![]() ![]() Fast forward several years, and Charles has become a no-nonsense businessman. With no knowledge of his new family or his picturesque life, he returns to his old self.Īs it turns out, he is a wealthy landowner named Charles Rainier. When he comes to, his pre-war memories have been restored, while his memories from the past three years have vanished. And then comes the tragedy: While in Liverpool for a job interview, Smithy slips in the street and is knocked out by a car. At a time when PTSD and trauma-related mental illness was largely misunderstood, her easy acceptance is startlingly modern.īefore long, the pair run off to an almost comically charming cottage in the Devon countryside, fall in love, marry, and have a baby. Smithy is restrained, helpless, and lost, while Paula is bright, warm, and chatty. He escapes and meets a lively music hall singer named Paula (Greer Garson), who takes him under her wing and fondly dubs him “Smithy.” It’s a brilliant meet-cute. He has forgotten everything about his past and struggles to speak more than a few words at a time. The plot certainly verges on the ludicrously melodramatic: A young, shell-shocked soldier known only as Smith (Ronald Colman) finds himself in an asylum during World War I. Is Random Harvest too far-fetched, too feminine, too emotional? Or is it a forgotten classic that, thanks to rather than in spite of its melodramatic style, continues to resonate? “It remains one of the most memorably romantic scenes in cinema history.” But after 80 years, perhaps it’s time we reassessed our disdain for the melodrama. It’s undeniable that Random Harvest is a heightened, even melodramatic film. It’s a simple, beautifully crafted story.” In a 2017 interview with AV Club, Mel Brooks effused, “You have to see it… It’s a great story. Similarly, one 2006 review of the film called it an “effortlessly smooth tearjerker” set in a “patronizing patina of English pastoral.” And yet, there are some who, like Garson, still revere it as one of the great love stories. In 1973, Carol Burnett spoofed the film with a skit called “ Rancid Harvest,” in which she and Harvey Korman gave their best clipped transatlantic accents and schmaltzy overacting. Since then, however, it has typically been dismissed as an overly sentimental melodrama. I know I am prejudiced but I think it is one of the half dozen greatest love stories.”Ĭelebrating its 80th anniversary this year, the classic 1942 Mervyn LeRoy film is still achingly romantic-a story of love gained, love lost, and love restored.Īlthough it hasn’t been remembered as one of the greats of its era, in its time, the film was a hit, taking home over $8 million at the box office. “For sheer make-believe romance you cannot top James Hilton’s Random Harvest,” actress Greer Garson once said.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |