Hayes’ Top Home Videos

Helen Hayes’ few quality movies are available on home video, but some of them, such as “Arrowsmith” (1931, Nelson Entertainment), co-starring Ronald Colman, are tough to watch. Hayes, who died Wednesday, made her mark in films in the early 1930s, when the industry was still in transition from silents; production techniques were crude and the acting style was still characterized by excesses.

Hayes’ movies worth a look on video:

“A Farewell to Arms” (1932, Video Yesteryear). The best film version of Ernest Hemingway’s tragic World War I romance, about a wounded American ambulance driver (Gary Cooper) in love with a nurse (Hayes). Your best bet for seeing the actress at her finest.

“The Sin of Madelon Claudet” (1931, MGM/UA). A shamelessly melodramatic tale for which Hayes won a best actress Oscar as a woman who goes from rags to riches to rags supporting her illegitimate son. It’s tough going because of a total lack of subtlety, but if you like soaps, it’s passable.

“Anastasia” (1956, Image Entertainment--laser only). Hayes’ work as the duchess in this superb drama is easily her best as a character actress. But the biggest reason to see this is Ingrid Bergman’s towering, Oscar-winning performance as a woman who impersonates the daughter of a Russian czar to collect a share of a fortune.

“Airport” (1970, MCA). Hayes won a supporting actress Oscar playing a sassy stowaway, the liveliest bit in this glossy, trend-setting, all-star drama about a frenzied night at an airport. Burt Lancaster and Dean Martin star in the movie.