Eleanor Parker in The Seventh Sin

Eleanor Parker made a lot of great movie in the 1950s and one of her more under-appreciated efforts from that decade is The Seventh Sin. It was based on the novel The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham. Most people can't talk about The Seventh Sin without mentioning that the same story was first filmed in 1934 with Greta Garbo in the lead (oops, I mentioned it!). The Painted Veil was again filmed in 2006, leaving The Seventh Sin as probably the least seen version. Well, I haven't seen either version of The Painted Veil, I've only watched The Seventh Sin, so I can't draw any comparisons. I can just say that Eleanor Parker was terrific in it and that this film certainly stands alone.

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Here are some images of Eleanor Parker in The Seventh Sin:

Jean-Pierre Aumont lights Eleanor Parker's cigarette

Eleanor Parker and George Sanders

Eleanor Parker and George Sanders again

Promoting The Seventh Sin

Like any other Hollywood classic, Eleanor Parker's 1957 film The Seventh Sin got it's fair share of publicity.

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First, you have the build-up. A year and a half before The Seventh Sin was released theatrically came the announcement that Eleanor Parker would star in the film. Ava Gardner was originally attached to the picture.

Second, you have a nice poster advertising the film. Taglines like "The world forgives many things but not...The Seventh Sin" and "MGM's drama of modern morals in reckless Hong Kong" are there to pique interest. An adult entertainment label is also clearly visible which lets one know right away that the film is risqué‎.

A photo with caption to generate even more interest:

A quick, generally positive review/summary of the film:

A pair of crisp black & white promotional photos:

I don't think that The Seventh Sin was as big a financial hit as MGM may have wanted. Solution? Play it on TV! Here is an ad for a television rebroadcast of the film from a decade after it was released: