Plot: What’s it about?
Emile Zola (Paul Muni) had a rough start as an author, but he would soon find the path to success, as he had chosen the right field. In his youth, he made his reputation by writing controversial books that questioned all manner of social and political issues. He was fearless with his books, leaving no stone unturned to reveal the darker side of the nation. He would take on even the most hot topics and if he felt a wrong was in motion, he would do whatever he could to turn the tide. After a chain of such works, he was known as the conscience of his nation and as such, found immense financial success. But his own conscience was dulled by his own wealth as he aged and by middle age, he was quite complacent. This is seen as a disappointment by those who followed him before, as he had the skill to draw attention to issues and the influence to pull support to those issues. At the same time, a military officer named Alfred Dreyfuss (Joseph Schildkraut) has been imprisoned at Devil’s Island, a brutal prison where he is sure to suffer. He is accused of selling government secrets, so he not only lost his freedom, but was branded as a traitor to his nation’s people. But when another agent is proven to be the one responsible and not Dreyfuss, he is still held at the prison. A cover up begins to roll into motion, as the government refuses to admit the mistake that has been made. Zola is pushed to take up his cause and soon he does, mounting a campaign to have the man freed. But Zola is soon punished as well and he must put his own freedom on the line, will he continue to defend this innocent man?
I have seen a lot of courtroom dramas and to be honest, most of them come off as confined and overly limited, as if they were simply a filmed version of a stage production. That sense of confinement can drive a movie’s tense atmosphere, but if poorly handled, can also sink a movie. The Life of Emile Zola is a courtroom drama, so I might not rush to check it out under normal circumstances, but this is also a film that took home three Oscars in 1937, including Best Picture. Not to mention the presence of Paul Muni (Scarface, Bordertown), an actor whose career was brief, but impressive. Muni made a little over twenty pictures in his three decades long run, including some terrific performances. But none can match this work in The Life of Emile Zola, a turn that earned him immense acclaim. As this is a courtroom drama, the cast shoulders much of the burden, with little else to take the focus of the viewers. The story is what it is, as based on real life events and as far as realism, the filmmakers stayed close to the facts of the events. So the spirit of the real Zola is evident in this picture, which adds much to the experience, without question. I do think that perhaps other films warranted the Best Picture nod over this one, but this is still a solid, well crafted movie. Warner’s disc isn’t loaded, but looks good and has a couple nice extras, so this isn’t a bare bones treatment. I’d recommend a rental to those interested, as The Life of Emile Zola is a worthwhile movie, just not as a purchase.
Video: How does it look?
The Life of Emile Zola is presented in full frame, as intended. This presentation has some flaws, but in the end, I feel this is a more than solid visual transfer. The source materials show some nicks and debris, but less than expected and aside from a couple minor jumps, I saw no serious problems. The black & white image is well balanced and as such, no overly dark or soft scenes are evident. I think some restoration work could be done here, but this is a nice looking transfer overall, so no hard feelings here.
Audio: How does it sound?
I was a little let down by this mono track, but it manages to come up strong when it needs to. I noticed some hiss and pops here, but never at important times, which lessens the impact I think. This is not the cleanest track I’ve heard by any means, but the basic elements surface when called on, so I suppose I can’t knock the score too much. I do wish this was restored somewhat to clean some spots up, but as far as older mono tracks go, this one isn’t too far from the normal standards. This disc also includes subtitles in English, Spanish, and French, just in case you’ll need those.
Supplements: What are the extras?
You’ll find three short films from the vaults, the serious The Little Diplomat, the musical Romance Road, and the animated Ain’t We Got Fun. I am pleased to see such material released, but these don’t match up all that well with the feature presentation. Instead, some newsreels could have been included to draw more attention to the real life events behind the cinematic version. This disc also includes a Lux Radio Theatre production, as well as the film’s theatrical trailer.
