The Life of Emile Zola (1937)

Well, the title of this movie is a plot summary in itself. Emile Zola was a "muckraking" French writer and journalist whose life goes from rags to perhaps not riches but fulfillment. Zola has a hard time keeping jobs and impressing employers because he is controversial and outspoken man that likes to stir the pot and fight against injustice. After the publication of several successful books, the remainder of the film focuses on the wrongful life imprisonment of Captain Alfred Dreyfus for acts of treason he did not commit. Will Zola have the power to free this man before he dies of harsh prison conditions, and will Capt. Dreyfus forgive the military that he loved so much?

The Life of Emile Zola could be called a "rage against the machine" film much like Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, although Smith is a better film. While certainly a superior example of a courtroom drama than the awkward third act of Cimarron, Emile Zola is less a story/script than a string of soapbox speeches and phrases about truth and justice. That being said, there were some great aspects to this movie; Paul Muni's excellent performance and transformative makeup carry the film (I just watched the 1932 version of Scarface a few weeks back and Muni is almost unrecognizable here), and Joseph Schildkraut as Capt. Dreyfus infuses the film with many wonderful moments. I'm not sure how much of this film is fictionalized, and I would not be surprised to discover that a lot of it is. The ending of the film and the conclusion of Zola's story is disappointing to say the least, but I guess you can't control how life plays out. Perhaps that was one of the morals of the film... (if you're confused about what I mean, don't worry, Katie will spoil the whole ending for you in just a minute) In any case, Zola is a completely fine film but one that earns only a middle spot of our mental lists of the best of the Best Picture winners thus far. Still, a decent watch if you have never seen it.

This movie is another biopic much like The Great Ziegfeld however not nearly as impressive.  The make up was astounding.  If you see a picture of Paul Muni and then look at his picture on the poster below, it is amazing.  The most interesting part of the movie to me was in the beginning Zola lived with the famous painter Paul Cezanne.  He sort of meanders in and out of Zola's life but he was my favorite character.  There were some very touching moments, for instance when Dreyfus, the man that Zola is defending is finally released after thirtyish years.  He walks through the jail cell several times because the feeling of finally free was so wonderful he had to go through the motions a few times.  That was a fantastic moment.  The movie ends with (spoiler alert) Zola's death.  He dies from carbon monoxide poisoning.  I know that it's based on a true story and that he really did die from that but man.... what a lame-o way to die.  Maybe that's rude, but he just fled the wrath of the Parisian soldiers and when he finally gets home, he dies from a chimney plug.  It just was too weird and sad.  The movie was alright.  It's hard to come off of a wonderful movie like The Great Ziegfeld and not feel like there is a decline in quality.  

The film was shot in reverse order; Paul Muni grew his own beard for the role, and it was trimmed and darkened as he proceeded to scenes where Zola is younger. His makeup took 3-1/2 hours to apply each morning.

"I shall tell the truth. Because if I did not, my nights would be haunted by the spectre of an innocent man expiating under the most frightful torture a crime he never committed."