1947 film by Joseph L. Mankiewicz
The Ghost and Mrs Muir
I reached a place in my story today where my need for lunch overpowered my creativity. I took a break. Made a sandwich, sat down in front of the television. Surfed right to the The Ghost and Mrs. Muir. The 1947 film, directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, is based on the novel by R A Dick (the pseudonym of Irish Writer Josephine Leslie) but has become much better known as a film.
I’ve seen it more times than I can remember, enough times to be able to speak many of the lines along with the actors.
Mrs. Muir (Gene Tierney) a young widow with a small child, Anna (Natalie Wood), moves to 
a cottage by the British coast, accompanied by her faithful housekeeper Martha (Edna Best). The cottage is haunted by the ghost of its former owner, a naval officer by the name of Captain Gregg (Rex Harrison). The two of them become intimate companions until Miles Farley (George Sanders) quite alive, comes into her life and sweeps her off her feet.
It doesn’t matter how many times I’ve cried through this movie, I still root for the Captain.He sees the two of them together and knows he must leave. Watch for the brief shot of Harrison in the foreground and the two of them in the distance right. Wonderful moment.
The Captain comes to her while she sleeps to say he’s leaving.
“You’ve made your choice. The only choice you could make, you chose life.
And that’s why I’m going away.”
“You’ve been dreaming. It’s been a dream, Lucia, and it will die as all dreams must die on waking.”
Can you be unmoved by that? It gets me every time.
He stands by the open window and watches her sleep as he slowly disappears in a cross fade of 1947 special effects until the window overlooking the sea is left.
Add some violins and waves crashing in the background . . . .well, I’ve never made it through the scene with dry eyes.
Of course the suave Mr. Farley is a philanderer, but as in all great romances, she doesn’t learn this until after the Captain has gone and she only remembers him as a dream she once had.
Major black moment.
Time passes, Mrs Muir grows older, and the sea marker that Mr. Scroggins (David Thursby) had carved with the child Anna’s name on it becomes weather-beaten, the name faded.
In a wonderfully effective passage of time, crashing waves roil on a stormy sea, then slowly quiet, the camera settles on the peaceful beach and Anna’s marker, now just ragged pieces of broken wood.
Mrs. Muir is old, Martha fusses. But she says “I’m only tired.” She sits by the fire with a glass of milk. Her eyes close and as the glass slips slowly from her hand, the Captain is there.
“And now you will never be tired again. Come my dear.”
She rises, young again, and they walk, strangely enough, across the room, down the stairs passing Martha on the way, and out the front door to the clouds.
The ultimate happy ending. We can guess there will be no philanderers where they are going. No fights, no disappointment. Companions at last and forever.
As a film, it hits all the basic points of romance, the widowhood, the flight to a new life in a strange place. The unreachable love, the other man who we know instinctually, if not by Sanders’ superb perfomance, is not the man for our heroine.
The blackest of black moments and the final triumph of their love, if only in death.
A paranormal story that strikes to the very heart of what it means to be human.
Simple, poignant, with no gratuitous grandstanding. And a great inspiraton for us writers. Something to be studied and loved.
Oh, yes, soooo romantic, and so beautifully acted. I haven’t seen it in a few years, but thanks for this lovely reminder of an old favorite.
It’s one of my favorites. The the chemistry between Harrison and Tierney crackles over the years, through the black and white film, even through the much smaller venue of television. Amazing.
I love that movie! Great post.
I cana’t imagine anyone not loving that movie. It’s certainly one of my all time faves.
Shelley, this will most likely be my last blog comment for a while and what a thrill that it will be for a movie I have adored for years. Watched it dozens of times and still cry at the end. I know I was very young the first time I saw this on TV. Sat with my mother, who cried over a love that would never be.
But ah, it was to be … not in our time or in what we think of as real time … theirs was a love that endured beyond our world for all time. Even as a child, I thought it had a happy ending. I was so happy to see him return to her, to watch them go off together. Gees, I’ll start crying again. I have rented it on VHS/DVD and from netflix. And when I played it for my daughter, she also cried. The joys of the eternal love story that can never grow old
Thanks !!
Have a great August and as they say, See you in September. It doesn’t matter how many times I’ve seen it, I always cry. I don’t even wait until the end. There are scenes, like the one where he leans over the sleeping Tierney to say good bye, that tighten my throat just thinking about them. Now there is story power.
And aren’t we lucky to have daughters who cry at the same movies as we do?
Thank you for this review of the movie. I’ve never seen it, though I’ve heard of it. I’m going to watch it now. Wow!
Patti
Patti, absolutely, be all means watch it. I have a feeling you’ll really love it too. Let me know.
Oh, I so loved this movie – which shouldn’t have worked (love story between a living person and a ghost?) and did. Thanks for the reminder, and the happy memories.
I know right? But they have such chemistry that you want it too work, even though you know it can’t. How I would love to be able to capture that immediacy in my writing.
Mrs. Muir becomes a writer to save her home…thanks to the Captain.
That is what I found so wonderful…I guess books paid very well back then.
And Sexy Rexy is one of my all time favorites.
If they were to remake this movie, I wonder who would play the Captain. Mrs. Muir? Ahh, something to think about today.
All I can say is I hope no one is ever inclined to remake it. I don’t usually like remakes. they seem to think they can improve on the original, but rarely do. Different times, different styles, different sensibilities.
Saw The Ghost and Mrs. Muir recently. Tried to pay closer attention to the details as I’d seen the movie before but still got lost in the love story. Can’t imagine a remake being better, but I did enjoy the TV series. Can’t remember who the actors were though.
I never saw the tv series, but it was Hope Lang and Edward Mulhare. I don’t think I would see a remake even if they made it, though I said that with the Little Women remake and ended up liking the Winona Ryder and Susan Sarandon one after all.
Great post Shelley! This was one of my favorite romantic movies. Rex Harrison was a perfect choice for the captain. Gene Tierney was beautiful and smart (and a writer, no doubt!). I feel a “Ghost and Mrs. Muir” marathon coming up!
Best,
N
would suit me fine. I think that film and those two actors really captured the heart of romance.
and hooray, writing comes to the rescue.