Mrs. Miniver (1942) - IMDb IMDb There was an error trying to load your rating for this title. Some parts of this page won't work property. Please reload or try later. X Beta I'm Watching This! Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. Error A British family struggles to survive the first months of World War II. Director: From $2.99 (SD) on Amazon Video ON DISC a list of 38 titles created 29 Dec 2011 a list of 36 titles created 06 Apr 2013 a list of 25 titles created 03 Nov 2013 a list of 37 titles created 30 Oct 2014 a list of 25 titles created 7 months ago Search for " Mrs. Miniver " on Amazon.com Connect with IMDb Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. Won 6 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 7 nominations.

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Written by Michael Rice <TheMikeRic@aol.com> VOTED THE GREATEST MOVIE EVER MADE! See more » Genres: 1 December 1942 (Sweden) See more » Also Known As: A Família Miniver See more » Filming Locations: Mono (Western Electric Sound System) Color: Did You Know? Trivia William Wyler openly admitted that he made the film for propaganda reasons. Wyler - who was born in Germany - strongly believed that the US should join the war against Nazism, and was concerned that America's policy of isolationism would prove damaging, so he made a film that showed ordinary Americans what their British equivalents were undergoing at the time. The film's subsequent success had a profound effect on American sympathy towards the plight of the British. See more » Goofs Just after Mrs. Miniver hands the German pilot a bottle of milk to drink, spilled milk appears all over his coat. The milk subsequently disappears and reappears on the coat several times between shots. See more » Quotes Mr. Ballard : What goes to make a rose, ma'am, is breeding... and budding... and horse manure, if you'll pardon the expression.

And that's where you come in, ma'am. See more » Crazy Credits End of the film: AMERICA NEEDS YOUR MONEY BUY DEFENSE BONDS AND STAMPS EVERY PAY DAY See more » Connections (MA) – See all my reviews I've seen this film several times now, and despite knowing what occurs, the beauty never wears off. The film is aesthetically lovely, thanks to William Wyler's low key yet attentive and detailed style. The characters act naturally, something oft times missing in older films that lean to be more stylized. The acting is incredible in this film, and something many a modern film would do well to copy. Greer Garson is the portrait of strength, beauty, and dignity as Mrs. Miniver in a brilliantly played role. Yet it's the substance that stays with you. The film is telling a story about people and a time in history, and it's simple because it allows itself to be. It flows like real life, the trivial, the simple, the small moments, the enormous and life shattering.

It taps into the real emotions people feel, and not big "war movie" emotions, but the joy of greeting a child upon return, of having a flower named after you and winning an award, of happiness and humor, of exhaustion, fear, pain, and grief. The film gently brings us into another life and lets us reside there. While there, we begin to love the Minivers and those that they love. At one point in the movie, the family is in a bomb shelter and Mr. and Mrs. Miniver are talking. Mr. Miniver picks up "Alice in Wonderland" and begins to recite a passage about the joys of childhood, a summer past, and the simple pleasures in life. Mrs. Miniver finishes the passage, and Mr. Miniver (Walter Pidgeon) mentions that he wonders if Lewis Carrol ever thought that his story would be so beloved decades later.

I found that interesting, because after all these years and viewings, it's the characters and their realistic palpable experiences and emotions, the strength and courage they show, and the simplicity of the film in allowing us to see it plainly and feel it too, because it's a story of the human experience we can all relate with that isn't limited to the battleground, that do and will keep this movie everlasting, and an homage to the human spirit. 30 of 34 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes Mrs. Miniver (1942) Mrs.

