Customer Reviews

Mrs Winterbourne [VHS]

5 star:		(43)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Connie, broke and pregnant, accidently ends up on a train heading toward Boston without a ticket. When a stranger, Hugh Winterbourne, helps her out by pretending that his wife's ticket is Connie's, and then takes her to join him and his wife in their cabin, the chaos begins. After the train crashes and Hugh and his wife die, Connie is mistaken for Hugh's pregnant wife. Since the Winterbourne's had not yet met Hugh's wife, Connie finds herself pretending to be Hugh's widow so she can care for her child, but feels guilt ridden over her deception-- especially when she falls in love with Hugh's brother, Bill, and the rest of the Winterbourne family. And who's sending her notes asking who she "really" is?

On its own, this movie is a great romantic comedy-- showing how one instance can drag a person into a situation he or she never intended. Lake, Fraser, McClaine, and the actor who plays "Paco" do a fabulous job at making the viewer fall in love with all the characters. I have watched this movie many times, and intend to watch it many more.

This story is based on "I Married a Deadman" by Cornell Woolrich, which is a much darker story than the movie. I'm glad they changed the title when they made this into a movie because there are many differences between the original story and the movie; therefore, no one who read the book will mistakenly watch the movie and expect a faithful adaptation. While both are good, they should be taken indenpendantly of each other.

Being a movie buff, I was surprised I had never seen this movie or heard much of it when it was shown on a bus from Massachusetts to New York. Since I knew nothing about it, I had very low expectations (my guess is it didn't do too well at the box office), and was surprised to see the wonderful Shirley MacLaine and the consistently good Brendan Fraser. On the other hand, I did not recognize Ricki Lake at all, even though I have seen some J. Waters movie she was in. I had to wait until the credits to find out who it was. Brendan Fraser has turned out to be one of the best actors of his generation, if not for his choice of movies. Hopefully Gods and Monsters will open some doors for more serious roles. However, he shows a very good comedic timing in Mrs. Winterbourne, and did very well against Ms. MacLaine. Overall this is a very funny and entertaining movie.

I want to be adopted by Shirley MacLaine and her butler Paco. Based on a case of mistaken identity following a train wreck; a young, homeless woman has a baby and is taken in by a wealthy family who believe her to be their daughter-in-law. She meets her putative brother-in-law, who suspects she is not who she claims to be and they fall in love. Although he discovers her real identity, he pretends to believe her story in an effort to be sure that she doesn't leave. The movie is fun to watch, very romantic...there is a tango scene which Brendan Fraser fans run over and over again. He plays a snobbish, bright and ironic young man who has ended up holding the bag as the responsible member of his rich family. Shirley MacLaine is brilliant as the mother, and Ricki Lake does a reasonably good job as a Cinderella candidate. The film could have benefited from a few extra scenes to clarify Bill's attraction to Patricia, but is a fun romance/comedy with a happy ending.

This is one of my all-time favorite movies. Shirley MacLaine rules as the non-traditional matron. Ricki Lake does a fine job and Brendan Frasier is outstanding. Yes, more time could have been given to developing the relationship between Connie and Bill, but there's enough to get the point. Paco is AWESOME! His humorous drunken-binge scene makes it all worthwile.

The "powers that be" need to get off their butts and get this on DVD. Don't understand why it's not when I see all the crap they've already migrated!

I WANT MY DVD...

I really wish I had read the reviews before I bought this DVD and saw the warning that the new DVD is pan and scan only and that the old DVD which had both widescreen and pan and scan is out of print but when I saw this DVD for Mrs. Winterbourne in a store at a low price of about 6 dollars I bought it thinking that was a bargain and that I was getting one of my favorite romantic comedies in widescreen but when I went to watch the DVD I was disappointed to find out that it was just an edited pan and scan version and there was no widescreen version especially as I had gotten rid of my pan and scan video version in order to update to the widescreen DVD so my question is Why in the world would anyone put out what they call a remastered edition on DVD and than release it in pan and scan and not widescreen? isn't that taking a step backwards? I like this movie and I think Shirley McClaine, Ricki Lake and Brendan Fraiser are all very good and I liked the opposites attract love story between the good looking guy and the average looking girl and I would rate the movie 4 stars but the pan and scan only DVD gets 1 star and I'm stuck with this DVD because the place I bought it from will not take back DVD's that have been opened so my only option is to sell or trade this DVD at a store that sells, buys and trades used DVDs and hope I can find a used copy of the old DVD that included both widescreen and pan and scan! BTW: I wish Ricki Lake would go back to making movies or get into a TV sitcom or something, she was really good when she had her recurring roll as the sister in The King of Queens.

