Review of The Story of Three Loves

Trio of stories--a popular movie gimmick in the 1950s--linked by an ocean-liner and three disparate characters on-board. James Mason is intense and snarling as a demanding ballet impresario who falls for ill-fated ballerina Moira Shearer, who, unbeknownst to him, is suffering from a bad ticker; Leslie Caron plays governess to ungrateful brat Ricky Nelson, both magically touched by the powers of Ethel Barrymore, reputed to be a witch; Kirk Douglas (as Pierre!) is a former star of the trapeze who trains suicidal Pier Angeli to be his new partner under the Big Top. The first two episodes are hurt by a weak narrative (the protagonists appear to recall information they should not be privy to), while the last chapter is hurt by miscasting (neither Douglas nor Angeli looks quite comfortable doing these gymnastic moves). However, the M-G-M production gloss is in peak form, and the picture looks good enough to eat. After a lengthy credits sequence (illustrated with the silhouette of a tree branch!), the color visuals take over, as if in a dream, and the effect is hypnotic. Not so the dialogue, which is heavy on the melodramatic flourish (Agnes Moorehead to the doctor: "Paula must dance or she will die!", to which the doctor replies gravely, "If she does...she will!"). Douglas is so mercurial in his angst that he's amusing unintentionally, while sullen Angeli is made up to look like a corpse in a silent movie. Still, one is drawn into this sumptuous bag of tricks almost against his will, and the overall results are fun for '50s connoisseurs. *** from ****