Product Details

• Actors: Ronald Reagan, Patricia Neal, Richard Todd, Anthony Nicholls, Howard Marion-Crawford
• Directors: Vincent Sherman
• Writers: John Patrick, Ranald MacDougall
• Producers: Robert Clark
• Format: Black & White, Closed-captioned, Dolby, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Warner Home Video
• VHS Release Date: June 13, 1995
• Run Time: 102 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6303430953
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #240,582 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Ronald Reagan's career cooled after the Second World War, and he plays a second lead in 1949's The Hasty Heart, an adaptation of a hit play. Set in a military hospital in Burma just after the war, the story hinges on a group of patients concealing a fatal prognosis from an ailing Scotsman (Richard Todd). The creaking of the play is all too apparent, although Todd's performance is expert. Patricia Neal, still new to movies, plays the nurse in charge. Reagan gets to display his photographic memory by reeling off the books of the Old Testament by rote. --Robert Horton

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Character Driven Drama, September 8, 2002

By 

James L. - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hasty Heart [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Richard Todd stars as a proud, stubborn Scottish soldier who learns some lessons about friendship in this little known film from 1949. At the close of World War Two, and following surgery for the removal of a kidney, he recovers in a jungle hospital, with the truth about his very serious condition being kept from him. His anger over his lack of a discharge, coupled with his hard attitude and demeanor, keeps him separated from fellow patients and nurse Patricia Neal. Attempts are made to befriend him, but it only leads to conflict. Ronald Reagan is the American patient "Yank" and he gives one of his better performances. Neal is also good, although a little detached, as the nurse trying to keep the peace. But it's Todd who really stands out, giving a moving performance as the friend-less Scotsman who has never fit in and has been hardened by the experience. The scenes are played with honesty, and although the film reveals its stage origins, it doesn't seem static. Director Vincent Sherman lets the characters and conflict drive this story about man's need for friendship, and the results are memorable.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Heart-Rending Film, September 9, 2006

By 

David Baldwin (Philadelphia,PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: THE HASTY HEART - Authentic Region 1 DVD Starring Ronald Reagan, Patricia Neal and Richard Todd (DVD)

Those who would dismiss Ronald Reagan's acting ability, whether for asthetic or politically partisan reasons, would be advised to check out "The Hasty Heart". Reagan is essentially the de-facto leader of a group of ailing G.I.s of differing nationalities sidelined in a British run hospital in Burma during the waning days of World War II. When the occasion called for it or the material warranted it Reagan rose to the challenge which is the case here. Essentially, though, this film is more of a vehicle for Richard Todd who plays a headstrong Scotsman who has days to live. Todd's character goes through the most changes in the film and he is superb. At first his charcter is disagreeable but through a believable transformation we grow to like him. Also good is Patricia Neal as a sympathetic Canadian nurse. The film is sentimental without being mawkish. It earns it's tears. "The Hasty Heart" is part of "The Ronald Reagan Signature Collection" and is not being sold separately. I can attest that this is a superlative collection but's it's a shame that Warner Brothers is not selling it apart from the set.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Humanity, May 21, 1999

By 

ABH457 (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hasty Heart [VHS] (VHS Tape)

A superb, theatrical-style movie from a time when scripts were important, and emotions were more warm, sophisticated and true than those evoked by today's omni-present car chases and hi-tech explosions. Should be in every video library, and kids should be encouragd to watch it.