HELLO-GOODBYE (1970)

Title: HELLO-GOODBYE

Year of Release: 1970

Director: Jean Negulesco

Genre: Drama, Romance, Comedy

Synopsis: A car salesman falls for a mysterious French woman who hitches a ride from him, but is surprised to discover her true identity.

Within a film history context: Movies about car salesmen have not been plentiful in cinema history, generally being supporting characters in the narrative. One of the first to feature a car salesman was William Nigh's morality play TODAY (1930). In this film, the Wall Street crash is the reason a man becomes a used car salesman, but his wife finds this life change a step downwards, and exceedingly difficult to bear, becoming a prostitute. THE YOUNG IN HEART (1938), directed by Richard Wallace, featured a family of charming schemers on the make, with the patriarch assuming a position as a luxury car salesman. With Garson Kanin's humorous TOM, DICK AND HARRY (1941), a young woman enchants three very different men, one of these being a car salesman. In contrast, an unscrupulous car salesman is a minor character in GAS HOUSE KIDS GO WEST (1947), directed by William Beaudine, selling a stolen car to young men seeking to go to California. A similar situation was apparent in Don McDougall's suspenseful HOT CARS (1956). A car salesman finds himself in hot water working for a man who sells stolen vehicles, and becomes implicated in an elaborate chain of events. 

NO DOWN PAYMENT (1957), directed by Martin Ritt, had a car salesman leading a profligate life of excess which endangers his marriage to his wife. Robert Hamer's SCHOOL FOR SCOUNDRELS (1960) followed the lead of many of the previous movies, with two devious car salesmen selling a man a dud car in this British comedy. THE FAST LADY (1962), directed by Ken Annakin, also had a smarmy car salesman who causes waves for a man to whom he sells an automobile. A decidedly comic take on car salesman was in William Castle's THE OLD DARK HOUSE (1963). A car salesman makes a special delivery of a car to a mansion for his friend, but stumbles into surprises, and shocks galore in this comedy-horror movie. HELLO-GOODBYE had more in common with the lighter-hearted films about car salesmen, but had some of its own individual features.

It was closest to THE YOUNG IN HEART in terms of its central character being a luxury car salesman, but unlike this film, Harry in HELLO-GOODBYE was a main protagonist instead of a supporting character. Both films had the car salesman surrounded by glamorous trappings, which is something that other films diverted from, being more centred upon car salesmen who were underhanded or devious. While Harry could not be described as a young innocent, and had various tricks up his sleeve, he was not in the same league as the scheming car salesmen from entries such as GAS HOUSE KIDS GO WEST, HOT CARS, SCHOOL FOR SCOUNDRELS, or THE FAST LADY. There was an air of charm, naivete and romance in HELLO-GOODBYE's Harry which none of the other movies could match. 

The car salesman in NO DOWN PAYMENT had a personal life, being a Lothario and wreaking havoc, but Harry in HELLO-GOODBYE was in search of not only money but also, true love. This made Harry a more approachable, sympathetic figure than the car salesman in NO DOWN PAYMENT. The other main difference was that while NO DOWN PAYMENT was steeped in realism, HELLO-GOODBYE was of a more escapist, high life orientation. The central example of this being Harry coming into contact with European Royalty, this only emphasizing the movie's beguiling nature. A film which takes its car salesman character and story, giving both of these a stylish rendition, HELLO-GOODBYE is an entertaining, if slight, picture.

Overview: Jean Negulseco was a Romanian director long in Hollywood. In his career he directed thirty-eight motion pictures ranging from dramatic to more comic movies, in many instances with sweeping, romantic themes. His movies were also notable for their visual gloss and glamour, but generally had the courage of their convictions. Mr Negulesco's first film, CRASH DONOVAN (1936), co-directed with William Nigh, was the tale of a police officer becoming enmeshed with a smuggling ring, starring stalwart action star Jack Holt in the lead. Mr Negulesco began to rise in prominence with THE MASK OF DIMITRIOS (1944). A film noir about how a mystery writer in Istanbul, and how he encounters a real-life murder when a criminal is found dead in the Bosphorus had an illustrious cast headed by Peter Lorre, Zachary Scott, Victor Francen, and Sydney Greenstreet. One of Jean Negulesco's most important films of the 1940s was HUMORESQUE (1946). The remake of a silent film with Alma Rubens, this version starred Joan Crawford as a woman who falls for a younger violinist, beautifully acted and photographed. JOHNNY BELINDA (1948) was the story of a deaf-mute woman who is raped, and falls pregnant. The kindly doctor whom she befriends is accused of being the father of her baby, and backlash occurs in the town, leading to many repercussions for the characters. 

THE MUDLARK (1950) detailed the story of a young man in 1870s Britain who finds a locket of Queen Victoria, and wants to see her at any cost. It is also the story of how the Queen is in mourning for her late husband, and how a politician tries his best to assist her to reenter public life after a long seclusion. TITANIC (1953) concerned a bickering American couple on the doomed voyager, and associated stories intertwined. With HOW TO MARRY A MILLIONAIRE (1953), Jean Negulesco began his ascent as the maker of glossy entertainments with a romantic edge. Three women seek millionaire husbands, and love to go along with this, but life steers them in the right direction. One of the most popular movies of the year, aided not only by its visual appeal, CinemaScope, and leading actresses Lauren Bacall, Betty Grable, and Marilyn Monroe, it was an effervescent movie. Romance was once again on the agenda for Mr Negulesco in THREE COINS IN THE FOUNTAIN (1954). The structure of three young women seeking love was again explored here, but this time set in Rome, and with a slightly melancholy edge that suited the dramatic material. 

