English
• UPC: 025192042324
• Release Date: January 1
• Rating: NR
• Publisher: Paramount Home Entertainment
• Director: Sam Wood
• Starring: Gary Cooper, Ingrid Bergman, Katina Paxinou, Akim Tamiroff, Arturo de Cordova, Joseph Calleia, Vladimir Sokoloff, Mikhail Rasumny, Fortunio Bonanova
• Runtime: 2 hours, 46 minutes
• Number of Disks: 1
• Other Video Info: DVD
• Weight: 0.17 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 7.5" x 5.4"
• Age Range: 14 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 9 and higher

Customer Reviews

"Any Man's death diminishes me.”

"Because I am involved in mankind; and therefore, send to know for whom the bell tolls. It tolls for thee." Spain 1937. Robert Jordan (Gary Cooper) came to Spain to fight for "The Republic" (a nice way to say for the commies) and against nationalists. He also had a dislike for Germans and Italians. His assignment was to go behind the nationalist lines and blow up a bridge at a strategic moment. There, this stoic hero meets a peasant girl (Much too young for Gary, Ingrid Bergman) with a bad haircut and barely escaped a train ride. They naturally fall in love, which complicates things. Will this jeopardize the mission? Do we care? Along with this, we have the classic mixture of characters that you cannot tell if they are the good guys or the bad guys. The two that stand out besides the hero and his girl are Katina Paxinou (sort of a female Antony Quinn) as the doyenne and Akim Tamiroff as the once-good guerrilla who may be bad or just self-centered. Who they were and how they acted was quite a predictable formula. The story is an adaptation of the Ernest Hemingway novel. Of course, they could not put everything in the story and took a few liberties. We also miss the dialogue that people read Hemingway for. The initial credits are in some annoying script (Parchment), making it hard to read at a glance.