Miniver Loew's (produced by) (as Loew's Incorporated) Distributors MGM/UA Home Video (1989) (USA) (VHS) Chapel Distribution (1997) (Australia) (theatrical) (35mm & 16mm prints) MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1991) (USA) (video) (LaserDisc) Other Companies Turner Entertainment VHS package design (uncredited) Additional Details Mono (Western Electric Sound System) Certification: Argentina:13 | Australia:PG (TV rating) | Australia:G (original rating) | Canada:G (video rating) | Finland:S (1964) | Finland:(Banned) (1943) (original rating) | Finland:K-16 (1943) (re-rating) | Netherlands:14 (original rating) (1946) | South Korea:All | Spain:T | Sweden:15 (cut) | UK:U | USA:TV-G | USA:Not Rated (Blu-Ray Rating) | USA:Not Rated (DVD Rating) | USA:Not Rated (Digital Rating) | USA:Approved (MMPDA

 rating: certificate #8034) | USA:Passed (The National Board of Review) | West Germany:12 Filming Locations: Did You Know?

Trivia: "The Screen Guild Theater" broadcast a 30 minute radio adaptation of the movie on December 7, 1942 with Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon reprising their film roles. See more » Goofs: Continuity: After Mrs. Miniver hands the German pilot a bottle of milk to drink, spilled milk appears all over his coat the damage to the coat changes plus the milk down the front changes. See more » Quotes: Vicar :We, in this quiet corner of England, have suffered the loss of friends very dear to us - some close to this church: George West, choir boy; James Bellard, station master and bell ringer and a proud winner, only one hour before his death, of the Belding Cup for his beautiful Miniver rose; and our hearts go out in sympathy to the two families who share the cruel loss of a young girl who was married at this altar only two weeks ago... See more » Movie Connections: For He's a Jolly Good Fellow See more » FAQ 69 out of 73 people found the following review useful.

Watch out for the backs of the heads!, 27 February 2000 Author: nick-368 from Caversham, England What a wonderful film Mrs Miniver still is 58 years later. Like Coppola's 'Gardens of Stone', it deals with war by following the lives of those affected by it, and without showing any combat. It's moving, but unlike many other films of the period, totally unsentimental, though has many warm and winning moments (Pidgeon spanking Garson as the maid walks in, following an eventful morning, to say the least!) Two sequences particularly clicked on this viewing. The first involves the son/pilot who is recalled to service abruptly when his leave has only just begun. He goes upstairs to get his belongings, the mother and fiancée are left in the room, with the backs of their heads to camera - a most unusual shot 'against the rules' of filming. Then you realise the centre of attention is the space left on the stair by the son - they and we are missing him, awaiting his return, but only for a moment as he must leave again. It's as poignant as the doorway framing scenes in 'The Searchers', and rather subtle.

Another scene is the family in the air raid shelter undergoing a bombing attack. The claustrophobia of the situation, and the bravery and dignity of the powerless family caught there, is focused by a single point of view. The unspoken fear is on the face of Garson, vocalised by the kids who finally awake as the bombardment increases. Long, simple takes perfectly capture the intense atmosphere (and exceptional acting. When I was young I never appreciated this art of 'invisible' film-making, and just why such directors as William Wyler or Preston Sturges or Billy Wilder do such a good job without you even noticing. The fact their films stand the test of time so well is testament to their wonderful abilities as film-makers. Was the above review useful to you? Mrs. Miniver (1942) - Decent Films Decent Films B+ SDG Jan Struther, who created Mrs. Miniver for a series of newspaper columns later published in book form, was also the author of a number of Anglican hymns, including “Lord of All Hopefulness” (a staple in our family’s evening devotions). That biographical detail puts an interesting light on the religious elements in William Wyler’s Oscar-winning adaptation, Mrs.

Miniver. Not that it’s a particularly religious film. Still, a certain English piety runs through key moments. Directed by William Wyler. Greer Garson, Walter Pidgeon, Teresa Wright, Dame May Whitty, Reginald Owen, Henry Travers. MGM. Artistic/Entertainment Value About These Ratings Both the announcement of World War II and the climax are set in the local parish, and the vicar applies Psalm 91 (“Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day”) to the dark days ahead. The hymns, too, are chosen for dark times: “O God, Our Help in Ages Past” and “Onward Christian Soldiers,” the latter defiantly sung at the climax in a bombed-out church. (The quietly reflective “Lord of All Hopefulness” is not among them!) Although it won a half dozen Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Mrs. Miniver is best remembered as a WWII propaganda film that helped stoke American support for the British in the wake of Pearl Harbor.