DADDY LONG LEGS (1955) was a musical of an orphaned French woman, and the American man who paid for her education. A May-December romance subsequently develops between the two, with Fred Astaire and Leslie Caron in the lead roles. Romance was also at the fore of BOY ON A DOLPHIN (1957). A love triangle blossoms between a Greek sponge diver and two men competing for her emotions in this exotic adventure tale. A CERTAIN SMILE (1958) was another film with a love triangle, this time a young French woman engaged to a young man embarks on an illicit affair with his uncle. THE BEST OF EVERYTHING (1959) was a chic tale of the lives, and loves, of young women working in the publishing industry on Madison Avenue. Into the 1960s, THE PLEASURE SEEKERS (1964) was an updated version of THREE COINS IN THE FOUNTAIN, this time set in Madrid. It was not as commercially successful as the original, or seen in the same way in retrospect. HELLO-GOODBYE had elements in common with Jean Negulesco's more upmarket movies, but was not one of his best efforts.

HELLO-GOODBYE had the presence of romantic themes which infused his best work, such as HUMORESQUE, HOW TO MARRY A MILLIONAIRE, DADDY LONG LEGS, and THREE COINS IN THE FOUNTAIN. People seeking love, and coming up against obstacles was a common tenet in Jean Negulesco's movies. In these films people find love in most unexpected quarters, with unconventional couplings emphasised. Many times there are age gaps between characters in romantic stories, something HOW TO MARRY A MILLIONAIRE, THREE COINS IN THE FOUNTAIN, DADDY LONG LEGS, and BOY ON A DOLPHIN also shared with HELLO-GOODBYE. In HELLO-GOODBYE, Dany and her husband the Baron have a great age difference between them, but this is not mentioned as being the reason for her unhappiness. Aside from this, HELLO-GOODBYE possessed other qualities also evident in Jean Negulesco's other movies. With its French setting, it was one of his films with an international flavour, something which Mr Negulesco had an affinity for, with THE MASK OF DIMITRIOS, THREE COINS IN THE FOUNTAIN, A CERTAIN SMILE, and THE PLEASURE SEEKERS examples of this. While HELLO-GOODBYE had several positive traits, there were definite deficiencies when the film as a whole is taken into consideration.

It is pleasing that HELLO-GOODBYE has that sense of pathos that marked HUMORESQUE, JOHNNY BELINDA, DADDY LONG LEGS, and THREE COINS IN THE FOUNTAIN, but the movie does not dive as deeply into why characters act the way they do in the movie. The result is that the viewer is given a set of occurrences which are understandable, but not fully fleshed out. Dany is the Baron's wife who hitches a ride with car salesman Harry, thus taking on a lover, but one is given fleeting insights into why Dany has taken these actions. The depth of her unhappiness is never really exposed, in spite of scenes where it appears she rails against being the well-dressed trophy wife of a powerful baron. Aside from this, there are other parts of the film which required further attention. 

Both sons of the baron expressed amorous feelings toward Dany, but, this thread is introduced, and quickly dismissed. In addition, there is a slight mentor relationship between Harry and the baron's son Raymond, but it is something that is explored in just a handful of short scenes. The baron's private life, outside his marriage with Dany, is also left to the imagination. While it is good to not overload viewers with information, in these cases more would have been beneficial. Aside from this, there is also the tendency in the picture to showcase Dany in a state of undress, which quickly becomes tiresome. While Dany is a figure of attractiveness and charm, her dispplays of nudity do nothing for the movie. Despite these flaws, though, some things can be said about HELLO-GOODBYE in the final analysis. Jean Negulesco's final film was not one of his most admirable efforts, but, nevertheless, a diverting, if lacking, motion picture.

Acting: The acting in HELLO-GOODBYE is one of the reasons the film works, lifting it considerably. Michael Crawford, as Harry, car salesman and jetsetter, does a great job in the movie. An actor well-known for his comic roles, here he does that, coupled with a pathos that makes Harry a rounded character. As Dany, Harry's lover, and wife of the Baron, Genevieve Gilles contributes an interesting interpretation of a woman dissatisfied with her life in the picture. An actress for whom this was her sole acting part, she does well with the varied emotions of this complicated young woman. On the other hand Didier Haudepin, as Raymond, the Baron's son, is wasted in a small part that could have been extended, as he was intriguing to watch. Curd Jurgens as Baron de Choisis, though, is what gives the film its oomph and elegance. A German actor who played in many Hollywood films, generally as military men but also in other roles, here adds his considerable dash, authority, and humor as the multi-faceted Baron, a man to watch.

Soundtrack: Francis Lai's dreamy theme song is one of the most memorable aspects of HELLO-GOODBYE. It is played in full during the opening credits sequence, and throughout the movie on a regular basis, exemplifying the film's romantic, European focus. The theme is also utilized during the closing credits with lyrics which provide the movie a snazzy style and allure.

Mise-en-scene: HELLO-GOODBYE has beautiful attention to detail in terms of mise-en-scene, which befitted its high budget. Henri Decae's colour cinematography captures both indoor, and outdoor locations with finesse, always careful in not making whatever appears on screen garish. Outdoor locations such as the French Riviera, exteriors of the Baron's mansion, for example, are all easy on the eyes, but effective in their use. Interiors such as the Baron's mansion, his and Dany's bedroom, the casino, and Dany's small apartment, play an important role in providing non-verbal information about the characters to the audience, thanks to production designer John Howell, and set designers Pierre Charron and Pamela Cornell. Costuming by Rosine Delamare is also another key element in the movie, particularly striking is the contrast between Dany's informal, and elaborate formal outfits.

Notable Acting Performances: Michael Crawford, Genevieve Gilles, Curd Jurgens.

Suitability for young viewers: No. Female nudity, adult themes.

Overall Grade: C

Link: IMDB Page