A very moving and excellent movie version of the Seventh Heaven play that was the "talkie" remake of the silent version made 10 years earlier. James Stewart (Chico) and Simone Simon (Diane) play the street cleaner and prostitute whose paths cross and develop a special bond with each other. The movie presents a much gritty view of life in the 1914 Paris streets before World War I and has so many deep messages about life. The Chico character is an atheist who became cynical when his prayers were not answered. He helps Diane when she is beaten by her prostitute sister for not being sociable with potential clients. To prevent her from being arrested, Chico takes her in as his wife to live in his apartment. The climb is up 7 flights of steps, but the apartment becomes their own heavenly abode. As their feelings deepen between the two, Chico eventually proposes marriage to Diane. However, World War I intervenes and Chico must leave Diane to go to war. The two vow to think about each other at 11 AM every day. As the war comes to a close, Chico is injured in a gas attack and is reported to have died by his comrades and a priest (Jean Hersholt whose name is attached to the Humanitarian Academy Award given out every year during the Oscar award show). Another injured war veteran also is introduced during the time that Diane is working in the war hospital and appears to be the "other man" character who tries to win her over. As the end of the war is imminent, Diane refuses to believe that Chico was killed in the war. She, in turn, almost becomes an atheist when she feels that God could have let him die and to have abandoned her. She receives another revelation at 11 AM on November 11, 1918 as the armistice news is celebrated and races back to climb up the seven flight of stairs past all of the revelers to get back to her home. The ending of the movie could have been with a sad ending. But even if it did, the love that tied the two of them would still have resonated strongly at the end. Chico had given Diane a new outlook on life and she could have carried on in the future for the both of them.
The movie had many closeups of Simone with the type of lighting that you would expect to showcase her beauty. It looked like you were seeing a photographer shifting the lights in the background when a closeup was called for. She has such an angelic face. Jimmy Stewart may have not fit the French sanitary worker role exactly since he spoke with no French accent. But, his acting fit the role of the street cleaner perfectly and you could see how his later movie roles in "Shop Around the Corner" and "It's a Wonderful Life" were an extension of his role in this movie.
The movie was made just two years before World War II began. It showed the horror of battle in the trenches and is a sad reminder of the upcoming war that would soon envelop Europe again.
This movie version provides many simple messages about life in general and also affirms the daily life struggles of the lower classes. Everyone has their own heaven if they look hard for it. Sometimes you have to look deep into your own heart. The most poignant scene in the movie for me is right after the policeman comes to visit Chico's apartment to verify his story that Diane and he were married. After he is satisfied when checking the apartment and leaves, Diane then knows that the charade about being married is over and that it is time for her to leave. She tidies up the kitchen area one more time and then takes a last look at the room as she heads out the door. Priceless moment. Highly recommended even though it is a little known movie.
The movie had many closeups of Simone with the type of lighting that you would expect to showcase her beauty. It looked like you were seeing a photographer shifting the lights in the background when a closeup was called for. She has such an angelic face. Jimmy Stewart may have not fit the French sanitary worker role exactly since he spoke with no French accent. But, his acting fit the role of the street cleaner perfectly and you could see how his later movie roles in "Shop Around the Corner" and "It's a Wonderful Life" were an extension of his role in this movie.
The movie was made just two years before World War II began. It showed the horror of battle in the trenches and is a sad reminder of the upcoming war that would soon envelop Europe again.
This movie version provides many simple messages about life in general and also affirms the daily life struggles of the lower classes. Everyone has their own heaven if they look hard for it. Sometimes you have to look deep into your own heart. The most poignant scene in the movie for me is right after the policeman comes to visit Chico's apartment to verify his story that Diane and he were married. After he is satisfied when checking the apartment and leaves, Diane then knows that the charade about being married is over and that it is time for her to leave. She tidies up the kitchen area one more time and then takes a last look at the room as she heads out the door. Priceless moment. Highly recommended even though it is a little known movie.