Customer Reviews

Enchanted Cottage (RKO Collection) [VHS]

5 star:		(63)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This unforgettable film is for lovers of love stories. THE ENCHANTED COTTAGE contains the message that true love is etched in the human heart and beauty is indeed in the eye of the beholder. Young is an embittered, suicidal and facially disfigured WWI veteran who meets McGuire, a girl so plain that no one would look at her twice. They eventually marry and move into a secluded cottage which is enchanted by the love found within its walls by its previous occupants over the years: it is a Honeymoon cottage of which Natwick knows to contain a legendary spell. Slowly and miraculously, through their love for each other, the couple find each-other immensely attractive to each other: Young has regained his youthful handsomeness and McGuire is blossomed into a great beauty. The film's theme of love's triumph over adversity was cruelly attacked by many critics in 1945, but the story is beautifully handled, written and tastefully acted. Young and McGuire underplay their roles which would easily have been labled histrionic in less capable hands. In supporting roles, Mildred Natwick and Herbert Marshall are fine. First filmed as the silent FOREVER in 1924 with Richard Barthelmess and May McAvoy, this was Robert Young's personal favourite of all his movies.

I can't say enough about this film. It is absolutely outstanding with fantastic acting by Robert Young and Dorothy McGuire. I taped it off television years ago and was absolutely mesmerized the first time I watched it. It continues to have an impact on me each time I see it. It's a story about beauty being in the eye of the beholder and shatters the idea that beauty is only in outward appearance. Kindness is presented as a most important virtue. It is suspenseful in parts and the nature of the cottage's enchantment is not revealed until the end of the movie. Not a coincidence that the couple's best friend is a blind man who truly sees them as they are. It's a nice romantic movie. Who could ever replace Robert Young? Too bad it's not presently available on DVD or at least more readily available on VHS. I also wonder if it was ever colourized. Oh yeah, it is in B & W, but you don't really notice that while watching it as it is so interesting.

Feb. 2005 - I'm editing this review because I just found out that there is a cut and uncut release of the video. I recently purchased a copy of the 1972 release and found out that it is shorter than the one I taped off TV. This one is 78 minutes and two scenes from the beginning of the movie, when Oliver tries to commit suicide and when Laura goes to the party and no one will dance with her, were cut. They are probably the most depressing parts in the movie, but should have been included. *The uncut version is 91 minutes.* I am editing this because I am concerned that some sellers are selling the cut version for very high prices. So, let the buyer beware. Let's hope the DVD is released before not too long, and that the whole movie is included. I'm sorry I didn't realize this earlier.

Ted Turner has taken it upon himself to edit this 1940's classic, by taking out at least two major scenes, and I'm not done with it yet. Infuriating!! If Turner has a secret yen to work in the cutting room, then he should start chopping up the trash that they show now, but leave old classics alone. There is a reason they call them "classics". If Ted had the Mona Lisa, he'd probably stick a Shell Station in the background. I don't know if I'll buy any more classics from Amazon...

The kind of movie you can watch with your teenage children and not squirm because of nudity or offensive language. The story is set during WWII when Oliver Bradford, played by Robert Young, joins the Air Force before his planned wedding and is disfigured and partially crippled in action. When he returns, his fiancee is shocked and turns away. He retreats to the cottage where they were to have spent their honeymoon and encounters a homely young woman who is its housekeeper. They find solace in each other's company, and the enchantment of the cottage turns their companionship to love. In love, to each other they become perfect and beautiful, and believe they have physically changed until Oliver's mother, in the moment we have been dreading, bursts the bubble. But true love sees beyond the surface and triumphs touchingly at the conclusion.

Wonderful performances from the film's cast which includes Dorothy McGuire, Herbert Marshall, Mildred Natwick, and Alec Englander.

If The Enchanted Cottage were re-released on video, I would buy a dozen copies as Christmas gifts.

I knew and visited with Bob Young until his death at age 91. This was his favorite movie of any he made. His personal postcards had "The Enchanted Cottage" embossed in the corner. He claimed to never view his own work, but this movie was the exception.