Despite this, it’s remarkably well-crafted, sensitively directed by William Wyler with an effective rhythm of trivial incidents and well-observed character moments seguing to occasions of high peril. The film chronicles both the day-to-day lives and the war effort contributions of a well-to-do English family, the Minivers (Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon), in the London area. Following Struther’s stories, which began with lighthearted domestic vignettes and grew gradually grimmer under the encroaching shadow of the war, the story opens with trivial concerns — Kay Miniver debating the extravagance of a fashionable hat; a new breed of rose for an annual flower show cultivated by the local stationmaster (Henry Travers, Clarence from It’s a Wonderful Life) — and grows gradually more serious as the war comes home. Some of my favorite character moments involve the punctured pretensions of young Vin Miniver (Richard Ney), newly returned from university full of high ideals he hasn’t fully assimiliated.

“When I think of the class system that exists in this country…” he begins indignantly, interrupting himself to turn on the housekeeper with exasperation: “What is it, Gladys?” At the other extreme of the class system is the local grand dame, Lady Beldon (Dame May Whitty, The Lady Vanishes), and her granddaughter Carol (Teresa Wright, Pride of the Yankees), who poses so formidable a challenge to Vin’s worldview that they wind up married. (I’ve never seen “Downton Abbey,” but recently I started calling Lady Beldon “the dowager duchess” even before reading somewhere that the show stole Mrs. Miniver’s flower show scene!) Highlights of the war sequences include Kay Miniver taking on a crashed German pilot (Helmut Dantine) while her husband (Walter Pidgeon) assists in the Dunkirk evacuation, a harrowing air-raid sequence in the Minivers’ bomb shelter and a tense scene with Kay and Carol pinned down in a car under enemy fire at night. Only in the climax, as the vicar addresses his grieving flock in the bombed church, does the film shift into all-out propaganda mode. By then, though, Wyler has fairly earned his closing statement.

Warner Bros’ new Mrs. Miniver Blu-ray comes with a modest collection of bonus features, all period content. There is no commentary track, alas. The best extra, new to the Blu-ray, is an 11-minute Tex Avery cartoon for MGM called “Blitz Wolf,” a war-themed riff on the Three Little Pigs. There are a couple of historically interesting propaganda shorts, both about 20 minutes, on the dangers of loose lips (“Mr. Blabbermouth”) and the importance of international law enforcement cooperation (“For the Common Defense”). There’s also a tantalizingly brief newsreel excerpt of Garson’s Oscar acceptance speech, famously the longest such speech in Academy history! Tags: Mrs. Miniver (1942) | Journeys in Classic Film Journeys in Classic Film Kristen Lopez / August 4, 2012 Let’s start with a question posed to the faithful readers of this blog: What’s better Mrs. Miniver or The Best Years of Our Lives ? I haven’t seen the latter yet but that seems to be the key debate I saw after watching this, that you have to choose one or the other which is strange considering that both are directed by William Wyler .

I’m attempting to see the rest of Wyler’s work after loving The Heiress and actually had Mrs. Miniver in my possession before that film. Sadly, I just didn’t enjoy this movie. There’s some fresh performances, especially from ingenue Teresa Wright , but the stock nature of the story didn’t appeal to me. I think I’ll find myself loving Best Years of Our Lives more. The Minivers are an English middle-class family trying to live life despite the encroachment of war. Mrs. Miniver ( Greer Garson ) tries to keep her family together especially her husband ( Walter Pidgeon ) and young son ( Richard Ney ) who join the effort. Let’s discuss the good about this movie and it comes in the form of actress Teresa Wright, a new nominee for my Hall of Fame. Wright has a devout following in the blogosphere so me praising her is just delaying the inevitable. Wright plays Carol Beldon, the granddaughter of the upper-crust Lady Beldon ( Dame May Whitty ). There’s a love story between Wright and Richard Ney, who plays the Minivers’ son Vin.

