Film Focus: Kim Novak

            Anyone who knows me well knows that the one thing you can’t say Is anything disparaging about actress Kim Novak.

             Critically maligned through the years, even Alfred Hitchcock dismissed her acting in his masterpiece Vertigo, to which Francois Truffaut, who was interviewing him at length, replied, “I thought she was perfect for the picture. There was a passive, animal quality about her that was exactly right for the part.” 

            I was reminded of this reading the brilliant new biography- Candy Darling: Dreamer, Icon, Superstar by Cynthia Carr. Candy Darling passionately identified with Kim Novak and would frequently impersonate her. She said, “There was always something so frozen about her. She had to squeeeeeeeeze it all out. She was so scared and that’s the way I was all my life.” 

            A wonderful Blu-ray box set is out now from the Australian company Imprint (which plays on American Blu-ray players) offering three sensational high-definition presentations of films in which Kim Novak showcases her stunning beauty on screen but also reveals her nuanced, subtle, extraordinary talent. 

            Pal Joey (1957) Vaguely based on the Rodgers and Hart stage musical, Frank Sinatra stars as a womanizing cad who entertains at a dive nightclub in San Francisco, lusting after one of the showgirls (Kim Novak), while romancing the wealthy society woman (Rita Hayworth) who promises to bankroll his nightclub- Chez Joey. Novak is just lovely in the movie and has an unforgettable moment singing “My Funny Valentine” on stage. Irresistibly entertaining, the film includes great songs like “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered,” “The Lady is a Tramp,” “There’s a Small Hotel,” and other treats.

             Jeanne Eagels (1957) Kim Novak is luminous in the fictionalized biography of the famed 1920s stage and screen actress who tragically died at age 39 from drug and alcohol abuse. Jeff Chandler plays the carny worker and love of her life. Agnes Moorehead is the acting coach who sees Eagel’s potential, “She has that one necessary thing- talent.” Novak really digs into the role and dazzles in her scenes. Especially after Eagel’s stage success with the play Rain where she begins drinking with wild abandon, missing performances and dubbed “Gin” Eagels by the press. “I loved making that movie,” Novak admitted. 

            Middle of the Night (1959) Paddy Chayefsky adapted this for the screen from his Broadway play (which starred Edward G. Robinson and Gena Rowlands). Kim Novak plays an unhappy, divorced receptionist for a clothing manufacturer who slowly begins an affair with her much older widowed boss (Fredric March). But both their family’s disapproval seriously impacts their budding relationship. When Kim Novak read the screenplay she had to beg Columbia boss Harry Cohn to do the film, and she was thrilled with the almost 8 week rehearsal time that came with the project. Both March and Novak are incredibly poignant in their roles. In fact, it may be one of Novak’s finest performances.