Review of Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939) by Robert S — 17 Sep 2009
This film has a wonderful story of a life well lived. Our protagonist Mr. Chipping is an eager young Latin teacher at a British boarding school whose career doesnâ??t get off to a roaring start until a chance encounter changes his life and the way he views others. After that incident, despite the tragedies that might befall him, his new outlook on life earns him the love and respect of the generations of students.
The film stars Robert Donat as â??Mr. Chipâ??sâ?? in an Academy Award winning performance, and he is indeed very impressive in this role showing the characters change in demeanor as well as a very effective aging process, especially for the era in which this film was made. Amongst those Donat beat out for the Oscar were; Laurence Olivier for Wuthering Heights, Clark Gable for Gone With The Wind and Jimmy Stewart for Mr. Smith Goes To Washington.
The film also stars a very endearing Greer Garson who would go onto to win an Academy Award for Best Actress three years later in the title role of Mrs. Miniver and Paul Henried best known as Victor Lazlo in Casablanca.
The film is based on a novel by James Hilton who also wrote Lost Horizon and contributed to the Academy Award winning screenplay for Mrs. Miniver.
The film was Nominated for Seven Academy Awards but would win only for Best Actor ( Robert Donat).
The long standing British boarding school traditions seen here are in many cases quite similar to what you see in the Harry Potter films more than 60 years later.
This review of Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939) was written by Robert S on 17 Sep 2009.
Goodbye, Mr. Chips has generally received very positive reviews.
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