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31 of 32 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
MGM costume drama at its best, April 13, 2001
THAT FORSYTE WOMAN is the film of part one of John Galsworthy's "The Forsyte Saga", and stars Greer Garson and Errol Flynn in two of their finest performances.Irene (Greer Garson), reluctantly marries Soames Forsyte (Errol Flynn) a charming and genteel man. After the marriage, however, Soames shows his true colors; cold, controlling and manipulative. Two years go by, and Irene's niece (Janet Leigh) introduces her to her beau, an architect (Robert Young). Without knowing it, Irene and the architect begin a torrid love affair that ends in tragedy.......... Stunning Oscar-nominated costumes and lush, plush sets abound in this engrossing film. Very good indeed.
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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A classic MGM film, May 22, 2000
"That Forsyte Woman" is the type of movie that MGM is known for-- a first rate cast, good script, excellent scenic and costume design, and top notch direction.An adaptation of a classic novel, MGM legend Greer Garson is cast as Irene, a piano teacher who not only marries well-to-do lawyer Errol Flynn, but also into his family, the Forsytes. At first, all seems like a perfect little Victorian era marriage, however there is a dark side to Flynn's character. Ms. Garson ends up falling for her niece's fiancee, a young architecht, played by Robert Young. Garson tries to stop Young's pursual of her, however, they both succumb to their love. When niece Janet Leigh learns of the affair between her aunt and fiancee, she does a deed that will bring turmoil to the good Forsyte family name. The film co-stars Walter Pidgeon, as Leigh's black sheep father, and Harry Davenport, as Leigh's grandfather, patriach of the Forsyte clan. The film is a jewel in the crown of MGM and deserves a place in the classic film library of someone who appreciates Hollywood greatness.
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13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Yipes!, September 16, 2003
By A Customer
This is VERY loosely based on Book One of John Galsworthy's "The Forsyte Saga". The story is so altered from the original that it's barely distinguishable, aside from the fact that the main characters are Soames Forsyte, Irene "Herrinford" Forsyte, and Phillip Bosinney. Despite being set in 1880s London, there is no real sense of the period, and no one really has an English accent--but that's the least of the film's woes. In the original book and subsequent mini-series adaptations, Irene is a beautiful, free-spirited woman who wants to marry for love. She is forced into marriage with Soames Forsyte, who is an extremely repressed individual who loves her but cannot express it. Irene does not have any feelings for Soames, which makes the one-sided love affair all the more heart-wrenching. Here, in this film version, Irene seems not to mind Soames at all. She smiles and laughs and actually seems to enjoy his company during their courtship. She then inexplicably rejects his proposals of marriage, even though she seemed to be pretty well taken with him. Later she begins to drift away, but even then it isn't the coldness that comes through in the novel. Irene remains the focus of the rest of the film, which does borrow some plot elements from the original work, but it deters greatly towards the end. Like Irene, Soames is not quite the character that Galsworthy described, though he is given a few chances to exhibit that Forsyteian preoccupation with property. His treatment of Irene is somewhat believeable; he has a formalness around her, as though dealing with a valuable object, but he does not show that underneath it all he really loves her. The film is lacking in scenes with the entire Forsyte clan. This is possibly the most damaging to the film, since just about every Forsyte has something unique and entertaining to give to the story. If you like old period films, this one is worth a look. But if you are a fan of the books and/or the mini-series, it's not.
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