While their love story doesn’t have the passion I expected, Wright always appears natural and effortless in her emotions and control of a scene. Her introduction to the story has her completely dressing down Vin, labeling him a “talker” whose content to argue everything and not help. She’s the girl next door with a fiery personality and out of all the characters, I felt her fate hit the audience hardest and I’m not sure if that was quite the intention. You’re supposed to connect strongly with Mrs. Miniver. She’s the character you shouldn’t want bad things to happen to and yet throughout I kept wondering when Wright would return. Speaking of, time to discuss those wacky Minivers. The neighborhood showcased throughout the film is one of stagnation. People are so set into a certain way of doing things that any divergence is seen as life-threatening. When Carol Beldon goes to the Minivers she does so in order to have Mrs. Miniver convince the man entering the local flower contest to drop out because Carol’s grandmother has always won. Being a war movie the intention is to show that a small thing puts their entire world into upheaval; wait until the war hits. The Minivers are a comfortable, upper middle class family with little problem outside of Mrs.

Miniver admitting she loves nice things (so it’s safe to assume the crux of the film will be her having to do without said nice things?). The problems with the film lie strongly in the establishment of the Minivers and their life. Director Wyler admitted the film was a propaganda piece for the war and it shows in how much of a cautionary tale this is. The Minivers are too perfect, removing the everyman quality you see in war films. I didn’t identify with their plight because they’re not real people. The Miniver clan are like the Cleavers of war films. Everyone knows the Minivers to the point that the downtrodden train attendant names his rose after Mrs. Miniver because she’s equated with perfection and fine breeding. The various events in the film have little to do with each other and all show how the bad events of war affect them although nothing bad ever happens directly to the various family members. This may be a spoiler but no one in the Miniver clan dies and aside from their house being hit, they end up just as perfect and beacons of normality as they started out. To me this felt like watching a video on the dangers of war or strangers.

The Netflix info mentions specifically how the discovery of a Nazi in their backyard changes their lives, yet the Nazi encounter lasts all of ten minutes and Mrs. Miniver plays it off as no big deal before it’s never mentioned again. Again, the film goes through the beats of a war movie so routinely we’re not connected to it because one event has no bearing on the overall film. The heavy foreshadowing also appears to be for not which irritated me greatly. Mrs. Miniver and her husband Clem (Pidgeon) mention numerous times that Vin is “very young” to be joining the Air Force. Having seen the vast amount of war movies as I have this screams of Vin being killed which would have been a tragic turn of the film into showing how devastating war is. Later on Vin makes a big deal of proposing to Carol and telling her not to do something “until I get back.” With a final “don’t worry about me” you’re prepping for Vin to come back in a casket. And yet Vin ends the film completely fine! The one whose life is taken away is Carol. Yes, sweet Carol Beldon dies for nothing. Sure Vin is sad but what is truly the point of killing her.

We know Vin proves he’s not a talker by the end and yet he lives. Carol, who is already labeled a woman of action in her dressing down of Vin, dies whilst doing nothing to aid the war effort. I was left confused on what we were supposed to take away from this young couple and boy was I pissed when Teresa Wright left the screen! I’m still confused on what this film is meant to say about the war. Sure we have Lady Beldon telling Mrs. Miniver that war “gives little people a chance to feel important” and yet the ending sermon discusses how bad things happen to good people in a war. War is senseless, we know, but by not affecting the Minivers directly we take on an “it happened to somebody I knew” stance to the story (sorry if I got you singing Gotye). This is the bare bones way of looking at war and by making it a family seemingly beloved by everyone, you remove that everyman feel and make the film an idealized look at war attempting not to idealize it. Norma Shearer rejected the role of Kay Miniver, refusing to play a mother.

