The White Cliffs of Dover (1944)
There’s a lot to appreciate about The White Cliffs of Dover, but it’s such a tragic story I can’t imagine anyone wanting to watch it more than once. Irene Dunne takes the helm and turns her weepy eyes against the audience, reducing them to rubble by the end of the movie. This movie spans both World Wars, and shows the devastation that can befall one woman who has lived through both. She starts off as a fresh, young American going on vacation to England with her father, Frank Morgan, and she winds up a heartbroken, tired nurse who has seen too much sorrow.
Along the way there are some great scenes and clever dialogue, especially when you consider that the entire movie was based on the titular poem—and that the poem really has nothing to do with the plot. Irene gets invited to a ball during her vacation by C. Aubrey Smith, who quickly guesses she’ll be a great match for Alan Marshall. He sets them up, and they fall in love. Irene never returns from her vacation, but at least Frank visits often. He and C. Aubrey have some very funny scenes together.
As WWI starts, Alan joins the army. When he’s killed, Irene performs a touching, tragic scene as she holds her newborn son and defies the war. She vows no war will ever take her son away and kill him, as her mother-in-law Gladys Cooper and the baby’s nurse Dame May Whitty tearfully look on. In another wonderful scene, the Americans march the streets of London, and Irene holds her son up to see the troops. She weeps tears of joy knowing the war will soon be over; for the Americans in the audience, it’s very moving and patriotic.
There’s a lot more to this movie, and if you’re brave enough to sit through it with a box of Kleenex, you’ll get to see Roddy McDowall and Elizabeth Taylor, as well as Peter Lawford, June Lockhart, Miles Mander, and Van Johnson. You’ll also get to hear beautiful music by Herbert Stothart. If you’re an Irene Dunne fan, you’re probably used to seeing her in very sad movies; you’ve got to watch one of her greatest performances in The White Cliffs of Dover.
Want to watch it? Click here to see it on ok.ru and thanks "Classic Movies Kristine Rose" for posting!
More Frank Morgan movies here!
More Elizabeth Taylor movies here!
Along the way there are some great scenes and clever dialogue, especially when you consider that the entire movie was based on the titular poem—and that the poem really has nothing to do with the plot. Irene gets invited to a ball during her vacation by C. Aubrey Smith, who quickly guesses she’ll be a great match for Alan Marshall. He sets them up, and they fall in love. Irene never returns from her vacation, but at least Frank visits often. He and C. Aubrey have some very funny scenes together.
As WWI starts, Alan joins the army. When he’s killed, Irene performs a touching, tragic scene as she holds her newborn son and defies the war. She vows no war will ever take her son away and kill him, as her mother-in-law Gladys Cooper and the baby’s nurse Dame May Whitty tearfully look on. In another wonderful scene, the Americans march the streets of London, and Irene holds her son up to see the troops. She weeps tears of joy knowing the war will soon be over; for the Americans in the audience, it’s very moving and patriotic.
There’s a lot more to this movie, and if you’re brave enough to sit through it with a box of Kleenex, you’ll get to see Roddy McDowall and Elizabeth Taylor, as well as Peter Lawford, June Lockhart, Miles Mander, and Van Johnson. You’ll also get to hear beautiful music by Herbert Stothart. If you’re an Irene Dunne fan, you’re probably used to seeing her in very sad movies; you’ve got to watch one of her greatest performances in The White Cliffs of Dover.
Want to watch it? Click here to see it on ok.ru and thanks "Classic Movies Kristine Rose" for posting!
More Frank Morgan movies here!
More Elizabeth Taylor movies here!