The Life of Emile Zola

Name: The Life of Emile Zola
Director: William Dieterle
Released: 1937
Duration: 116 min
Rating: 7.1
Cast: Paul Muni, Gale Sondergaard, Joseph Schildkraut, Gloria Holden, Donald Crisp

1937 · 116 MIN · IMDB 7.1 · 9,467 VOTES · DIR. William Dieterle

Overview

A fictionalized account of famous French writer Emile Zola and his involvement in the Dreyfus Affair. After struggling to establish himself, Zola wins success writing about the unsavory side of Paris and settles into a comfortable upper-class life. However, Zola's complacency is shaken when Jewish officer Alfred Dreyfus is imprisoned for being a spy. Realizing that Dreyfus is an innocent victim of anti-Semitism, Zola boldly pens a newspaper article exposing the truth, is charged with libel and must defend himself in a dramatic courtroom testimony.

Dialogue Timeline — 1,346 lines

A SAMPLE ACROSS THE RUNTIME — EVERY LINE IS SEARCHABLE

00:01:47 It's no use, Émile. The place is like a sieve.

00:05:58 Do you have a book called The Confessions of Claude?

00:10:45 I tell you, the lady is our friend. You have no right.

00:15:42 And lose the privilege of arguing with my old friend?

00:21:41 ...rushing into the adventure of war with the confusion...

00:26:22 Yes. I'm going south, back to the country.

00:32:50 What do you think of this?

00:36:33 Civilian dress?

00:41:13 I've been instructed to offer you the usual alternative.

00:45:53 The court-martial orders that prior to this sentence being carried out...

00:50:16 - Let me say goodbye to my husband. - No.

00:55:11 ...for membership in the French Academy.

00:58:50 You mean they knew...

01:04:12 ...but the condemnation of Esterhazy involved revision of the Dreyfus verdict...

01:08:59 There it is. It's the court summons.

01:13:10 I'd like to ask him the circumstance under which he first suspected...

01:16:54 Mount Valerien fortress, under military arrest.

01:22:22 I see. The honor and security of France...

01:25:48 Officers are allowed to say what they please.

01:30:45 That is no fault of mine.

01:35:57 "Zola condemned, Zola in cowardly flight."

01:40:37 I think you're making a grave mistake, Your Excellency.

01:46:43 What were you saying, my dear?

01:52:36 Zola found dead!

Cast & Characters

Paul Muni Emile Zola Gale Sondergaard Lucie Dreyfus Joseph Schildkraut Capt. Alfred Dreyfus Gloria Holden Alexandrine Zola Donald Crisp Maitre Labori Erin O'Brien-Moore Nana John Litel Charpentier Henry O'Neill Col. Picquart Morris Carnovsky Anatole France Louis Calhern Maj. Dort

Dialogue Record

Lines indexed1,346

Dialogue density11.6 lines / min

First line00:01:47

Final line01:52:36

Production Record

DirectorWilliam Dieterle

LanguageEnglish

IMDb votes9,467