The Mill on the Floss

Haven't seen the movie, but having just finished the book I had to post in defense of Eliot and "Floss". The novel is not Eliot's best, but it should go without saying that bad Eliot is way better than most 'literary' fiction you find today. The structure of the book is not very good, and the last half of the novel becomes about the love triangle between Maggie, Phillip, and Stephen -- Tom gets lost in the shuffle a bit, until the very end. I can see James Mason in any of the male leads -- but probably he would have rocked as Phillip, the hunch-backed, somewhat effeminate soul mate for Maggie. Tom is a bit of stick of the mud in the book and frankly not that interesting a character. The book is all about Maggie though -- her internal conflict, between her duty to Tom and family, and her instinctive desire for personal happiness and fulfillment, make the book. I can't wait to see how this film handles her!

This 1937 adaption of George Elliot's The Mill On The Floss gave film audiences James Mason's first starring role as Tom Tulliver, son of Sam Livesey who has a running feud over the water rights over a mill that Livesey owns on the river Floss. This feud over the water rights where it is determined that Felix Aylmer owns permeates the lives of the families involved.

Mason is an earnest and devoted son to Livesey and something of a lout. He ratchets up the feud several notches until that's just about all he lives for. But that's not how Mason's sister Geraldine Fitzgerald feels nor is it how Aylmer's son Frank Lawton feels. They carry on a Romeo and Juliet like romance despite the feelings of their respective families. And since you know where Elliot got her inspiration from, you also can probably deduce things end rather badly.

This film version could probably use a restoration since it is a key film in the career of James Mason. The streamed version I saw on Amazon looks like it hasn't stood the test of time. The Napoleonic and post Napoleonic era in the United Kingdom is well captured on the film, but the pace is slow and sluggish. The film should also be restored because of the climatic sequence of the flood which destroys some lives and the mill that was the cause of the great feud. It was probably a well staged disaster that I would have liked a better view of, it was pretty dark on my computer.

The Mill On The Floss is sluggish and considerably condensed from the Elliott novel, but still earnestly done by its cast.

There have been several film adaptations of The Mill on the Floss, but the 1936 version is the only one I've ever seen. It reminded me very much of Hungry Hill, so if you liked that movie, you'll probably like this story as well.

Two families have a long-standing feud, and while the younger generation is aware of the enemy camp, they can't help but be drawn to it. Geraldine Fitzgerald falls in love with forbidden fruit Frank Lawton, and her brother James Mason has a fit. He's the "good kid" and hates his enemies as he's been taught. As James tries to stop the romance, he also faces his own prejudices and works hard managing his father's mill.

If you're not very well-versed in dry period pieces, you might fall asleep or get lost during this one. It tends to rush plot points, and it doesn't try very hard to "dummy things down" for the audience. But, if you like proper British stories, and you get wrapped up in feuds, try renting one of the versions of The Mill on the Floss and see what you think.

Mason plays the supporting role of Tom Tulliver in this adaptation of George Eliot's 'The Mill on the Floss'. Quite frankly, I didn't enjoy any of Eliot's novels so I wouldn't enjoy watching this film. Mason has a minor part, so it's not even worth watching anyway.

I am somewhat surprised that 2 out of the 6 reviews of this film were by people who hadn't even seen the film.I would count them as extremely lucky as this is a really dull affair,which at times doesn't even make sense.At the beginning the source of the feud is discussed and the law action started.Mason et al are all young children.We then go forward a few years ,it seems like 20 when Mson et all are adults and it appears that the law case over the mill has just been resolved.Well the wheels of justice may grind exceedingly slow but not that slow.One can only think that the producers were trying to replicate the success of David Copperfield,well it has to be said that they failed miserably.It is an effort to try and keep working out what is going on.At least Mason and Fitzgerald would go on to better things.