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Review: The Ghost and Mrs. Muir

Ghost-Mrs-MuirYes, I am now aware that The Ghost and Mrs. Muir is not considered a horror film. The film was broadcast tonight on TMC and I came across it after missing the first few minutes. I was under the impression that it was going to be the 1940s version of a horror film because, truth be told, I’m not exactly educated on classic films in black and white. Still, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir had a fantastically executed, horror themed beginning and it turned out to be an overall decent story so here’s my review.

The Ghost and Mrs. Muir is based on the 1945 novel by Josephine Leslie aka R. A. Dick. Four-time Oscar Winner Joseph L. Mankiewicz adapted the novel to a feature film based on the screen play by Philip Dunne. Cast members include Gene Tierney, Oscar Winner Rex Harrison, Oscar Winner George Sanders, Edna Best, Robert Coote and a young Natalie Wood as Anna Muir. The film follows Lucy Muir (Tierney) in the year 1900 as she moves into a cottage by the see that she discovers to be haunted by a menacing but lively seaman (Harrison).

As I mentioned above, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir is not a full fledged horror film by any means. The opening, though, is particularly reliant from elements in the genre to keep viewers interested. Disembodied voices and laughing, things moving on their own, general feelings of uneasiness accompanied by hair raising scores, strange disappearing acts and more… What’s surprising to me is that nearly 70 years later – the film was released in 1947 – a lot of those same elements are used in the majority of supernatural horror films dealing with ghosts and exorcisms today. Unfortunately, all of these aspects of the supernatural disappeared about twenty-five minutes into the movie and I was left watching a romance-drama with hints of comedy and fantasy.

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Yet I couldn’t find it in me to turn the damn movie off! There is just something so classic about the movie, something so personal about it that made me drawn to it. Let’s be honest, films that were shot in the 40s were not as technically and cinematically pleasing as they are today; so instead productions had to rely on a good story and even better acting to sell their product – and you get nothing short of that here. During my college years I took a film history course and I fell asleep during any screening of films from the 1920s to the 1940s. It appears that my professor may not have picked the right films to showcase the talent and promise of early movies because The Ghost and Mrs. Muir kept me enthralled the entire time! Exquisitely believable and professional performances from all the actors and a love triangle not plagued by all the current Hollywood pitfalls.

I think the film is still pretty relevant today, too. Even putting aside the fact that so many Oscar winners and old school icons worked on this title, thematically there is still a wide appeal to a variety of audiences. Hell, I found the themes of “if your friends hate your boyfriend/girlfriend, they’re probably not good for you,” and “everyone hates their in laws” to be true to this very day. If you want a good but toned down fantasy, this is the movie for you. If you want a heart-touching romance-drama, this is the movie for you. If you want a look at how they did “ghost attacks” decades ago, this is the movie for you. If you want an overall cohesive and impressive, classic movie, then this is the movie for you.

Again, it’s only about 15% a horror film, but The Ghost and Mrs. Muir is still an amazing film. Watch it as your next date night movie choice! Final Score: 8.2 out of 10

Michael DeFellipo

(Senior Editor)

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