Genre: Classics, Comedy, Drama, Romance Directed By: Richard Brooks Written By: Helen Deutsch In Theaters: 1 May 1954 Runtime: 104 minutes Studio: MGM Budget: $1,275,000 Box office: $2,294,000 | Cast: Lana Turner as Madeline Pier Angeli as Lisa Carlos Thompson as Nino Bonar Colleano as Ciccio Charles Goldner as Mondari Peter Illing as Peppe Rosalie Crutchley as Francesca Marne Maitland as Filiberto Eric Pohlmann as Marina Proprietor |
“Flame and the Flesh” is a 1954 drama film made by MGM that stars Lana Turner.
The music score was by Nicholas Brodszky and the cinematography by Christopher Challis.
Madeline Duvain (Lana Turner) is evicted from her apartment for non-payment of rent.
She wanders the street, where musician Ciccio Duvario takes pity on her and invites her home.
The manipulative Madeline soon begins to take advantage of his kindness.
Ciccio works at a nightclub where his roommate Nino is a very popular singer.
Lisa, the club owner’s daughter, is in love with Nino, who has been seeing a married woman.
Nino realizes that Lisa would be good for him, so they set a wedding date.
But when he meets Madeline, the attraction is immediate. They run off together.
Ciccio vows to find and kill them.
Madeline grows frustrated when Nino has difficulty finding work.
She seduces a club owner into hiring Nino to sing. Nino finally understands the kind of woman she is, striking the club owner and slapping her. Madeline knows too late that she loves him as Nino leaves her forever, hoping that Ciccio will forgive him and Lisa will take him back.
Lana Turner plays Madeline Duvain.
A “new” Lana Turner and some beautiful location work in Italy were the major points of interest in this hard-breathing romantic drama. The picture was set in Naples and to play the Neapolitan lady tramp Lana had to become a brunette. It was Lana’s first European venture and was made on location in and around Naples (to scenically magnificent effect) with interiors filmed at MGM’s Elstree Studios in London.
To take advantage of the tax benefits of working in Europe for 18 months, filming across the Atlantic became extremely attractive to Hollywood filmmakers and actors beginning in the late ’40s. At the end of her marriage to Bob Topping, Lana’s finances were so drained she joined the exodus and agreed to make a film in Italy. If taking off to work abroad wasn’t enough of a shock to Mother’s fans, her new haircut and dye job floored them.
Every woman in the mid ’50s wished they could pull off the closely cropped “Italian look” of Gina Lollobrigida. A few were brave enough to try and Lana was one of them. The public wasn’t too fond of her new look. She just didn’t look like herself as a brunette. But then, being unrecognizable was part of the fun for her. With the new haircut, she discovered a sense of freedom. She said: “I could go into shops and walk along the streets and have a ball and nobody knew me.”
Lana went to Italy to film “Flame And The Flesh” and after that she went to Holland to film “Betrayed.”
When Lana looked back on this entire period later on she tought is was a mistake. Mistakes in career choices, in men, and in the fights she had with her mother and her daughter. Upon completion of “Betrayed”, she decided to abandon her plan to continue working abroad and come home to the USA again.
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Lana Turner did a lot of movies. She really loved being a moviestar.
Here are the most important films in which she starred. Just click the links for more info, photos and videos.
20 April 1937: A Star Is Born
9 Oct. 1937: They Won’t Forget
24 Oct. 1937: The Great Garrick
1 Jan. 1938: The Adventures of Marco Polo
22 July 1938: Love Finds Andy Hardy
12 Aug. 1938: Rich Man, Poor Girl
9 Dec. 1938: Dramatic School
28 April 1939: Calling Dr. Kildare
18 Aug. 1939: These Glamour Girls
29 Sept. 1939: Dancing Co-Ed
19 April 1940: Two Girls on Broadway
19 July 1940: We Who Are Young
25 April 1941: Ziegfeld Girl
12 Aug. 1941: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
2 Oct. 1941: Honky Tonk
18 Febr. 1942: Johnny Eager
27 Aug. 1942: Somewhere I’ll Find You
1 April 1943: Slightly Dangerous
19 Aug. 1943: Du Barry Was A Lady
13 Nov. 1943: The Youngest Profession
23 Aug. 1944: Marriage Is a Private Affair
8 March 1945: Keep Your Powder Dry
1 Oct. 1945: Week-End At The Waldorf
2 May 1946: The Postman Always Rings Twice
5 Nov. 1947 : Green Dolphin Street
1 Nov. 1947: Cass Timberlane
29 April 1948: Homecoming
20 Oct. 1948: The Three Musketeers
1 Sept. 1950: A Life Of Her Own
2 March 1951: Mr. Imperium
5 Sept. 1952: The Merry Widow
25 Dec. 1952: The Bad And The Beautiful
25 Aug. 1953: Latin Lovers
1 May 1954: Flame And The Flesh
7 Sept. 1954: Betrayed
13 May 1955: The Prodigal
4 June 1955: Sea Chase
14 Dec. 1955: The Rains Of Ranchipur
12 Jan. 1956: Diane
13 Dec. 1957: Peyton Place
30 Jan. 1958: The Lady Takes A Flyer
2 May 1958: Another Time, Another Place
30 April 1959: Imitation Of Life
23 June 1960: Portrait In Black
19 July 1961: By Love Possessed
2 Nov. 1961: Bachelor In Paradise
25 Dec. 1962: Who’s Got The Action?
24 Febr. 1965: Love Has Many Faces
27 April 1966: Madame X
30 April 1969: The Big Cube
7 Nov. 1974: Persecution
27 Oct. 1976: Bittersweet Love
31 Oct. 1980: Witches Brew
21 May 1982: Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid
Sources: Wikipedia, IMDB, Rotten Tomatoes, Lana’s biography “Lana, the Lady, The Legend, The Truth“, “The Films Of Lana Turner” by Lou Valentino and “Lana Turner, The Memories, The Myths and The Movies” by Cheryl Crane.