Just years before LEGALLY BLONDE and MISS CONGENIALITY came the delightful feel-good "Cinderella" rom-com MRS. WINTERBOURNE directed by Actor/comedian Dick Benjamin.
The film starts with a murdered corpse in a motel room and a confession of murder.Where is this all going?
Connie Doyle (Ricki Lake) has been knocked up and kicked to he curb by the heartless scumbag,Steve (a truly creepy Loren Dean).Pregnant and homeless,Connie serendipitously boards a train bound for Boston where she meets Hugh Winterbourne Brendan Fraser in a double role) and his also pregnant wife,Patricia.As Connie is trying on Patricia's wedding band, the train wrecks.Next thing we know,Connie awakes in the hospital,having given birth to a baby boy,and she is mistaken for the now-widowed Patricia setting off a series of twists of fate that will bring into the wealthy Winterbourne family,headed by the saucy,pill-popping,booze-hound,Mother Winterbourne (an always perfect Shirley MacLaine) and Hugh's remaining identical twin brother,Bill (who else but Brendan Fraser).A world of madcap hilarity and heartwarming touches ensue as Connie,now Patricia Winterbourne and the family come to terms with each other. Throw in the gay houseman,Paco (always funny Miguel Sandoval) and another exquisite continuous sprightly soundtrack by my favorite, Patrick Doyle, and you have 106 minutes of charming,left-of-center comedy.It is formulaic in a sense, but heartfelt excellent performances makes MRS.WINTERBOURNE all the more delightful.Like A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, all of the foibles of humanity are exposed and all turns out right,just like it should.After all, that is what we want anyway.5 stars for the undeniably "cute" factor.

A soft, yet funny film that focuses on the relationship between a penniless opportunist looking for security for her newborn child, a big hearted, wealthy and strong-willed matron, and her understanding son. The film is filled with humerous interplays between all the characters, as the relationships solidify. We have seen it 3 times and will view it again and again. A pleasant surprise for relatively modern film fare - it's clean, warm and funny! Real entertainment!

Amen, sister, we hear ya! So Rikki Lake isn't a great actress. At least she manages to be funny and likable in this little romantic comedy that's in no way realistic but a cute fairy tale that lots of people wish would happen to them. Lake plays Connie Doyle, a down and out young girl who leaves home because she doesn't get along with her father and takes up with a no-good womanizing criminal named Steve DeCunzo (Loren Dean). She is thrown out into the street after the scumbag refuses to accept responsibility for her pregnancy and, through an odd turn of events meets a wealthy young couple, Hugh Winterbourne and wife Patricia on a train that's headed for Boston. Both the women are pregnant and, after trying on Patricia's ring and clothes, there is a horrible trainwreck in which Connie is the only one of the three to survive. Mistaking her and the baby to be Hugh Winterborne's wife and child, she is welcomed openly by the matriarch, played by a feisty, eccentric Shirley McClain and met with suspicion by Hugh's twin brother Bill, dual roles played by Brendan Fraser, who is by far the best thing about this movie.

Naturally, as in all fairy tales, Connie wins Bill over and he proposes marriage to her. Okay, so he moved a bit fast just after his brother's death, and we all know that women like Connie Doyle--or Rikki Lake for that matter--are not the type of woman a handsome, wealthy guy is going to fall for. Suspend your disbelief merely on the premise of fun. Just when everything seems to be turning out well for our underdog, who shows up with blackmail on his mind but Steve, and now he has an interest in his baby after all. Money talks...

Complete with a humorously awkward priest, a crazy Cuban Butler, and other lively characters that compensate for Lake's not-so-stellar performance, this movie manages to be a likable comic escape and fun to watch every now and then. Not meant to be earthshakingly fabulous due to its lack of originality, at least it's appealing on the premise of wishful thinking and makes you wish dreams came true that easily. Oh, wouldn't it be nice if life was really like that?

I really like this movie. Clever and cute, it's romantic and comical, with a little bit of mystery. The only issue I have is the amount of cursing in it (it has some, but my personal preference is for a movie to have none).

This is a delightful film, definitely one I turn to when I need a bit of cheering up. Brendan Fraser gives an excellent performance - all too briefly as Hugh, and then later as Hugh's twin brother Bill. The tango scene alone makes this movie worth buying for any Fraser fan.