Most Helpful Customer Reviews
|
|
107 of 109 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gene Tierney's Crowning Achievement, April 1, 2003
Exquisite. That one adjective describes both this film, and its leading lady. Although she is best remembered as the title character in the classic 1944 mystery, "Laura", and received greater acclaim for her Oscar-nominated performance in the highest-grossing 20th Century-Fox film of the 1940's, "Leave Her to Heaven", "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir" nonetheless remains Gene Tierney's most successful film performance. As Lucy Muir, a spirited British widow at the turn of the 20th century who falls in love with the ghost of a sea captain, Miss Tierney is on screen in every scene of the film, and dazzles throughout with her ethereal beauty and her thespic versatility. Afforded the rare opportunity to play moments of high comedy, quiet drama, and romantic yearning all in one film, Miss Tierney never once strikes a false note. She is particularly touching in the sequence during which the middle-aged Mrs. Muir reflects on the past with her grown daughter; in the hands of a lesser actress, this scene could easily have become maudlin and overly sentimental, but Tierney plays it with a quiet dignity and sweet resolve that distills the essence of her graceful and independent character.Yet, while "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir" is arguably Tierney's best film, its success is not due to her efforts alone. Rex Harrison, in his second American film, also triumphs as the salty sea captain whose gruff veneer is slowly peeled away by the determined widow sharing his home. The scene in which he bids her a tender farewell is brilliantly played. George Sanders excels in his role as a romantic cad; the vocal sneer he practically patented on film suits his part here perfectly. And the entire production is aided tremendously by Bernard Herrmann's lush and majestic score, as well as Charles Lang's Oscar-nominated cinematography (that nomination was for the 1947 awards, by the the way, not the 1942 ceremonies as incorrectly noted on the front of the DVD box). Speaking of the DVD, the transfer is - in the 20th Century-Fox Home Video tradition - disappointing. While the source print is much better that the one used for the VHS and laserdisc releases, and is infinitely superior to the scratchy, poorly-spliced copy that is often screened on pay-TV stations like AMC, the film has not been digitally restored. There are still significant flutters (especially noticeable during the opening credits), scratches, and jumps in both the picture and the soundtrack. The DVD does include the rarely-seen Original Theatrical Trailer; a stills gallery that emphasizes set design photographs but does include some interesting on-the-set photos of Gene Tierney in her wheelchair (she broke her foot during production and continued filming against her doctor's advice); Theatrical Trailers for the five previously-released Fox Studio Classics DVDs; an A&E "Biography" segment on Rex Harrison; and audio commentaries including remarks by film historian Jeanine Basinger who supervised the cataloging of the Tierney archives in Connecticut ... and whose name is misspelled on the DVD package. (Way to go, Fox! You REALLY need to hire a film historian to proof-read your DVD packages. They're uniformly inaccurate, filled with both typos and misinformation.) Despite its flaws, this DVD edition is the still one available of this classic, greatly-beloved film and is therefore cheerfully recommended. Trivia note: Not surprisingly, after Tierney died in 1991 at the age of 70 (not 71 as noted in the DVD's liner notes), "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir" was the film chosen to represent the actress' career during the two-day auction of many of her personal effects at the Hart Galleries in Houston, Texas. The screening was a most fitting tribute to both a marvelous actress and a lovely human being.
|
|
|
53 of 55 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
True romance is not about kissing or even touching..., March 25, 2001
This was the movie that convinced me that the great screen romances involved couples that were not able to kiss or even touch. The Ghost the late Captain Daniel Gregg, played by a bristling Rex Harrison, while Mrs. Lucy Muir is Gene Tierney, a widow who moves into the captain's seaside cottage with her young daughter (played as a child by Natalie Wood, by Vanessa Brown as an adult). Of course, he wants to be terrifying and chase her away from "his" home, but she, of course, finds him endearing. He declares he is not ashamed to have lived the live of a man and she counters that being alive is not a crime. They talk about everything except their feelings for each other, but that is the true topic of all of their conversations. When Miles Fairley, another one of George Sanders patented silvery-tongued rouges, enters Lucy's life offering her a chance for happiness in the real world, the Captain loves her enough to leave her, not knowing that Fairley has a secret. However, while the title characters do not live happily ever after, there is a wonderful ending to the film. Definitely one of my ten favorite Romance movies of all time with marvelous interaction between Harrison and Tierney (her best film by far). Adapted by Philip Dunne from R. A. Dick's novel, with solid direction from Joseph L. Mankiewicz and a superb score from Bernard Herrmann. "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir" is a treasured Golden Oldie, not to be confused with the wretched sitcom television produced in the late 60's.
|
|
|
34 of 35 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
very nice DVD version of Great Romantic Film, June 1, 2003
This is a wonderful romantic fantasy that tells the story of young widow (beautiful Gene Tierney)who moves into the seaside house of the late Captain Gregg (played with bluster by Rex Harrison). The captain first tries to scare the widow away, but soon they team up so that she can stay at the house. They both fall in love with the other, but neither can express their love to the other. The ghost leaves Mrs. Muir (and blots her memory of him), but they are ultimatley reunited in a very touching scene at the end of the film with her death. The film has a wonderfully atmospheric score by Bernard Herrmann (I believe it was his favorite) and a great performance by the caddish George Sanders. This charming film is a most definite buy!The DVD has a very sharp, crisp printing of the films with excellent sound - the commentaries that accompany the film are very good and informative, providing a lot of informaiton on how the film was shot and also how Herrmann scored the film. There is a nice one-hour biography on the career on Rex Harrison, along with the usual theatrical trailer.
|
|
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews
|
DVD ~ Cary Grant
![Laura [Region 2]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51WFFTJ6D9L._SL500_SS90_.jpg)
DVD ~ Gene Tierney
DVD ~ Cary Grant
DVD ~ Cary Grant
DVD ~ Gene Tierney