This beautiful film remains a sentimental classic and has retained its power in its exploration of love & beauty through the eyes of the beholder.

Dorothy McGuire portrays the plain and sensitive Laura Pennington, a woman seemingly destined to be an old maid, where love is only something that can be experienced or observed in others. She comes to work at an old cottage at the edge of town, an enchanted cottage, so-named from her childhood. The cottage has a past, and that is any couple spending their honeymoon there, will continue to fall in love for the rest of their days. As is tradition, couples etch their names on a particular window, some date back to the early eighteenth century. As the legend goes, the home is a place of love, beauty and magic.

Oliver Bradford, (Robert Young) arrives one day with his fiance, falling in love with the house, and paying the future rent to spend their honeymoon. The war breaks out, and Bradford returns from the war emotionally scarred and physically debilitated. He refuses to marry his fiance, and seeks solace in the cottage. It is here that the two lost souls, Laura and Oliver, more out of mutual loneliness and sympathy, decide to get married. With this decision, however, their sad world begins to drastically change.

We see the couple through the eyes of each other, to find that they have miraculously transformed; Laura is no more that homely figure but an incredibly beautiful woman; through the eyes of Laura, we see Oliver's scars have disappeared, appearing now as the handsome man he once was before the war. Can this be true? Can others, too, see their transformation?

Their two closest friends, sensitive to this miracle, refuse to break the spell by telling the couple that their beauty can only be perceived through their own eyes. However, a visit from Oliver's family disrupts their bliss, and reality comes crashing in...

Despite the couple's perceived ugliness, will they remain in love?

This is a beautiful film about love and the nature of beauty. It is an old cliche that those in love see the person they love much differently to everyone else. As the old woman, the owner of the cottage says at the end of the film, "If my old husband rose from the grave and walked in this house, he would say I was the most beautiful woman he has ever seen. And he would be right."

Enchanted Cottage is a wonderful film making one appreciate the mysterious ways of love and beauty.

The Enchanted Cottage is one of the most beautiful and fondly remembered films of the 1940's. John Cromwell's direction and a lovely score from Roy Webb give this sensitive and tender film about true love and real beauty the perfect atmosphere. Adapted from a Sir Arthur Pinero play by DeWitt Boden and Herman J. Mankiewicz, it is a film held close to the heart by all who have ever seen it.

It begins at a cocktail party as blind composer John (Herbert Marshall) awaits the arrival of Laura Pennington (Dorothy McGuire) and Oliver Bradford (Robert Young). As they wait, he relates their magical story of love which inspired his latest work. It revolves around a Noblemen's estate burned to the ground long ago, only a wing untouched by the flames. Over the centuries, only newlywed couples have stayed there, etching their names in a window. All who have stayed there have been happy, feeling something special at the cottage. According to Laura, the cottage is not haunted, but enchanted.

The chain of happy couples was broken by Mrs. Millet when her husband was killed in WWI, and only when Laura returns to the cottage to work as the maid does she begin to feel the place come to life again. For Laura, who is plain and homely, the cottage is a place to belong, somewhere she can live out her dreams of happiness on the inside, beneath her unexciting exterior.

Plans to rent the cottage are made by Oliver and his shallow fiance, but the second world war interrupts and the scarred and disfigured Oliver, shot down over Java, returns alone. John befriends the lonely Laura and the frightened and bitter Oliver, watching them find the beauty beneath the skin as the cottage works its magic once more and they begin to fall in love. When a miracle occurs and they are no longer plain or disfigured they cannot wait to tell their friends and family. To relate the chain of events which follow their decision would ruin the impact of the films moving message about love.

A cast which includes Spring Byington in support is stellar, with leads Robert Young and Dorothy McGuire giving extraordinarily sensitive performances. Their inner angst and loneliness, and their feelings of joy as they are transformed are brought forth in a tender and real manner. Every couple should see this wonderful film together at least once, as a reminder that true love lets us see the more important and real beauty of the heart.

