The Love Goes On Blogathon – Blithe Spirit (1945)

This is the final of 3 posts for The Love Goes On Blogathon being hosted by Steve of the Movie Movie Blog Blog.

Tnx for letting me participate!

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“It’s discouraging to think how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit. ” – Charles Condomine

Number of Times Seen – 1 (3 May 2020)

Brief Synopsis – A man and his wife hire a psychic to try and rid them of the ghost of his first wife he constantly haunts them.

My Take on it – This is another film that I had never heard of before coming across it in my research for a blogathon.

I have always been a fan of both David Lean and Noel Coward and this is great collaboration between the two of them since Lean adapted Cowards stage play.

The story once again shows how great a story teller Cowards was because he does some great things with these characters and dialogue.

The conversations between the characters are done really well and that helps us understand them even better and allows us to see them develop along the way.

The film sports a great cast and Rex Harrison is perfect in the lead because it is so different from the kind of character we are use to seeing him in.

The supporting cast is also so enjoyable to watch and Constance Cummings, Kay Hammond and Margaret Rutherford all add so much to the atmosphere of this story.

They also allow for things to feel even more fun and poignant as things move along.

The atmosphere of the film is done in a frantic way which helps keep things moving at a great pace and propels the story along really well.

The various surprises thrown in along the way help make this so much fun to watch.

The story also allows for us to see the way that love can cross over the planes between life and death.

Bottom Line – Another film that shows how great a storyteller Coward was. The story is enhanced by amazing dialogue that helps us understand so much more about these characters as things move along. The cast is great and I love watching Harrison in this kind of role. Cummings, Hammond and Rutherford add so much to the story and help keep things both fun and poignant throughout. The film has a frantic atmosphere that helps propel the story along and the various surprises along the way help make things even more enjoyable to watch unfold. Recommended.

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – Following the success of the play in London and on Broadway, every studio in Hollywood wanted to adapt “Blithe Spirit”. Noël Coward took the project to his friend Sir David Lean, with whom he had co-directed the Oscar-winning In Which We Serve (1942). However, Coward was not at all happy with Lean’s final movie. He later asked Lean, “How the hell did you f*ck up the best thing I ever did?” (From IMDB)

Rating – Globe Worthy (7/10)