The Prodigal (1955)

Director:

Richard Thorpe

Writers:

Joseph Breen (adaptation) and
Samuel James Larsen (adaptation) ...

Release Date:

14 September 1955 (Japan)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A wealthy young Hebrew traveling in Damascus renounces his faith after is seduced by an alluring pagan priestess and cheated of his fortune by the High Priest as well.

Plot Keywords:

Dove | Jewish | Plague | Infidel | Bronze

Cast

Lana Turner	...	Samarra
Edmund Purdom	...	Micah
Louis Calhern	...	Nahreeb
Audrey Dalton	...	Ruth
James Mitchell	...	Asham
Neville Brand	...	Rhakim
Walter Hampden	...	Eli
Taina Elg	...	Elissa
Francis L. Sullivan	...	Bosra
Joseph Wiseman	...	Carmish
John Dehner	...	Joram
Sandy Descher	...	Yasmin (as Sandra Descher)
Cecil Kellaway	...	Governor
Philip Tonge	...	Barber-Surgeon
David Leonard	...	Blind man

Also Known As:

Förlorade, Den (Sweden) [sv]
Figliuol prodigo, Il (Italy) [it]
Filho Pródigo, O (Brazil) [pt]
Fils prodigue, Le (France) [fr]
Hijo pródigo, El (Spain) [es]
Skøgen fra Damaskus (Denmark) [da]
Tempel der Versuchung (West Germany) [de]
Tuhlaajapoika (Finland) [fi]
Verlorene Sohn, Der (Austria) [de]

Runtime:

112 min (TCM print)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.55 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo

Certification:

Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | West Germany:16

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

Ava Gardner and Vittorio Gassman were originally cast as Edmund Purdom's co-stars.

Quotes:

Micah: [referring to his first sight of Samarra] Nahreeb, you said that everything has its price.
Nahreeb: She is not for a follower of Jehovah!
Micah: I mean to have her one way or the other!

Movie Connections:

Featured in Lana Turner... a Daughter's Memoir (2001) (TV)

MGM's lavish,expensive potboiler bombs

From a technical point of view,this was a well-done picture.Sets,props,some of the costumes,camera work,etc.,are all quite impressive.That,however,is where the good stuff ends.The plot contains every cliche known to historical,biblical,and costume dramas,and the dialouge is stilted and banal.A fine cast of supporting actors provide characterizations that are stereotypic,at best.The leads don't even provide characterizations that don't even make it to one-dimensional;Purdom,a fine classically trained actor,is wooden,and Turner looks as though she would rather be somewhere else.(Her biographers state that they didn't get along at all,and this shows up onscreen.But isn't part of acting being able to provide the illusion of reality?).Calhern acts more like his crooked lawyer in "Asphalt Jungle"than a power-hungry relgious tyrant,and with his hat he looks like the Grand Wizard.The plot focuses on lust,cruelty,brutality,terrifying horrors of the ancient world,savagery,and bloodthirstiness.The most atrocious sequence focuses on the performance of a ritual human sacrifice that will outrage anyone with the moral fastidiousness of a Gila Monster.The best way to watch this piece of tripe is to get roaring drunk,and then make wisecracks,like on Mystery Science Theater 3000.