Harrison's Reports (1951)

September 8, 1951 HARRISON’S REPORTS 143 by the story, which is a choppily edited affair dealing with the first love felt by three teen-aged girls for a visiting young American who had lost a leg in the war, and who had been unable to regain his faith and purpose in life. How each of the girls contribute to his adjustment in life, and how each emerges a bit wiser and a bit more of a woman because of him, makes up the rest of the story „but it is no more than mildly interesting because of the lack of continuity and because the characterizations themselves are only skin-deep. The picture has little appeal for the bulk of American movie-goers, but it probably will go over in art houses that cater to patrons with specialized tastes. The fact that the picture is being sponsored by the Theatre Guild should be of considerable help at the box-office. The principal characters in the story are fourteenyear-old Patricia Walters, eldest in an English family of six children, who wants to be a writer when she grows up; Adrienne Corri, an eighteen-year-old self-confident girl whose father owned the jute mill; and Radha, a sensitive and retiring half-caste girl, whose American father (Arthur Shields) had married her Indian mother, and who had yet to find her place because of her mixed heritage. When Thomas E. Breen, a young American who had lost his leg in the war, comes to visit Shields, his cousin, the three girls, close friends, fall in love with him, and as the rivalries develop, each girl in her own way helps him to regain confidence in the future, despite his handicap. Worked into the episodic story is the happy relationship within Patricia’s family, the tragedy that strikes when her little brother dies from a snake bite, and the joy everyone feels when her mother (Nora Swinburne) gives birth to a new son. At the finish Breen returns to America alone, leaving each of the girls more adult-minded because of their association with him. It was produced by Kenneth McEldowney, and directed by Jean Renoir, from a screen play by Rumer Godden and Mr. Renoir, based on Miss Godden’s novel. Suitable for all. “The Blue Veil” with Jane Wyman, Charles Laughton and Joan Blondell (RKO, no rel. date set; time, 113 min.) A touching, sentimental drama, revolving around a kindly woman who devotes her life to the care and bringing up of other people’s children. It is the type of picture that should go over very well with the masses, for it has deep human appeal, some romantic interest, light touches of comedy and many situations that tug at one’s heart-strings. Jane Wyman, as the self-sacrificing heroine, who because of her ability, sympathy and understanding is loved by all who come in contact with her, proves once again that she possesses extraordinary acting talent; she is seen at four different periods in her life, and she is just as convincing as an aged woman as she is as a sensitive young widow. There are several highly dramatic situations, the most powerful being the one where she loses her fight to keep a young boy she had supported and loved for eight years after he had been abandoned by his mother. The closing scenes, where the young men and women on whom she had lavished her devotion as children gather to welcome her at a surprise party, are tenderly touching. Charles Laughton, Joan Blondell, Richard Carlson, Agnes Moorhead, Audrey Totter, Don Taylor, Cyril Cusak, Everett Sloane, Natalie Wood and Henry Morgan are among the others in the impressive cast whose fine performances help to make this an outstanding drama. The story, which unfolds in four episodes, opens with Jane, a young World War I widow, accepting a post as an infant nurse following the loss of her baby. Her first employer is Charles Laughton, a kindly middle-aged widower, who grows fond of her and proposes marriage. After her refusal and his marriage to his secretary, she leaves to accept a post in the home of wealthy Agnes Moorhead as governess to her youngest son. There she meets and falls in love with Richard Carlson, a tutor. When Carlson obtains a post in Syria, Jane accepts his quick proposal of marriage, but she changes her mind when he expresses doubts about the reliability of a hasty marriage. In the years that follow, Jane’s career as a vicarious mother takes her through a succession of households, during which time she continues a close friendship with Cyril Cusack, a toy shop proprietor. As governess to Natalie Wood, lonely daughter of Joan Blondell, a fading but ambitious actress, Jane brings needed love and understanding to the child. But when it becomes apparent that Natalie prefers Jane to her mother, Jane makes Joan see the light and leaves so that a true kinship may be effected between the two. At the beginning of World War II, Jane becomes an infant nurse in the home of Audrey Totter. When her husband is drafted, Audrey follows him overseas, leaving the child in Jane’s care. She remarries after her husband dies in action and remains in Europe. After eight years, during which Jane raises the boy and supports him, Audrey and her new husband (Henry Morgan) return to claim him. Jane’s selfless spirit rebels, but she loses her fight to hold on to the boy, whom she now loved as her own. Now a broken, lonely old woman, saddened by the death of Cusack, Jane, past the age of employability as a nurse, accepts work as a janitress in a school just to be near children. She consults an eye specialist at a hospital clinic when her eyesight begins to fail, and is delighted to discover that the doctor is Don Taylor, Miss Moorehead’s son, now grown and with a family of his own. He invites her to dinner at his home and, upon arriving, she is surprised to find herself welcomed by the many young men and women she had raised through the years. Her joy is complete when Taylor asks her to become a governess to his own children. It was produced by Jerry Wald and Norman Krasna, and directed by Curtis Bernhardt, from a screen play by Norman Corwin, based on a story by Francois Campaux. Fine for family audiences. “The Mob” with Broderick Crawford (Columbia, October; time, 87 min.) A very good crime melodrama. Full review next week.