Well Deserved Praise

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Child star Margaret O'Brien leads a young(ish) central cast including Dean Stockwell and Brian Roper. The first two looked a couple of years older than the 10 year old characters and Roper was 20, and although he looked younger than that, he didn't look like a child (albeit the character is supposed to be a little otherworldly, think Francis of Assisi or Melampus). The black and white cinematography is good and the transition to colour when the Secret Garden begins to bloom is quite effective. While not as scenic or true to the book as the 1994 version, this is a good retelling with the notable exception of the axe scene. Why the writers felt that the possibility of murder needed to be introduced, then immediately dropped, into a children's tale of love, loss, and rebirth is beyond me.

Directed by Fred Wilcox, based on the much filmed Francis Hodgson Burnett novel of the same name, with a Robert Ardrey screenplay, this is a terrific family film (and a tear-jerker for most parents) which also features a heartfelt ending.Margaret O'Brien is Mary Lennox, a girl whose family dies from Cholera. She is shipped off to live with her emotionally withdrawn Uncle (Herbert Marshall), whose wife died some years earlier. Her Uncle is a wealthy man with a large estate which includes a mysterious high walled, locked enclosure. One day, Mary discovers that there is an invalid boy, Colin (Dean Stockwell), living in the estate's vast mansion. Colin, the neglected son of her Uncle, is an ill-behaved, bedridden boy who is either crying, yelling at the staff (which includes Elsa Lanchester and Gladys Cooper; Reginald Owen is the estate's groundskeeper), or sleeping. Though his frequently absent father has employed several doctors, Colin remains a cripple. Mary also meets a local boy, Dickon (Brian Roper), who's good with animals. With him, she shares her latest discovery, a key which leads them to a door in the high walled enclosure. Upon opening the door, they discover a neglected garden. They decide to keep their discovery a secret; they also decide to work in the garden to restore it to what it once was. Mary wants to share their secret with Colin, whom she's come to know. In fact, she's the only person in the mansion he wants to see. She is its only resident that can keep him from misbehaving, because she's not willing to put up with his tantrums herself.Through Dickon and Mary, Colin is able to experience the garden and eventually gets well enough to visit it himself, in his wheelchair. Evidently, Mary's Uncle had locked the garden and thrown away its key because it was the site of his wife's death. When he discovers that the children have found the key, he rushes to the now fully restored garden (in Technicolor!) where he sees his son, who is so excited he walks to his father for the very first time!

This is, of course, a lovely story. And all the better this time for the wonderful child actors here. Margaret O'Brien alternates in this film between overacting (particularly when having a tantrum) to playing it just right in other scenes, fairly typical for this youngster. But, overall she is effective as a little girl who has been having a rough time of it, but mellows through her adventures surrounding her new life in Great Britain. Dean Stockwell is another favorite of the era, and he is delightful here, as well. I wasn't a bit familiar with the young actor (Brian Roper) who played the local boy, but he is, perhaps, the best of the lot.Of the adults in this film version, Goerge Zucco, as the modern doctor, has perhaps the most interesting role. Star Herbert Marshall's role is small (compared to his usual film presence), but key, and he is always a wonderful presence. Elsa Lanchester is a bit over the top here, so I'm not sure she deserves many kudos. I didn't even recognize the gardener -- Reginald Owen.It's a shame that MGM didn't spend just a little more money to make this film all in color, particularly considering its date -- 1949. I think it could have been made in color, yet sterile and drab while outside the garden, and then the beautiful color while in the garden. Perhaps that's why in recent years this film has been nearly lost in the public's remembrances when more recent color versions have been so acclaimed.The ending comes all too fast, and a few more scenes showing a happy family would have been quite sentimental and a far better ending.

This is a movie I never tire of seeing. Margaret O'Brien is just about perfect in the part of Mary Lennox, an orphan who finds herself in a house full of strange people.Along the way she finds love in friendship, a love that was never shown to her by her parents.The book on which this film is based by Frances Hodgson Burnett, was my favourite book as a child and I've given many copies to children over the years. This movie is quite a perfect replica of the book, apart from the injection of a totally unnecessary "crime" element. The characters are multi-dimensional, a wounded father flailing against the world and projecting illness on to his son. The son, Colin, played by a very young and handsome Dean Stockwell, in turn reacting with tantrums and hate to the world around him.Mary has her own issues, feeling ugly and unloved due to her past in India.Unhappiness reigns in the Manor House headed up by Herbert Marshall playing Colin's father - a brilliant performance.There is a teeming cast of well known names to add to the flavour of the film: Dame Gladys Cooper as the housekeeper; Elsa Lanchester as the maid; Reginald Owen as the mysterious gardener.The black and white filming adds a morbid darkness with the colour sequences in the garden contrasting beautifully.The only flaw was the settish nature of the scenes, even the gardens are "back lot".But these quibbles aside, some movies one can get immersed in afresh with each viewing. This is one that takes you in and doesn't let up till the final very satisfying frame.9 out of 10.