Even star Greer Garson didn’t want it but was bound by a contract and won an Oscar for it. Garson was good, it would have been pointless to have Shearer, but I felt she was a poor substitute for a Myrna Loy. All the Minivers are good, but not great in the acting department. Overall, there was something missing in Mrs. Miniver. It doesn’t have the everyman quality of other war films leaving you cold to the plight of the family. They suffer from first world problems complicated by the war. The acting is average with the exception of the lovely Teresa Wright. I think I’ll enjoy The Best Years of Our Lives. Grade: D+ Interested in purchasing today’s film? If you use the handy link below a small portion will be donated to this site! Thanks! Share this: Amazon.com: Customer Reviews: Mrs. Miniver (1942) Mrs.

Miniver (1942) 4.7 out of 5 stars 257 144 people found this helpful 5.0 out of 5 starsOld Timers Just Love Old Time Films ByDavid Reidon March 19, 2009 I am 80 years old and saw these films when they were first released. In an age when there were no VCRs, much less DVDs, a film came your way, you saw it and from then on they were memories. These films were considered classics then and seeing them again I would say that they stand up well against current stuff. Different acting style, true, but the dramatic impact and the story lines are as good as any. It is refreshing to see the dancing in American... and Gigi. Is today's stuff really more energetic? The old days were so much more graceful - tell me about Ginger Rodgers and Fred Astair. The great relief? I cannot imagine Mrs. Minniver using the indecent language that we hear in too many films these days. How refreshing!!!

3.0 out of 5 starsIt was probably great for the times ByScott Paul Moreshon January 2, 2016 It was probably great for the times...It is hard to watch it straight thru due to the length of the movie and not being a British citizen..however, the acting is good so I gave it 3 to 3 1/2 stars. Format: DVD | Verified Purchase I am 80 years old and saw these films when they were first released. In an age when there were no VCRs, much less DVDs, a film came your way, you saw it and from then on they were memories. These films were considered classics then and seeing them again I would say that they stand up well against current stuff. Different acting style, true, but the dramatic impact and the story lines are as good as any. It is refreshing to see the dancing in American... and Gigi. Is today's stuff really more energetic? The old days were so much more graceful - tell me about Ginger Rodgers and Fred Astair. The great relief? I cannot imagine Mrs. Minniver using the indecent language that we hear in too many films these days. How refreshing!!!

22 comments | 144 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Report abuse Comment Paste the product's web address below: Product not found. Only products offered on Amazon can be linked. Select What's this? What are product links? In the text of your review, you can link directly to any product offered on Amazon.com. To insert a product link, follow these steps: 1. Find the product you want to reference on Amazon.com 2. Copy the web address of the product 3. Click Insert product link 4. Paste the web address in the box 5. Click Select 6. Selecting the item displayed will insert text that looks like this: [[ASIN:014312854XHamlet (The Pelican Shakespeare)]] 7. When your review is displayed on Amazon.com, this text will be transformed into a hyperlink, like so: Hamlet (The Pelican Shakespeare) You are limited to 10 product links in your review, and your link text may not be longer than 256 characters. Please write at least one word You must purchase at least one item from Amazon to post a comment A problem occurred while submitting your comment.

Please try again later. Showing 0 of 2 comments Sort by: Format: DVD | Verified Purchase What a great way to relive old memories. I saw these movies when they first came out and they are still just as enjoyable as they were years ago. My favorite is An American in Paris where Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron display their extraordinary dancing talents. All four movies are excellent but I would gladly pay the price for this one alone. All of the movies have subtitles which is a blessing for those like me that have problems with understanding certain frequencies, especially the higher ones in women's voices. The subtitles make the movies thoroughly enjoyable, This collection is a best buy. 0Comment | 3 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Report abuse Comment Paste the product's web address below: Product not found. Only products offered on Amazon can be linked. Select What's this? What are product links? In the text of your review, you can link directly to any product offered on Amazon.com. To insert a product link, follow these steps: 1. Find the product you want to reference on Amazon.com 2. Copy the web address of the product 3. Click Insert product link 4.

