56 of 56 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A delightful romantic fantasy, August 21, 2002
I had fond memories of seeing "Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid" on TV when I was a kid, and I think I enjoyed the film even more when I recently watched the home video version. A classic black-and-white film, it has a screenplay by Nunnally Johnson and is directed by Irving Pichel. The film stars William Powell as Arthur Peabody, a married man who is experiencing great anxiety over his impending 50th birthday. He and Mrs. Peabody (a wonderful performance by Irene Hervey) take a vacation to St. Hilda's, a Caribbean island under British rule. But the story quickly takes a turn into the fantastic when Mr. P discovers a beautiful mermaid (Ann Blyth).
Although the film is certainly appropriate for a family audience, it does have a deliciously "naughty" feel; it's full of drinking, extramarital flirting, and smoking (two memorable sight gags involve the last of those vices). But that probably just reflects the times when the film was made.
The production values and performances are first rate. Powell has a marvelously sympathetic "everyman" quality as Peabody, and Hervey brings a nice mixture of sweetness and fire to her role as the exasperated wife. Blyth nearly steals the film as the enchanting mermaid. She is mischievous and childlike, but with an alluring sexuality bubbling beneath the innocent surface. Her chemistry with Powell is delightful and touching.
The film is full of some great visual images; there is some particularly memorable underwater photography. "Mr Peabody" is one classic film that's still a lot of fun.
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38 of 38 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This Is A Keeper!, March 4, 2002
However you measure it, this movie is a keeper. Having seen it afterschool as a little kid, it still works it's magic on me 40+ years later. "Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid" is a charming mix of reality versus fantasy. William Powell as the stiff-upper-crust-Bostonian who slides unwittingly into the fantasy of catching and keeping a real mermaid, played by the enchanting Ann Blyth is a masterpiece of casting. His mid-life crisis gently shoves him over the edge and what an edge it is. The sharp contrast between the bored tropical colonials and the sweet tenderness of Mr. Peabody and his mermaid divides the characters into two widely different groups -- the adults who are in a paradise but cannot see it; and the mermaid who pulls Peabody into a paradise which he embraces wholeheartedly. For a time he is a kid again. Eventually the adults gang up on Peabody and drag him back to the cold reality of being an adult. The question is was she real or was Peabody in need of serious therapy? Amazing what an effect a tropical paradise can have on a person. Please do snuggle up with your loved ones and enjoy this story again and again.
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27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
DVD PLEASE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, March 22, 2006
This review is from: Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid [VHS] (VHS Tape)
This a great old film that deserves to be on DVD. I'm sure there are many Boomers out there that remember this film and would vote for its release to DVD. Thanks, Anita
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