(This is a clip, not a trailer; the only available trailer is not helpful because it assumes that you've read the book.)
Plot: Amnesia-stricken soldier "John Smith" (Ronald Colman) is launched into a brand-new life after World War I when a beautiful young woman (Greer Garson) helps him escape from a mental hospital and run away to the countryside. Paula's faithfulness and love as his nurse, then as his wife, help him fill his emptiness with family and community and bring him to the brink of a successful new career ... but then tragedy strikes again, jerking him back to his life before the war and completely erasing his memory of life as "Smithy." How will the rich young nobleman ever understand the gaping hole left in his heart by a happiness he can't even remember?
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High Points:
- Original, fascinating plot is unpredictable and keeps you guessing
- Beautiful and sensitive acting by the gentlemanly Ronald Colman and the lovely Greer Garson
- Slow pace gives you time to connect with the characters, while maintaining nail-biting suspense
- Gentle, sweet romance between two people who need each other very much
Could Be Better:
- Absolutely nothing. This movie is fabulous!
Possible Concerns:
- Paula begins her life as a showgirl; and early in the movie she dances a faux-Scottish routine in a very short kilt. Now, she being Greer Garson, she somehow manages not to be too inappropriate; but the scene is quite short and can easily be skipped with no damage to the plot. (Just make sure to stop fast-forwarding as soon as the dance is over, because something important and heartbreaking happens immediately after it ...)
- The character of Kitty is a little bold and forward because she is trying to "catch" Charles and persuade him to marry her. She is not inappropriate, but she does smoke and is rather flirtatious.
Vicki's Vote: Such a classic, I don't even know how many stars to give it!
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Random Harvest is one of the best-known and best-loved movies of all time. This poignant romance is both nerve-wrackingly suspenseful and achingly sweet, the story of two people desperately in love but separated by the wall of amnesia.The movie opens in the hopeful but sad halls of the mental asylum near Melbridge, in England. We see a long hall of patients ranging from the nearly well to the completely crippled and fearful; and at the end, standing alone by a window, is the quiet, sad-eyed soldier known as "John Smith." Smith was in a terrible battle in France that completely wiped his memory of his own life, even his name; and his injuries have left him with a stutter so strong that it takes tremendous strength to say even the few words he remembers. He is gentle, sad, and desperately hoping that his family will find him and help him belong in the world once again. Yet his hope is fading; and each time he loses hope, a little more of his recovery slips away.
Then the news comes that World War I is finally over - and in the excitement, the asylum's guards abandon their posts and rush out to join the celebration. Smith is drawn to the unguarded gate almost involuntarily; and before he knows it, he is through the gate and out in the real world once again. But it's not easy - disoriented and coming down with the flu, he wanders into a little tobacco shop, where his stuttering alerts the shopkeeper that he's from the asylum. She runs to call the police and it looks like his brief foray into freedom is over.
Then a quiet voice comes out of the shadows, and Smith comes face-to-face with Paula, the sweet and vivacious woman who personally decides to take responsibility for his recovery.
As Paula nurses him back to health in the peaceful countryside, "Smithy" begins to build a new identity, drawing strength from Paula's gentle companionship and establishing himself as a budding newspaper writer. He and Paula are married, and before too long, a beautiful baby boy is born. A telegram comes with an important job offer at a big newspaper; Paula packs his bags and tucks the house key in his pocket, and Smithy is off to get a start on his new career.But then tragedy strikes again - a car strikes Smithy in a blinding rainstorm; and with the blow to his head, his memory of his previous life comes flooding back. Suddenly he is Charles Rainier, the wealthy - and single - young heir trying to figure out where three years have gone. He has no idea of his life as Smithy, no memory of Paula or their little son. All he has left is dysfunctional siblings who wish he had never come back - along with a strange key in his pocket and a gnawing feeling in his heart that he left something important in those lost years. Will he ever learn who or what lurks in the shadows of his mind? And what will happen to Paula if Smithy never returns?
My favorite part of this movie is that it is realistic - maybe the plot is a little contrived, as the critics say, but it does a beautiful job of staying away from melodrama or gooey sentiment. Paula and Smithy's marriage is a true friendship and partnership based on affection, dedication, and sacrifice. The emotional scenes are touching and heartwarming, not gushy and uncomfortable. This is a movie that shows mature, committed, yet joyful and happy married love; and it is my favorite movie because such movies are quire rare, even within the genre of old black-and-whites.
Because Smithy and Paula's love is so strong and beautiful, it is incredibly painful to endure the middle of the movie where Smithy regains his memory and becomes Charles Rainier again. His family is horrified because he reappears on the very evening that his siblings are dividing up their dead father's inheritance; he is left with a large inheritance but no direction or career; he is relentlessly pursued by a young woman whom he does not love; and through everything his eyes are positively haunted, constantly searching for the answer to the agonizing questions in the back of his mind. The first half of the movie will make you cry with its sweetness; the second half will make you cry with sympathy and anguish.
But don't worry - the ending is worth it. :-)
This movie is very sweet and wholesome, and I would not hesitate to recommend it for families - as I mentioned in my "concerns" section, the woman who pursues Charles is rather bold and flirtatious and she does smoke; but while she is annoying (correction: while you hate her guts), she's still pretty harmless. I would especially recommend it for teen girls and young women, as it does have a touch of the melodramatic and it has our favorite theme: strong, undying love that transcends all obstacles. :-) I definitely recommend that you grab a box of tissues and your family and take some time to watch this beautiful movie!
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