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spiderwort's Replies
Oh, SHADOW OF A DOUBT - now there's another great film (Hitchcock himself said it was his best)! In any case, Wright was great in that, too, and also (and this is my most favorite) in THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES. She was nominated for three Oscars, including THE LITTLE FOXES, and won for MRS. MINIVER (oh, another great role!). Wonderful actress.
Let me just add that because films are shorter, some of the novel's details had to be deleted or condensed. But as I remember it, it is in every essential way true to the heart and soul of the novel. Put another way, if you liked the novel, I believe you will like (and perhaps love) the film. Let me know what you think after your see it. I'd be very interested. I just saw it recently and it was as moving to me now as it was when I first saw it decades ago.
One of my favorite William Wyler, Bette Davis, and Lillian Hellman films. So beautifully done. And I thought Teresa Wright more than held her own with the redoubtable Bette Davis. They were a great team. But everyone in the film was so good, thanks to Wyler's amazing direction. It's very much a film worth watching for those who so often reject the idea of classic films.
Yes, godewey. Glad to see some on this thread who understand what comprises a great film, and a great one this is.
It's very faithful to the novel and very much worth a view.
Much of my youth and teenage years I spent going to drive-ins and loved it! As you say, it brings back so many wonderful memories. I remember as a kid in the Arizona desert seeing THE MOLE PEOPLE at a drive-in. A huge dust storm blew in and made the film even scarier. I don't remember the last time I saw a film at a drive-in, but I think it was probably CARRIE in 1976. Those were the days!
Related to this, there's a wonderful scene in Spielberg's first feature, THE SUGARLAND EXPRESS (1974), that takes place near a drive-in. And the remarkable way that Spielberg directed it to bring the film right into the scene, close-up, was the first sign of his genius that I remember seeing. Echoes of Orson Welles.
Btw, thanks for the links.