Paste the web address in the box 5. Click Select 6. Selecting the item displayed will insert text that looks like this: [[ASIN:014312854XHamlet (The Pelican Shakespeare)]] 7. When your review is displayed on Amazon.com, this text will be transformed into a hyperlink, like so: Hamlet (The Pelican Shakespeare) You are limited to 10 product links in your review, and your link text may not be longer than 256 characters. Please write at least one word You must purchase at least one item from Amazon to post a comment A problem occurred while submitting your comment. Please try again later. Showing 0 of 0 comments Sort by: Format: DVD | Verified Purchase It is now possible to buy the most popular and most enduring films in the Turner Classic Movies library through Amazon.com. Each collection includes the very best in its genre. My favorite set is the Best Picture Winners: "Casablanca", "Gigi", "An American in Paris", and "Mrs. Miniver". I do wish they had put each film on a separate disc.

However, I am impressed by the material they crammed onto the two double-sided discs; interviews, trailers, short subjects, and cartoons all of which relate to the features. "Casablanca" and "Mrs. Miniver" are both inspiring tales of courage and sacrifice during World War II. The other two are legendary MGM musicals in glorious Technicolor. This is a perfect gift for young people just beginning to discover the films of yesteryear. "Casablanca" is cited by some critics as the greatest movie ever made. If you enjoy this set, purchase Westerns, Horror Movies, the Marx Brothers, Busby Berkeley musicals, and many others. 0Comment | 6 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Report abuse Comment Format: Amazon Video | Verified Purchase The 1942 film shows how the life of an unassuming British housewife (and her family and village) in rural England is touched by World War II. I enjoyed the look back into 1940's war-time rural England. The characters were interesting and very well developed. The plot is historically grounded by seminal events in spots to add reality to the screen play.

I found it humorous what sensors would not allow back then; husband and wife sleeping in separate beds in the same bedroom. The film's end was poorly edited and could have been better written, as it abruptly concludes in a war-time morale-building theme. I found it a warm and interesting film, even while mawkish at times. Format: DVD | Verified Purchase An American In Paris When Gertrude Stein told Hemingway "You're all a lost generation," the bloom came off the rose and expatriate status lost its cache among Americans living in Paris. It was a phenomenon, but one that had expired by the time this film was made in 1951. Still, for a new generation of viewers, the main premise of this film is still intact. That seems to be what the film wants: to be accepted for what it is: a love story. Gene Kelly had a boatload of experience in film and on stage prior to his pairing with Leslie Caron in An American in Paris.

He plays an artist low on cash but high on principle; there are two scenes where he takes up arms, first a sidewalk encounter with a college student on a point over art theory, second with art patron Milo Roberts (Nina Fochs) who wants more than his paintings. Kelly is so adamant in both instances that the movie becomes his film, although he gets lots of help and advice from his friends, one of whom, the classical pianist Adam Cook (Oscar Levant) takes a flight of fancy that forms the comic high point of the picture. But Kelly's main interest, then obsession, leads him to Leslie Caron and a well choreographed episode of imaginative longing, a lush panorama of art, Gershwin music and ballet that secured Kelly's reputation for helping broaden ballet's appeal to large audiences. The film leaves no doubt that Gene Kelly could carry a motion picture. He followed it up a year later with another great performance in Singin' In The Rain. Gigi Gigi is a musical spectacular that overlays a thorny family issue: discreet infidelity - a touchy subject when this film was made in 1958, a sore point between couples today.

Lavish and colorful costumes helped producer Arthur Freed sell this underlying theme to the guardians of the Hollywood Production Code. Placing the action of the movie in the 19th century instead of the 20th is a timing device helping to put some distance between the filmed era and the contemporary scene. This distance allows the film to deftly suggest the issue it chronicled was part of a bygone age, even though we know it isn't. Maurice Chevalier adds charm and sophistication with his presence, not to mention a great singing voice, and yet another means of softening the film's main theme of preparing young girls to be mistresses. Gigi herself is in training for such a role under the tutelage of Madam Alvarez (Hermione Gingold). Louis Jourdan as Gaston stands in contrast to the whole notion of marital deceit and is repelled by the social system supporting it. An ardent proponent of plain speaking, Gaston is the polar opposite of the gossipers at Maxim's restaurant (if you can't actually go to Maxim's, you can visit it vicariously in this film).

