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THE GHOST AND MRS. MUIR
Fans of classic movie melodrama will be in heaven with a gem from 1947 called The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, a film where everything works, particularly the non-romantic romance at the center of the story, some imaginative direction, and a lovely chemistry between the stars.
Set at the turn of the century, this is the story of Lucy Muir (the radiant Gene Tierney), a young widow with a daughter who decides to get away from her in-laws and moves into a seaside cottage with her daughter and her maid, despite the fact that her initial visit to the house revealed that it's being haunted by its former owner, a sea captain named Daniel Gregg (Rex Harrison).
Mrs. Muir gets a visit from her in-laws who inform her that there is no money coming from her late husband's estate and that she won't be able to afford to stay at the seaside. In order to raise the money to stay, the Captain suggests that Mrs. Muir, a former writer who stopped writing when she got married, "ghost write" his biography, which, naturally becomes a bestseller but also brings Mrs. Muir in contact with Miles Fairley (George Sanders), a writer of children's books, who instantly falls in love with her, setting up a very unconventional love triangle.
Director Joseph L. Mankiewicz, who a couple of years later would rack up four Oscars for A Letter to Three Wives and All About Eve, proves to have a golden touch with melodrama, presenting a lilting story of star-crossed lovers who really aren't lovers at all. Mankiewicz and screenwriter Phillip Dunne, who adapted the story from a novel by R.A. Dick, also scored in the creation of this central character...we are in love with Mrs. Muir thirty seconds into the movie and through dialogue and direction, her backstory is revealed without her saying a word...it is clear five minutes into this movie that Mrs. Muir's marriage was not a fairy tale romance and that she can't stand her in-laws and I love the way the backstory is confirmed...she is told all of this by Captain Gregg five minutes after he meets her.
This is also another one of those movies centered around a non-romantic romance. It's not just the practical aspect in that Captain Gregg is actually dead, but the fact that both characters are in deep denial about their feelings for each other. The Captain bristles whenever another man comes within five feet of Mrs. Muir and she actually feels guilt when she enjoys the attention of another man. The relationship reminded me of Yul Brynner and Deborah Kerr in The King and I and the chemistry between the actors is just as strong.
Gene Tierney, an actress who the camera loved intensely, is enchanting as Mrs. Muir and Rex Harrison eases into the role of Captain Gregg quite smoothly and we want these two to be together so badly even though it never can be. George Sanders was even more smarmy than he was in All About Eve and little Natalie Wood is adorable as Mrs. Muir's daughter. The film is shot in beautiful black and white, with Oscar-nominated cinematography and also features a lush musical score by the iconic Bernard Hermann. Classic film buffs should eat this one up. Almost 35 years later, the movie was adapted into a television comedy with Hope Lange and Edward Mulhare in the title roles,
but that show was but a pale imitation of this amazing movie.
Fans of classic movie melodrama will be in heaven with a gem from 1947 called The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, a film where everything works, particularly the non-romantic romance at the center of the story, some imaginative direction, and a lovely chemistry between the stars.
Set at the turn of the century, this is the story of Lucy Muir (the radiant Gene Tierney), a young widow with a daughter who decides to get away from her in-laws and moves into a seaside cottage with her daughter and her maid, despite the fact that her initial visit to the house revealed that it's being haunted by its former owner, a sea captain named Daniel Gregg (Rex Harrison).
Mrs. Muir gets a visit from her in-laws who inform her that there is no money coming from her late husband's estate and that she won't be able to afford to stay at the seaside. In order to raise the money to stay, the Captain suggests that Mrs. Muir, a former writer who stopped writing when she got married, "ghost write" his biography, which, naturally becomes a bestseller but also brings Mrs. Muir in contact with Miles Fairley (George Sanders), a writer of children's books, who instantly falls in love with her, setting up a very unconventional love triangle.
Director Joseph L. Mankiewicz, who a couple of years later would rack up four Oscars for A Letter to Three Wives and All About Eve, proves to have a golden touch with melodrama, presenting a lilting story of star-crossed lovers who really aren't lovers at all. Mankiewicz and screenwriter Phillip Dunne, who adapted the story from a novel by R.A. Dick, also scored in the creation of this central character...we are in love with Mrs. Muir thirty seconds into the movie and through dialogue and direction, her backstory is revealed without her saying a word...it is clear five minutes into this movie that Mrs. Muir's marriage was not a fairy tale romance and that she can't stand her in-laws and I love the way the backstory is confirmed...she is told all of this by Captain Gregg five minutes after he meets her.
This is also another one of those movies centered around a non-romantic romance. It's not just the practical aspect in that Captain Gregg is actually dead, but the fact that both characters are in deep denial about their feelings for each other. The Captain bristles whenever another man comes within five feet of Mrs. Muir and she actually feels guilt when she enjoys the attention of another man. The relationship reminded me of Yul Brynner and Deborah Kerr in The King and I and the chemistry between the actors is just as strong.
Gene Tierney, an actress who the camera loved intensely, is enchanting as Mrs. Muir and Rex Harrison eases into the role of Captain Gregg quite smoothly and we want these two to be together so badly even though it never can be. George Sanders was even more smarmy than he was in All About Eve and little Natalie Wood is adorable as Mrs. Muir's daughter. The film is shot in beautiful black and white, with Oscar-nominated cinematography and also features a lush musical score by the iconic Bernard Hermann. Classic film buffs should eat this one up. Almost 35 years later, the movie was adapted into a television comedy with Hope Lange and Edward Mulhare in the title roles,
but that show was but a pale imitation of this amazing movie.