Leave Her to Heaven (1945). Photofest.
(John M. Stahl, US 1945, 110 min., 35mm)
Gene Tierney’s acting career can sometimes be overlooked, despite roles in such films as Laura, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, and Heaven Can Wait. She received her only Academy Award nomination for her role in Leave Her to Heaven, a noir en couleur, in which she plays an jealous wife who “loves too much.” Ellen Berent (Tierney) and Richard Harland (Cornel Wilde) meet on a train going to New Mexico and are immediately attracted to each other. Ellen breaks her engagement and announces her love for Richard and her intent to marry him. She wants to do and be everything for Richard, but her obsession may put the rest of their family in jeopardy.
Will Scheibel, associate professor of English at Syracuse University, will introduce Leave Her to Heaven and launch his new book, Gene Tierney: Star of Hollywood’s Home Front, which he will be signing after the screening.