Leslie Caron is wonderful as Gigi, her transformation from naïve adolescent to the radiantly confident woman she becomes is amazing to watch - the producers no doubt also intend it as a triumph of enlightened virtue over essentially corrupt social mores. Vincent Minnelli supplies impeccable taste to his direction, Joseph Ruttenberg's camera work translates vibrantly on the screen in this restoration. Mrs. Miniver Seventy years ago, Winston Churchill remarked that Mrs. Miniver was England's greatest propaganda tool of World War II. He alluded, no doubt, to the struggle to enlist the United States on England's side for the war, something that would have happened even without the aid of Mrs. Miniver. Enough time has passed to allow this film to be evaluated on artistic rather than political grounds; by the same token, we can view Churchill's remark as a political judgment, not an artistic one. Artistically, the film's ability to surprise is potent. The wartime theme prepares us for tragedy, if not for those who receive it. Another surprise is its treatment of children as human beings in their own right, not extensions of parental authority.

Greer Garson augments this; she doesn't interrupt, censor or admonish them for the things they say, and they say a lot. Once the air raids begin, parents and children unite to fend off the terror of night bombing and despite their stoicism, the parents themselves become children. The outcome of Mrs. Miniver's encounter with a wounded German paratrooper seems unpredictable, not prescripted. The film could go in any number of directions. In one event where we do know the outcome, the sweep and panorama of boats on the English riverside will be impressive even to those who have never heard of Dunkirk. In sum, the distance from the film's events is such that new viewers can form their own opinions, which may have nothing to do with propaganda. Casablanca Perhaps the labeling on this package should read: Best Picture Ever Winner because that's what Casablanca is: The Best Picture Ever. Some critics of this picture usually point to its technical flaws, a view that ignores the film's ability to elicit strong emotions from an audience.

In accompanying commentary, much is made about the airplane swooping into Casablanca's opening sequence - its a "model airplane" we're told, as though the picture might have been better with John Wayne swooping onto the landing field in a Grumman Hellcat. Suspension of disbelief is such that the plane could be a balsawood glider (it probably was) and I wouldn't care; it's Bogart's reaction to the aircraft I'm cueing on. Anything short of Rodan landing would be satisfactory. Some say Bogart was off cue - later on, when Bogart tongue lashes Ingrid Bergeman, a bottle of bourbon squarely in the middle of the table between the two actors, it should be apparent it's the bourbon talking, not Bogie. Casablanca unleashed a torrent of phrases into the popular culture, a testament to its grip on public imagination. Its sustained emotional appeal is the reason the film permanently enthrals audiences. 0Comment | One person found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Report abuse Comment Format: Amazon Video | Verified Purchase I love the family in this movie.

The viewer gets to know and care for the Minivers and the movie conveyed a sense of what life was like in England both before and then during the War. The scene in the bomb shelter, when mom is knitting, dad is reading a book, and the children are sleeping safely, and then you hear the bombs start falling- harrowing to watch. As Americans, we never experienced that terror the way families in England and Europe did so this was an important film at the time because it showed Americans what everyday families in England were experiencing during the Blitz. I also liked that the film focused on the mother in the story as the source of the family's strength. And Greer Garson? Stunning to look at...they just don't make movie stars like that today. Format: Amazon Video | Verified Purchase This movie is as timely today as it was when I last saw it 30 plus years ago. I never realized how much until the sixteen year old neighbor who takes care of my yard said he'd never heard of Dunkirk and it became obvious that he knew less about WWII than he did about the War Between The States.

