A true story about Louis Pasteur, who revolutionized medicine by proving that much disease is caused by microbes, that sanitation is paramount and that at least some diseases can be cured by vaccinations.
Acting
Paul Muni's volcanic commitment—he won Oscar for this.
Production
Lavish 19th-century sets that scream 'we spent money on this.'
Writing
Snappy dialogue treating germ theory like a heist movie.
Director
William Dieterle
Paul Muni
Louis Pasteur
Josephine Hutchinson
Marie Pasteur
Anita Louise
Annette Pasteur
Donald Woods
Dr. Jean Martel
Fritz Leiber
Dr. Charbonnet
Henry O'Neill
Dr. Emile Roux
Porter Hall
Dr. Rossignol
Akim Tamiroff
Dr. Zaranoff
Halliwell Hobbes
Dr. Lister
Frank Reicher
Dr. Pfeiffer
Dickie Moore
Joseph Meister
Walter Kingsford
Napoleon III
Iphigenie Castiglioni
Empress Eugénie
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Muni researched for months and insisted on aging makeup so accurate that actual scientists praised it. Method before method acting existed.
This was Warner Bros.' answer to MGM's 'The Great Ziegfeld'—studio prestige wars disguised as educational cinema. It worked: Muni beat William Powell for Best Actor.
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