Customer Reviews

Cheers For Miss Bishop

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Martha Scott is barely remembered today and even more rarely mentioned when movie buffs talk about their favorite classic film stars. She was something quite special, however, and in this adaption of Bess Streeter Aldrich's novel "Miss Bishop" she had her shining moment. Tay Garnett was the helmsman for this wonderful film full of warmth and sentiment, spanning decades in the life of a small town teacher. Despite its scope, there is an intimate feel because of Scott's beautiful restrained performance as the pretty Miss Bishop.

Martha Scott is unforgettable as the young Ella Bishop, full of dreams and enthusiasm for learning. She is the prettiest girl in the new college, Midwestern, and could easily marry the one constant in her life, Sam (William Gargan), if she did not love him so as a friend. When she is part of the first graduating class at Midwestern she sends out many enthusiastic teaching inquiries so she can leave Old River and see life.

But when no responses are forthcoming, she is offered a job teaching freshman english by Professor Corcoran (Edmund Gwenn) at her beloved Midwestern. Ella is young and filled with joy at the prospect of teaching at the very school she has so much affection for, and knows she has many years to marry and see the world. She goes to bat for her students like no other teacher and impacts their lives in a way she will only discover decades later.

Sam remains a constant in her life but she is swept off her feet by someone else and prepares for her wedding with glee, as everything begins to fall into place as it should. But her younger sister Amy is brash and jealous of her beau and sets out to steal him. He is weak and ends up going away with Amy instead but will leave her because there is no real love there. Amy returns home in shame and about to give birth seeking her sister's forgiveness.

Though it is not the family she had dreamed of, Ella raises Amy's baby as her own child when Amy dies giving birth to the baby girl Ella will name Hope. Ella meets and has a romance with the true love of her life, Professor Stevens, as she becomes more and more involved with her teaching. Ella becomes as much a part of Midwestern as the ground it is built on. Their love is real but he is married and his wife refuses to divorce him.

Their deep love is put to the test when he asks Ella to go with him to romantic Italy. Ella knows there can be no family in such an illicit affair and does not want to sully the memory of their love with it. Only many years later will her heart truly be broken when the slim hope of their love is permanently crushed by tragedy.

Lovely Marsha Hunt is Ella's girl Hope. She is the one who will wear the wedding dress meant for Ella in a touching moment. Years later Ella will advise Hope's daughter Gretchen when she has the same choice to make as Ella had concerning a married man. Thanks to Ella, Gretchen will make the right decision and find a true love meant for her as Ella could not.

Ella weathers the changes in her beloved Midwestern and the world itself over the years as she sees WWI and the horseless carriage come to pass. There is love of friends and family but still the bittersweet knowledge of a hope chest full but never used in this warm and wonderful film.

Martha Scott is this entire film, and the sweet and sentimental atmosphere flourishes due to her underplayed performance. I suspect every teacher will love this film, especially those involved with a school which is more than just a building.

The quality of the print used for this Alpha video is very good. The Oscar nominated score from Edward Ward, however, does not sound as good but will do so you can see this heartwarming film at an inexpensive price.

Martha Scott may not be spoken of much today, but will always be remebered by you once you see Cheers for Miss Bishop.

The film belongs to Martha Scott who gives her best screen performance as Miss Bishop, a dedicated teacher, whose personal life is constantly being put on hold as she ministers to the needs of her pupils. Scott ages from a schoolgirl to an octogenarian and does a lovely, memorable job. The sentimental score is a plus. Oscar nom for Original Score.

"Cheers For Miss Bishop" is one of those undiscovered classics that have virtually been ignored. This film has much of the sentimental flavor of Frank Capra's "It's A Wonderful Life"--which was also ignored for decades before another generation came along and "discovered" it.Martha Scott's portrayal of Miss Ella Bishop, the spinster college professor who's eternally unlucky at love, is a thoroughly convincing performance. She is surrounded by a great cast of character actors. The ending is a bit schmaltsy, but satisfying nonetheless. See this film and return back to a time when you could count on having friends for a lifetime.

Martha Scott never reached stardom as a Bette Davis or Joan Crawford but she was one of our best actresses nevertheless. I love this movie. It also reminded me of another movie not out on DVD "Good Morning, Miss Dove" with Jennifer Jones. Both films salute teachers that inspire their students to be better than themselves.

