The Story of Esther Costello

Infobox Film
name = The Story of Esther Costello


image_size =
caption = Original theatrical poster
director = David Miller
producer = Jack Clayton
David Miller
writer = Novel:
Nicholas Monsarrat
Screenplay:
Charles Kaufman
narrator =
starring = Joan Crawford
Rossano Brazzi
Heather Sears
music = Lambert Williamson
cinematography = Robert Krasker
editing = Ralph Kemplen
distributor = Columbia Pictures
released = flagicon|USA 6 November 1957
runtime = 127 min.
country = USA
language = English
budget =
gross =
preceded_by =
followed_by =
website =
amg_id =
imdb_id = 0051015

"The Story of Esther Costello" is a 1957 Columbia Pictures Golden Globe nominated feature film starring Joan Crawford, Rossano Brazzi, and Heather Sears. The film is an exposè of large-scale fundraising. "The Story of Esther Costello" was produced by David Miller and Jack Clayton with Miller directing. The screenplay by Charles Kaufman was based on a novel by Nicholas Monsarrat.

Plot and cast

With her marriage to womanizer Carlo Landi (Brazzi) in ashes, wealthy and childless Margaret Landi (Crawford) finds an emotional outlet in patronizing a 15-year-old deaf, dumb, and blind Irish girl named Esther Costello (Sears). Esther's disabilities are the result of a childhood trauma and are pyschosomatic rather than physical. As Costello makes progress with Braille and sign language, she is seen as an example of triumph over adversity. Carlo gets wind of Margaret's new life and re-enters the scene. He views Esther as a source of cheap financial gain and arranges a series of exploitative tours for her under a mercenary manager (Ron Rendell). One day when Margaret is absent from the Landi apartment, Carlo seduces and rapes the now 16-year-old Esther. The shock restores the girl's sight and hearing. When Margaret learns of her husband's business duplicities and the rape, she consigns Esther to the care of a priest and a young reporter who loves her (Lee Patterson), then kills Carlo and herself. Cast includes Denis O'Dea as Father Devlin, Fay Compton as Mother Superior, John Loder as Paul Marchant, and Bessie Love as Matron in Art Gallery.

Production notes

The film is based on a book by Nicholas Monsarrat that nearly had Helen Keller's co-workers suing for libel due to perceived parallels between Helen's story and Esther's. [Lash, Joseph, "Helen and Teacher", Addison-Wesley 1997, pp 732-738.] In particular, the book seemed to slur the character of Anne Sullivan's husband, writer-publicist John Macy, who was close to Keller's age. A relationship between John and Keller has long been a subject of speculation. [Lash, Joseph, "Helen and Teacher", Addison-Wesley 1997, pp. 868-869.] Esther's reporter friend was reminiscent of Keller's highly-publicized attempt to elope with reporter-secretary Peter Fagan. [Lash, Joseph, "Helen and Teacher", Addison-Wesley 1997, pp. 441-444, 448-450.]

Reception

The "New York Times" noted, "Miss Crawford, Mr. Brazzi, and Mr. Patterson and all the minor players are professional throughout." William K. Zinsser in the "New York Herald Tribune" wrote, "It wouldn't be a Joan Crawford picture without plenty of anguish...And her fans will have their usual good time...this plot enables Miss Crawford to run a full-course dinner of dramatic moods, from loneliness to mother love, from pride in the girl to passion with her husband, and finally to smouldering rage...Somehow she pulls it off. This may not be your kind of movie but it is many women's kind of movie and our Joan is queen of the art form." [Quirk, Lawrence J.. "The Films of Joan Crawford". The Citadel Press, 1968.]

ee also

*Joan Crawford filmography

References

Navbox
name = Joan Crawford
title = The 1940-1970 Films of Miss Joan Crawford
group1 = 1940-1949
list1 = nowrap| "Strange Cargo" (1940) • nowrap| "Susan and God" (1940) • nowrap| "A Woman's Face" (1941) • nowrap| "When Ladies Meet" (1941) • nowrap| "They All Kissed the Bride" (1942) • nowrap| "Reunion in France" (1942) • nowrap| "Above Suspicion" (1943) • nowrap| "Hollywood Canteen" (1944) • nowrap| "Mildred Pierce" (1945) • nowrap| "Humoresque" (1946) • nowrap| "Possessed" (1947) • nowrap| "Daisy Kenyon" (1947) • nowrap| "Flamingo Road" (1949) • nowrap| "It's a Great Feeling" (1949)
name = Joan Crawford
title = The 1940-1970 Films of Miss Joan Crawford
group2 = 1950-1959
list2 = nowrap| "The Damned Don't Cry!" (1950) • nowrap| "Harriet Craig" (1950) • nowrap| "Goodbye, My Fancy" (1951) • nowrap| "This Woman is Dangerous" (1952) • nowrap| "Sudden Fear" (1952) • nowrap| "Torch Song" (1953) • nowrap| "Johnny Guitar" (1954) • nowrap| "Female on the Beach" (1955) • nowrap| "Queen Bee" (1955) • nowrap| "Autumn Leaves" (1956) • nowrap| "The Story of Esther Costello" (1957) • nowrap| "The Best of Everything" (1959)
name = Joan Crawford
title = The 1940-1970 Films of Miss Joan Crawford
group3 = 1960-1969
list3 = nowrap| "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?" (1962) • nowrap| "The Caretakers" (1963) • nowrap| "Strait-Jacket" (1964) • nowrap| "I Saw What You Did" (1965) • nowrap| "Berserk!" (1967)
group4 = 1970
list4 = nowrap| "Trog" (1970)