This Movie Can Only Be Described With One Word.

Brilliant and touching

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

Greer Garson is That Forsyte Woman. The story begins with Greer in the nighttime fog of London rushing to a hospital to see someone. Errol Flynn and Walter Pidgeon are right behind her. Who is she visiting? Why is she in such a state of panic? By way of a flashback, we are shown just how they have all come to this point. Errol is captivated by Greer and means to have her. By wooing her and sending her flowers, he insists she is to be his, despite all her refusals to marry him. But, she doesn't love him. Through a series of events, she finally acquiesces. But, will she learn to love him? Will Errol be able to hang on to her? How does she get the label of That Forsyte Woman? Also starring Robert Young and Janet Leigh, this is yet another example of Hollywood at its best in storytelling. The viewer is caught up completely in her world. But, despite all the truths unearthed and developments of the plot, the biggest asset to this film are the acting chops of Garson, Pidgeon, and Flynn. Especially Errol Flynn. For someone who was typecast and primarily known as "Robin Hood" and "Don Juan" in his career, he is exceptional in this; I can't overemphasize just how great he is. This may just be one of his best performances, outside of "Gentleman Jim." Of course, the presence of Garson and Pidgeon together is a plus, but its Flynn's presence that carries the plot along. The characters of Robert Young and Janet Leigh are a little too cardboard or cookie-cutter to really stand out, but the viewer will leave this film, feeling very satisfied, with the story and Flynn and company's acting. And, this has a great last line. It may be far from perfect, with its loopholes or even seem a bit static or old-fashioned to some, but if you will only sit back and relax, the rewards are there for you to enjoy.

I originally saw this in the early 70s, after having seen THE FORSYTE SAGA on TV, and reading the first three books. Shoehorning two books' worth of story into a two-hour movie makes mincemeat out of the plot, but the essential details are preserved.It was a crackup for me to see Robert Young, then widely known as Marcus Welby M.D. I was used to seeing him as an old man; but then he looks old for the part anyway, and overacts to compensate for it.However, Errol Flynn is excellent as Soames, and Walter Pidgeon brings the necessary gravitas to the role of Jolyon. Harry Davenport is fine as Old Jolyon, although I can't quite erase the image of Dr. Meade from Gone With the Wind.It's not a very good adaptation of Galsworthy's story, but on its own merits, it's well acted and edited, with handsome production design and nice pacing. It's fun to watch just to compare it with the more successful TV version.

I think there are two ways to look at MGM's 'That Forsyte Woman', an 'adaptation' of John Galsworthy's 'Forsyte Saga' (book one), the one in which Soames meets Irene.First, you can compare it with the story as written, and find it full of holes, omissions, misinterpretations, and tacked-on happy endings (a wedding for June?). All that is strong and perceptive about the book (and its subsequent TV adaptation in the 1960s) is omitted, from the subplot on Jo Forsyte's marriage and dismissal from the clan, the humour of the minor characters, especially the older Forsyte brothers and sisters, and the central cauldron of emotion between Soames and his young wife Irene, culminating in his forcing of conjugal rights and her leaving for pastures new, and the subsequent suicide of her young lover. In this light, 'That Forsyte Woman' is a travesty and an over-simplification. It is woefully miscast - Robert Young and Greer Garson are too old for Bosinney and Irene - and poorly scripted, with no concept of what the Forsytes stood for (the glory and tradition of the old England).Or, you can wallow in it as a fine old melodrama from Hollywood's finest studio, with the most expensive casting and Technicolor lavished upon it. Pared down to that oldest of love stories - girl meets boy, but he's not the right boy - and with a bit of tragedy thrown in at the end. There's some humour - notably with old Jolyon (Harry Davenport) wishing he doesn't have to dance with old ladies - and a nice bookend of plot involving the gift of paintings - and as an afternoon matinée film, standing on its own, it succeeds remarkably, with the protagonists Soames and Irene parting on good terms.It's a case of take your pick and watch the film from whatever angle you please.

This film was cited as one of the ones that Errol Flynn felt he gave a good performance in, and that assessment is certainly true. He completely played against type in this role as an emotionally restricted man of property and did a fine job. The problem is not in his playing but in the heavily edited screenplay and miscasting. Robert Young is laughable as the "young" architect and Greer Garson too genteel by half for the role of the scheming adulteress Irene who freezes Soames out-Eleanor Parker would have been ideal for this role,but one gets the feeling MGM couldn't allow Garson to be the adventuress the role demanded because of her image. Also,the film's lack of the pivotal rape scene that ends the marriage in the novel undermines the reason why Irene detests Soames so much. Flynn portrays Soames well enough that he could have followed through in such a scene in good form. He did a great job with this character's motivations and was still quite handsome. An underrated performance in a so-so adaptation of a classic novel.