"Cheers for Miss Bishop is one classic that no aspiring actress or fan of Martha Scott should miss. It portrays vividly what a person can achieve through sheer determination. Probably what made the movie such a memorable one is the fact that the character she plays resembles her own life of struggle and victory over circumstance that few would face with such grit and courage. I personally would recommend this fabulous Hollywood classic to all young ladies who seem to be groping for a meaning in life."

This movie is a rarity for people interested in realistic human dramas. The values of integrity and determination to succeed will seem incomprehensible to viewers under 35, but older viewers will find it refreshing to remember a time when such attitudes were commonplace.

Martha Scott's performance is impressive, since the character she plays goes through every age from teen to ancient. Edmund Gwenn (Kris Kringle in Miracle on 34th Street) gives a touching performance as the headmaster. And a host of support players add invaluable touches as various students and friends whom Miss Bishop comes into contact with.

A word about versions. The so-called Remastered version isn't. Not only that, but its sound and picture quality are poor and much worse than my videotape version on VHS from AlphaVideo. I haven't seen the other DVD version, so can't comment on it. My advice is to buy the VHS, the one with the cover image.

This is one of the best classic chick flicks I've sen in a while. It's heavy on the romance but the main thrust is that a woman can overcome any obstacle in her path if she just stays true to herself. Of course the mainstay of the film is her competing with another woman for the man she loves, but that's incidental to the overall theme of female courage. It's a strong showing from the 1940s and very well preserved.

I have seen this movie only once, as a young child.I have much respect for a movie that touched my heart. If I can remember a movie;such as this one for many years and haven't seen it again. You know somehow through my life growing up, now as an adult, I feel somehow through the years the memories of Cheers for Miss Bishop , will never go away, I'd love to find this movie again and hopefully have one for myself. Truthfully, Martha Scott did a remarkably superb job in this magnificent film as Miss Ella Bishop. I raise my hat off to her and toast a lady who did very well in her field.

Making high-quality movies with integrity like this one would seem right up a world-changing mogul's alley (I'm talking YOU, Oprah!)---because movies are an influence. This particular movie is a goodhearted WELCOMED influence. Moreover, it honors the intelligence of the audience.

All through the movie, "Miss Bishop" maintained self-respecting boundaries (which are different than rigid boundaries, because they're creatively adaptive). One good example of her self-honoring boundaries was the non-judgmental relationship advice she gave to her great-niece. Despite unexpected life-changing disappointments, Miss Bishop bore those hardships with grace, moving directly ahead with her life and responsibilities, and refusing to live in the past.

Miss Bishop was also amazingly forgiving. A good example of her unassailable mercy and kindness was shown several decades later, when her great-great-niece inquired, and Miss Bishop still didn't reveal the reason for owning a wedding gown. Another admirable quality of hers was that she wasn't too proud to adapt to changes. Her lifelong best friend seemed to share many of her character qualities, and so it thus made sense that she never stopped supporting that friendship.

The depth of the story line was satisfying, unfolding over several generations, and always believable. As for the setting, it was enjoyable to see how the late 1800's era was depicted, and as portrayed, it was charming.

Oprah--or any media figure who wants the world to be a better place!--the world would welcome movies which include the features of this film: a clean story line (free of product placement and/or mindless destruction), highly skilled actors (as versus mere "big name stars"), characters worth caring about (because they don't defile the term "human"), self-effacing humor, authentic & well-crafted drama (that never stoops to exploitation), an ethos of integrity (that doesn't slide to the lowest common denominator), and a pace that doesn't assault the senses.

Movies are an influence. Because humanity definitely needs better influences, I vote for a whole new era of quality movies like this one!

I bought the DVD of this movie primarily as an exercise in nostalgia. It was a mainstay on local Los Angeles television, enabling channels in the early 1950's to stay on the air until their sign-off time of 10pm or so by showing it repeatedly. All told, as a child I must have seen it close to 100 times.

To my surprise, it holds up remarkably well as romantic melodrama. Martha Scott and William Gargan give affecting performances, as do the various actors playing the wide assortment of students influenced through the years by Miss Bishop of Midwestern, a woman unlucky in love, but blessed in her career. If the film has a weakness, I would say it's in the performance of Mary Anderson, whose winking and blinking as a hormonally overactive teen is almost laughably over the top. But this is a minor flaw, one which does not appreciably interfere with the pleasure of seeing this film once again after so many years.