I too was struck by the anachronistic costumes (WWII garb for a WWI story) as well as by the inaccurate depiction of WWI airwars and bomb shelters as noted by one of your reviewers. I thought another reviewer's point well taken as to how did Taylor actually reacquire the little good luck charm after Leigh's death. But Taylor's Americanism as noted by another of your reviewers was accounted for by Sherwood's original play protagonist as actually being an American (himself.) So that we can accept.
But I noted too that while your reviewers referred to Sherwood's original 1930 play as well as to the 1931 James Whale original movie version an important predecessor to this story seems to have escaped everyone, namely Arthur Wing Pinero's celebrated play, "The Second Mrs. Tanqueray" (1893). In this play, famous in its time for its faux-realism and its eagerness to put the question of prostitution onto the stage, a lady with a doubtful past likewise aspires to membership by marriage into the aristocracy. But when her past is discovered she too chooses suicide as the only way out. The parallels between SMT and WB struck me immediately. Perhaps WB is even more directly related to SMT than either Sherwood or Whale.
Herbert Stothart's score was quintessentially typical. HS' method was usually to take familiar melodies (such as "Auld Lang Syne") and doll them up with fantasy orchestrations. You can usually tell a Stothart score when you hear it.
But I noted too that while your reviewers referred to Sherwood's original 1930 play as well as to the 1931 James Whale original movie version an important predecessor to this story seems to have escaped everyone, namely Arthur Wing Pinero's celebrated play, "The Second Mrs. Tanqueray" (1893). In this play, famous in its time for its faux-realism and its eagerness to put the question of prostitution onto the stage, a lady with a doubtful past likewise aspires to membership by marriage into the aristocracy. But when her past is discovered she too chooses suicide as the only way out. The parallels between SMT and WB struck me immediately. Perhaps WB is even more directly related to SMT than either Sherwood or Whale.
Herbert Stothart's score was quintessentially typical. HS' method was usually to take familiar melodies (such as "Auld Lang Syne") and doll them up with fantasy orchestrations. You can usually tell a Stothart score when you hear it.