The Song of Bernadette
US (1943): Religious/Biography/Drama
This is a reverent depiction of the young 19th-century French peasant girl (Jennifer Jones, in her first featured performance) who beheld a vision of the Virgin Mary at Lourdes. The film follows her story from ridicule by the townspeople, including a wicked Vincent Price who wants to have the girl committed to an asylum, to the discovery of the healing springs in the famed grotto, her acceptance in a convent, and eventual canonization. A restrained adaptation of Franz Werfel's novel that benefits from Jones's open-faced expression of piety and purity. Golden Globes for Best Actress: Jennifer Jones; Best Motion Picture, Drama. Henry King directs a cast that also includes William Eythe, Charles Bickford, Lee J. Cobb, Gladys Cooper and Anne Revere. (Fox) (amctv.com)
12 nominations, 4 Awards
· Best Actress 1943: Jennifer Jones
· Best Interior Decoration (Black and White) 1943: James Basevi, William S. Darling - Art Direction, Thomas Little - Set Decoration
· Best Cinematography (Black and White) 1943: Arthur C. Miller
· Music Scoring Awards (Best Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture) 1943: Alfred Newman
· Best Picture 1943: William Perlberg, producer (20th Century-Fox)
· Supporting Actor 1943: Charles Bickford
· Supporting Actress 1943: Anne Revere
· Supporting Actress 1943: Dame Gladys Cooper
· Directing 1943: Henry King
· Writing (Screenplay) 1943: George Seaton
· Film Editing 1943: Barbara McLean
· Sound Recording 1943: E. H. Hansen