This is a good movie. But these are recorded on demand as if you were recording them at home. And for that the price is too high for that type of product. Amazon is known for discounting but these are not discounted and should be. I would give it more stars if the price was more reasonable.

Time Warner officially released The Enchanted Cottage on dvd-r for the first time on December 1, 2009. The disks are part of the media behemoth's new "Archive Collection" and are available now. Amazon should offer them soon. Meanwhile, eBay sellers are asking twice the retail price.

Dvd-r seems like an odd format for Time Warner to offer movies on, but it's actually not. It all boils down to practicality, something Dorothy McGuire would beautifully understand. Unlike pre-recorded video tapes, which have low fixed costs, dvd's have high fixed costs. That's why we saw The Enchanted Cottage available on tape but not on dvd. Now, thanks to dvd-r technology and its low fixed costs, less popular films can be released and earn a profit even when only a few thousand copies are sold.

Earlier this year, Time Warner announced that over the next 15 years, they'll offer everything in their vaults on dvd-r. This includes tons of rare and obscure silent and early sound films. While this is perhaps the best video news so far this century, I can't help but wish that The Enchanted Cottage were released on dvd instead of dvd-r, but that's like complaining about someone gifting me with gold instead of diamonds.

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* UPDATE - February 11, 2010 *

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Time Warner, in it's infinite wisdom, chose to release one of the best films ever made, The Enchanted Cottage, on dvd-r, not dvd. The lifespan of dvd-r's is approximately 30 years, though sometimes dvd-r only last a couple of years. Just google these two keywords: "dvd-r" and "longevity."

Unlike regular dvd's, which are manufactured by physically pressing an image into them, dvd-r images are created by the chemicals on the disk, which physically react to a bright laser. This photo-reactive chemical process yields a less stable product that continues to react to light, heat, and humidity throughout it's life.

For proper care, dvd-r's should be stored in the dark. Keep away from heat. Don't leave the dvd-rs in pause mode for extended periods. Despite what I've written above, dvd-rs may last many years and may even endure much abuse. However, don't be surprise if one day--poof!--the disk is no longer readable. Before throwing it away, try playing it in another dvd players Some players are better at reading damaged disks than others. Just to be safe, it is advisable to create backup copies of the movie.

Having purchase several Enchanted Cottage dvds, I can attest to the fact that Time Warner is using grade b plastic keepcases and the paper inserts are printed on very thin paper that wrinkles easily. I would guess the dvd-r blank is of similiar quality. As for the video quality of the dvd-r, they work perfectly. When I find time, I will read the tiny code near the center of the dvd-r hole so I can determine the make and brand of the dvd-r disk they are issuing our beloved film on.

And since it's on dvd-r, this opens the door for easy piracy. Time Warner does not even seal the keep cases with cellophane.

So this release is definitely met with a mix of feelings. We've waited so long, and this is all we get, a cheap dvd-r with no extras, in a grade-b keepcase and flimsy paper insert. One thing good: I'm pleased with the overall video image and sound quality. It beats the vhs version, and it contains important scenes not seen on TCM or on vhs.

As for a BluRay release, don't count on it. Time Warner didn't think The Enchanted Cottage would sell enough dvd's to even turn a profit. They released The Enchanted Cottage only because of their new dvd program (for collectors) which will eventually see the release of their entire catalog.

The only chance of a regular dvd or BluRay release, as I see it, would be a box set or multi-movie disk, which probably won't happen. In the meantime, protect your dvd-r. Purchase extra copies. Make backup copies, even to vhs. Donate official copies to your public library. Show the movie to your friends. Dorothy McGuire Forever!

A Recommended Film You May Never Have Heard Of, But Should See. Trust me. Some will call it a "Chick Flick," others just a "Romantic Love Story" and some might even call it "Fantasy," but this film is about the power of hope, the magic of love. With magnificent performances and simple honesty, it paints a picture that would never be attempted today. It is glorious, and will leave no one who sees it unchanged. If you have a romantic bone in your body seek it out, and you will thank me for pointing you in its direction.