When I described the rescue of the British and French armies by the volunteer owners of England's small boats from the beach at Dunkirk, his mouth fell open. Then he said "Wow!" While "Mrs Miniver" is a first rate war story , this beautiful and compelling film is notable for its absence of of gory battle scenes, "language", graphic sex or any other element that would be deemed "unsuitable for children". Greer Garson: 'Mrs. Miniver' (1942 movie) by Mark Czerniec | December 3, 2012 • 1:49 pm | 0 comments I’ve been reading about World War 2 lately, so, as a step toward immersion, I thought it might be edifying to watch a related movie or two. My first selection was Mrs. Miniver , the 1942 hit starring Greer Garson , Walter Pidgeon , and Teresa Wright , an Academy Award winner for Outstanding Motion Picture, plus Oscars for both actresses, director William Wyler , screenplay and cinematography. The movie is set outside of London, and begins in the days just before Great Britain declares itself at war with Nazi Germany.

The Minivers are a very comfortable family with a beautiful home on the river Thames and a live-in housemaid and cook. Husband Clem (Walter Pidgeon) is a successful architect buying himself a snazzy new car (a Lagonda LG ). His wife Kay (Greer Garson), meanwhile, is splurging on a fancy hat. They have three children — a young son and daughter, and an older son, Vin, at university. Mrs. Miniver is an adaptation of the very popular book by Jan Strurther which began as a series of newspaper columns taking a lighthearted look at everyday life, then growing more serious with the coming of war. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill both credited the book with enormous influence over public opinion, and the film version was crafted to support America’s entry into the war. It was rushed to theaters in June of 1942 for its propaganda value. Even though Greer Garson was a British native, very little feels British in this movie.

There are a few accents, plus some set details, but the Minivers mostly have the aura of a very well-off Ward and June Cleaver — despite the fact that the Miniver family’s affluence was toned down for the more egalitarian tastes of the American audience. For that matter, there’s not much here that gives a strong sense of the war. The family is seen spending a frightening night in their backyard bomb shelter, and they do experience both brushes with mayhem and real tragedy, but their general attitude is one of pleasant denial — not so much the British “stiff upper lip,” but more of a smiling refusal to acknowledge circumstances at all. One disappointment is Mr. Miniver’s participation in the Dunkirk evacuation . As a motorboat owner, Clem is recruited for the arduous mission and dutifully plays his part. The flotilla of countless assorted vessels is briefly seen clogging the Thames upon departure. But while this astounding rescue was called a “miracle of deliverance” by Churchill, we only see Clem returning some days later in his battered boat, disheveled but unhurt, and desperate for sleep. The events at Dunkirk are barely even mentioned in passing.

The movie’s acting performances are up to the Hollywood standards of their day, which is to say that a glamorous wallpaper covers all true emotion. The beautiful Greer Garson is an perfect icon of gentle, feminine determination. As her son Vin, Richard Ney is slightly grating and his budding romance with Carol Beldon (Teresa Wright) is way too syrupy. Perhaps most annoying of all is Henry Travers (guardian angel Clarence from It’s a Wonderful Life ) as Mr. Ballard, a stationmaster and rose enthusiast who has named his prized variety after Mrs. Miniver. His cloying admiration for her crosses into creepiness, and the movie wastes too much time on this silly subplot (which was nevertheless recycled 48 years later in the third episode of Downton Abbey .) All in all, Mrs. Miniver is a serviceable machine. The desired buttons are pressed, the correct example is set. The movie concludes with what has been described as “one of the most famous sermons in cinema history,” The Wilcoxon Speech . Reportedly, President Roosevelt had the text of this sermon broadcast over the Voice of America in Europe and printed on millions of leaflets dropped over German-occupied territory.

It’s a stirring moment, but having the congregation follow it by singing “Onward Christian Soldiers” is over the top. I did not get any of the impression of England during wartime that I was looking for. I rate Mrs. Miniver two and a half out of four stars. Featured pages & posts

Question: Who plays Mrs Kay Miniver in the 1942 film ‘Mrs Miniver’?
Answer: Greer Garson