A Farewell to Arms

Semi-autobiographical?

Was Hemingway's novel semi-autobiographical? Here's an extract from Hemingway's biography as reported in Wikipedia:

'Early in 1918 [aged 18] Hemingway responded to a Red Cross recruitment effort in Kansas City and signed on to become an ambulance driver in Italy. He left New York in May and arrived in Paris as the city was under bombardment from German artillery. By June, he was at the Italian Front. ...On his first day in Milan, he was sent to the scene of a munitions factory explosion, where rescuers retrieved the shredded remains of female workers. He described the incident in his non-fiction book Death in the Afternoon: "I remember that after we searched quite thoroughly for the complete dead we collected fragments"...

'On July 8, he was seriously wounded by mortar fire, having just returned from the canteen bringing chocolate and cigarettes for the men at the front line. Despite his wounds, Hemingway assisted Italian soldiers to safety, for which he received the Italian Silver Medal of Bravery. Still only 18, Hemingway said of the incident: "When you go to war as a boy you have a great illusion of immortality. Other people get killed; not you ... Then when you are badly wounded the first time you lose that illusion and you know it can happen to you." He sustained severe shrapnel wounds to both legs, underwent an immediate operation at a distribution centre, and spent five days at a field hospital before he was transferred for recuperation to the Red Cross hospital in Milan. He spent six months at the hospital...

'While recuperating, he fell in love, for the first time, with Agnes von Kurowsky, a Red Cross nurse seven years his senior. By the time of his release and return to the United States in January 1919, Agnes and Hemingway had decided to marry within a few months in America. However, in March, she wrote that she had become engaged to an Italian officer. Biographer Jeffrey Meyers states that Hemingway was devastated by Agnes' rejection, and in future relationships, he followed a pattern of abandoning a wife before she abandoned him.'

I came across an interesting article in the Telegraph (see link below) which tells us that early drafts of the book included 47 different endings:

'The ending that survived Hemingway's revisions, about the death of Catherine, was:
"It was like saying good-by to a statue. After a while I went out and left the hospital and walked back to the hotel in the rain."

Among the 47 finales tried out by Hemingway was the so-called 'Nada Ending':
“That is all there is to the story. Catherine died and you will die and I will die and that is all I can promise you.”

and the 'Live-Baby' ending:
“There is no end except death and birth is the only beginning.”

Incidentally, Hemingway's ending to A Farewell To Arms caused consternation when it was made into a film in 1932. Paramount decided, after much disagreement, to keep Hemingway's original ending and fade out after the death of Catherine. This ending was kept for the European release, but a new ending, in which she lives, was later added to the American release.'

The film won Oscars for cinematography (well deserved, I thought) and sound. It was also nominated for best picture in 1933, the year the award went to Cavalcade, a hugely popular musical based on Noel Coward's play.

According to IMDB (See link below) censorship problems arose from early versions of the script, which included phases of Catherine's actual childbirth and references to labour pains, gas, her groaning and haemorrhaging… the film was rejected in British Columbia and in Australia, where Hemingway's book was also banned.

We've all seen Gary Cooper in films like High Noon and Sergeant York, but who was Helen Hayes?

Helen Hayes in Airport

An American actress whose career spanned almost 80 years, she was one of twelve people with the unusual distinction of winning an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony. Her maternal grandparents migrated from Ireland at the time of the Potato Famine. She starred with Gary Cooper (whom she admitted to finding extremely attractive), Myrna Loy and Clark Gable in the1930s. She played on the Broadway stage for many years returning to film in Airport, Herbie Rides Again, and several others.

It is unclear when or by whom Hayes was called the "First Lady of the Theatre". Her friend, actress Katharine Cornell also held that title, and each thought that the other deserved it. One critic said that Cornell played every Queen as though she were a woman, whereas Hayes played every woman as though she were a Queen.

Feedback score was 63%:

B	A fair interpretation of the novel. Some excellent cinematography and good acting from all the leads.
B	Interesting on many levels. Worth watching.
B	Enjoyed it. Thanks.
B
B	A film “of its time” - v. enjoyable & so suitable for today.
B	Most enjoyable
B	Looking forward to the next time!
B	Wonderful & not what I was expecting. Ighting and sexual content surprising.
B	AMAZING SET PIECES AND SPECIAL EFFECTS — PARTICULARLY IN VIEW OF THE AGE OF THE FILM.
C	Surprisingly modern for 1932. Gary Cooper = Yummy!
C	It was a good example of a 1930s film — haven't things improved!
C	A good weepy. A bit melodramatic but of its time, Sticks reasonably well to the book.
C	Delightfully hammy!
C	Got better as it went along.
C
C
C	Difficult to assess. No experience of films made in 1932
C	An interesting insight into how the world of film-making has dramatically changed as has the attitude of the audience.
C	Hasn't really stood the test of time.
C	Don't make them like this any more — !!
C	Nostalgia personified. Very enjoyable.
C	Dated but!! War scenes v. good — Enjoyed.
C
D	Not incisive enough as a film about war. Too schmaltzy — a fine romance.
D	Too creaky to deserve a showing!
D	A shocking script. Could not take it seriously as a story.
D	Amazing war sequences for the era but acting and script were risible.
D	Very melodramatic. Of its time.

On-line:
Steve Rose in the Guardian - "dated, yet bracingly modern war epic...
Meeting in Italy one evening, they conduct what must be the swiftest courtship in movie history, illicit consummation included. "(4 Stars)
http://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/may/29/a-farewell-to-arms-1932-review-hemingway-gary-cooper

A fascinating article in the Telegraph — “Ernest Hemingway wrote 47 endings to A Farewell To Arms”
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/booknews/9378446/Ernest-Hemingway-wrote-47-endings-to-A-Farewell-To-Arms.html

IMDB – 6.6 of 10.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0022879/

Rotten Tomatoes (52% audience rating)
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/farewell_to_arms/