The Seventh Sin (1957)

In 1949 Hong Kong, when a doctor (Bill Travers, BORN FREE) discovers his wife (Eleanor Parker) is having an adulterous affair with a married man (Jean Pierre Aumont) he gives her an ultimatum. He'll give her a divorce if her lover leaves his wife for her or else she must accompany him to a remote Chinese village where a cholera epidemic is spreading or he'll cause a scandal. Her lover refuses to leave his wife which sets the stage for a story of redemption. Based on the 1925 novel THE PAINTED VEIL by W. Somerset Maugham, this is the second film version. It was previously filmed in 1934 with Greta Garbo and once again in 2006 with Naomi Watts. There's a good performance by Parker and the film stays with the unhappy ending unlike the 1934 film. The film's attitudes are a bit dated ("It's a woman's duty to please her husband") but it is set in 1949 and the film's final moments are beautifully handled. But the production never quite becomes more than a decent "woman's picture" as they were referred to back then. Directed by Ronald Neame (PRIME OF MISS JEAN BRODIE) but reputedly finished by Vincente Minnelli after Neame left the project. Another good score by Miklos Rozsa. With George Sanders (wonderful as always), Francoise Rosay, Ellen Corby and James Hong.