MovieChat Forums > The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947) Discussion > Anyone here read the book? Spoilers, sor...

Anyone here read the book? Spoilers, sort of.

posted 10 years ago by ghostfan
2 replies | jump to latest

The reason I ask, is in the book, Lucy never SEES Captain Gregg, other than his portrait. She hears his voice in her head only, and sees his influences when her mother and sister in law visit, but she never actually sees him until the very end, when she dies.

Do you think if the movie had been made, strictly following the book, which also includes him leaving after the Miles Fairley incident, (he doesn't make her think he is a dream) and coming back ten tears later when her children (there was a boy as well as a girl) are in college, and then writing Blood and Swash, after her income fails, would the movie be as successful and memorable as the one we know?

Rex Harrison is great to look at, but in your opinion, could the movie, with Gene Tierney, and the rest of the cast intact, and only Rex's voice, make it work? Would it work if they made the movie now?

How sad, that you were not born in my time, nor I, in yours.

[–] scndform 10 years ago

Usually when I see a film based upon a novel I prefer the novel over the film but in in case I think the film was far above the novel.

I do know that I would want to see the captain- especially since it was Rex Harrison so for me, I think I'd be pretty frustrated just hearing his voice. However, it could be done so that he visible to the audience but not to Lucy.

[–] darryl-tahirali 10 years ago

Rex Harrison is great to look at, but in your opinion, could the movie, with Gene Tierney, and the rest of the cast intact, and only Rex's voice, make it work? Would it work if they made the movie now? - ghostfan

My thought is that it is the medium that makes that decision. Although I haven't read the book, the standard narrative approach of novels puts the reader into the scene and into the characters' heads to varying degrees, and the overall process of having the reader imagine the scenario can make that approach workable in print.

Film is a different matter, an overwhelmingly visual medium, and using voice-over does not make as big an impact. Also, I suspect that the actress would have to be quite convincing to make an unseen Daniel Gregg work, and I don't think that Gene Tierney had the chops for that.

And if they remade the film now, it would probably look a lot like Ghost only with a lot of gaudy CGI to make us aware of Daniel's presence.

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"He not busy bein' born is a-busy dyin'." - Bob Dylan