Product Details

• Actors: Greer Garson, Gregory Peck, Donald Crisp, Lionel Barrymore, Preston Foster
• Format: Black & White, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: MGM (Warner)
• VHS Release Date: June 30, 1994
• Run Time: 111 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6303120474
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #154,406 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

51 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I absolutely loved this film!, March 24, 2000

By 

Jenni Grubb "Jenni" (Virginia Beach) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Valley of Decision [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This was one of those films that I found on TV about midway through, and was instantly hooked. After that, I just HAD to see the whole thing, so I bought the video, a box of kleenex, and then the book.

This film is wonderful...One of my ultimate favorites! This was the first time I had seen Greer Garson and I thought she was wonderful. Gregory Peck was perfect, of course! He a rich steelmill owners' son, she a poor Irish housemaid. They fall in love, but can they ever be together?

I absolutely love the ending to this film. I can't tell you...you have to see it, but that's what prompted me to buy the book. I wanted to see what else happens! I confess that I prefer the movie adaptation over the book, but the movie only covers about a third of what the book has to tell. Go out and get both...you won't be sorry!

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is an underappreciated classic!, May 31, 2010

By 

J. Olsen (UT, United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Valley of Decision (DVD)

Greer Garson and a very young Gregory Peck star in this excellent movie. Peck plays Paul Scott, the son of a wealthy steel mill owner. He falls for the new maid, Mary Rafferty (Garson), in spite of the efforts of his friend and neighbor played by Jessica Tandy. Another obstacle to the relationship is Mary's father, who is a bitter cripple since he was disabled in an accident in the mill and wants his daughter to have nothing to do with the wealthy Scott family. She, however, persists in working for them, and endears herself to the entire family.

When the mill workers go on strike Mary tries to help mend things, but the situation turns ugly. She blames herself, leaving the Scott home and refusing to communicate with Paul.

Years pass and Paul's siblings want to sell the mill. Paul's mother had forseen such a time and had left Mary in an interesting position, which allows her to influence the situation.

I'm not sure if you could say this movie has a "happily-ever-after" ending, but it is satisfying. The story is interesting and the acting is top-notch. This is one of my favorite classics with two of my favorite classic actors.

Just a word of warning, if you didn't notice in the product description, this is a DVD-R, which is burned on demand--it is not the same process used to produce most commercial DVDs. Though I have purchased several of these types of movies from the Warner Archive and had no problems, the most recent one I bought is very touchy about playing in my DVD player. Sometimes it plays fine, other times I can't get the player to read the disc. The company warns that these discs may not play in DVD player/recorders, which mine is not, and most of these movies have worked fine, but you need to be aware of this when you order. If your only DVD player is also a recorder, this may not be your best option.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Smart and Original, December 31, 2004

By 

Pintorini (Saint Louis, Missouri United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Valley of Decision [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Greer Garson picked up one of long string of Oscar nominations for this film (losing to Joan Crawford, of all people, for Mildred Pierce). While I wasn't entirely convinced of the romantic chemistry between Garson and Gregory Peck, I think her nomination was well-deserved for other reasons, including her handling of an Irish accent (Garson was not Irish born, as she claimed through much of her life, but British) and her deft portrayal of a relatively complex character, Mary Rafferty. Garson developed a sort of mini-specialty playing bright, attractive, working-class women, and few other film actresses have pulled off this combination as successfully as she did (Meryl Streep, Susan Sarandon, and British actresses such as Julie Walters being examples of some who have). Garson also makes the most of what might be called Mary's "fatal flaw"--the high-minded stubbornness that nearly destroys her chance at love.

Peck's performance was (unsurprisingly) good too, though I don't consider this one of his best films. To me, Peck always seems more convincing in man-on-a-mission type roles (Atticus Finch, etc.) than in romantic leads. But he does have several moving scenes in which he fights to save his father's steel mill from labor strife and his wastrel siblings.

An extra-special treat in this movie is a very young Jessica Tandy, playing Peck's selfish wife, Lucille. Tandy brings poignancy and raw emotional power to the small role.

A worthwhile MGM classic.