from Warner Bros.
Directed by
William Dieterle
Starring
Paul Muni ...Emile Zola
Gale Sondergaard ...Lucie Dreyfus
Joseph Schildkraut ...Captain Alfred Dreyfus
Gloria Holden ...Alexandrine Zola
Donald Crisp ...Maitre Labori
Erin O'Brien-Moore ...Nana
John Litel ...Charpentier
Henry O'Neill ...Colonel Picquart
Morris Carnovsky ...Anatole France
Louis Calhern ...Major Dort
Ralph Morgan ...Commander of Paris
Robert Barrat ...Major Walsin-Esterhazy
Vladimir Sokoloff ...Paul Cezanne
Grant Mitchell ...Georges Clemenceau
Harry Davenport ...Chief of Staff
Robert Warwick ...Major Henry
Charles Richman ...M. DeLagorgue
Gilbert Emery ...Minister of War
Walter Kingsford ...Colonel Sandherr
Paul Everton ...Assistant Chief of Staff
Montagu Love ...Cavaignac
Frank Sheridan ...M. Van Cassell
Lumsden Hare ...M. Richards
Marcia Mae Jones ...Helen Richards
Florence Roberts ...Madame Zola
Dickie Moore ...Pierre Dreyfus
Rolla Courvitch ...Jeanne Dreyfus
Clarence Wilson ...Newspaper Editor
Holmes Herbert ...Commander of Paris
Arthur Aylesworth ...Chief Censor
Paul Irving ...La Rue
Alexander Leftwich ...Major D' Aboville
Frank Mayo ...Mathieu Dreyfus
Moroni Olsen ...Captain Guignet
Frank Reicher ...M. Perrenx
Walter O. Stahl ...Senator Scheurer-Kestner
Stanley Blystone
Pierre Watkin ...Prefect of Police
Harry Worth ...Lieutenant
Wilhelm von Brincken ...Swartzoppen
Egon Brecher ...Brucker
Robert Cummings Sr. ...General Gillian
Frank Darien ...Albert
Franklyn Farnum
Iphigenie Castiglioni ...Madame Charpentier
Written by
Matthew Josephson (book Zola and His Time)
Heinz Herald (story)
and
Geza Herczeg (story)
Norman Reilly Raine &
Heinz Herald &
Geza Herczeg |
 Paul
Muni gave an unforgettable, Oscar-nominated performance as French
novelist Emile Zola in this classic biographical picture. The
film covers the 19th-century author's life, from his days as
a socially-conscious young writer, to the publication of his
famous early novel "Nana," to his many battles against
injustice -- which culminated in his famous fight on behalf of
Captain Alfred Dreyfus (Joseph Schildkraut). Zola came to Dreyfus's
defense after the captain was court-martialled by the French
army for supposedly supplying military secrets to the Germans.
The author was convinced of Dreyfus's innocence and challenged
the French government -- and even his own friends -- to get Dreyfus
released from Devil's Island. And a large segment of the film
is devoted to Zola's courageous stand on behalf of Dreyfus...
and, in essence, on behalf of freedom for everyone. Academy
Award Nominations: 10, including Best Director, Best Actor--Paul
Muni, Best Original Story. Academy Awards: 3, including Best
Picture, Best Screenplay, Best Supporting Actor--Joseph Schildkraut.
Although a key reason for Captain Dreyfus's persecution by the
French army was the fact that he was Jewish, the word "Jewish"
is never used in the film.
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