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By now, Bette Davis was having her pick of the type of movies she wanted to make and was known to sacrifice looks for parts that were meaty and difficult. Playing Lily Moffatt must have been a breeze for her, because it allowed her to eliminate all of her grandiose trademark gestures, act in a more paused, restrained way, and let the character's own energy flow out of her and thus dictate how it wanted to convey itself on screen.

Acting against newcomer John Dall she comes off as an equal instead of the experiences actress she by then was: she allows Dall to express himself quite strongly, although at times his Welsh accent wavers in and out. It's too bad, however, that despite this strong debut, Oscar nominated for Supporting Actor, which was followed by ROPE and GUN CRAZY, Dall practically had nothing to hold onto when it came to movies and disappeared for the majority of the Fifties, returning only for SPARTACUS and a smattering of other films.

It's too bad, but one of the many stories of brief careers that make their mark in one or more movies. Speaking of which, Joan Lorring was another actress who took her role and ran with it. For her acting she was awarded, like Dall, a Supporting Actress nomination, but was little seen after 1948. If it weren't for this footnote in her career she'd be all but a forgotten supporting actress; she manages to eclipse Davis in two scenes in the movie, and her exit is also memorable.

Davis probably didn't get a nomination because by now it seemed she could phone in her emotions and play this kind of role in her sleep. Even so, it's a very good role, very understated, not very well remembered (except by her hardcore fans), and the last hit she would have because from 1946 on her movies would start losing money and be of varying quality, that is, until her great comeback as Margo Channing in ALL ABOUT EVE.

This was a late-night tv surprise. The Corn is Green is a highly engaging drama. Bette Davis is good as the well-intentioned, well-meaning but not always successful social engineer and pioneer in adult education, set in a rural Welsh mining town. A surprisingly 'modern' film for its release date with regard to its frankness about out-of-wedlock pregnancy. There was a good deal of Welsh language banter and phrases peppered throughout the film, despite the story's bias against Welsh in preference for the male lead receiving a 'proper' education in English. The film cannot be faulted for its expression of negative attitudes toward the indigenous language of Wales since minority languages were viewed as a detriment to progress in the modern world at the time. We know better now, but much damage has been done to the likes of the people depicted in the Welsh mining town of the Corn is Green, surrounded by a larger culture bent on their assimilation. This is an entertaining and near-tragic story which made me think.

I profess that I have a love for good films about teaching. This one stars Bette Davis as Lilly Moffatt, a spinster schoolteacher, whose desires for elevating the minds of young people who are destined to a life of coal mining in a Welsh community, becomes focused on the promising talents of Morgan Evans, a young man who shows a spark of superior intellect.

Miss Davis is well suited to her role, a woman of restrained passions. While watching her, there are moments when I sense similarities with the acting style of Meryl Streep.

The rest of the cast is quite good. John Dall, in his film debut, plays Mr. Evans. It is an inspired performance that earned an Academy Award nomination.

Based upon a true story, TCIG invites comparisons to "My Fair Lady" and, especially, "Spencer's Mountain" in regard to the central story about molding a young mind.

I have one criticism. The singing vocals are so strong that they are distracting. A small group of young, work-weary miners should not sound like the men's chorus at the Met, for example.

Miss Moffatt might be seen by some as selfless in her dedication to higher principles. She denies herself of so much in her pursuit of education. But hers is a selfish campaign for transformation-of a man, a town, perhaps a country. She trades something of lesser value for something of greater value, so she does not sacrifice, even in her final dramatic decision. And it is her pursuit of a greater purpose that gives her story nobility. And the pleasure she finds in her achievements can only be seen as justifiable and virtuous.

Bette Davis offers an interesting, more restrained performance than usual as Miss Moffat, the schoolteacher determined to help a brilliant student (John Dall) reach his full potential. Although handsomely photographed, the film has the look of a photographed stage play with its studio-bound outdoor sets--but the performances are all so vibrant that they become more important than any other ingredient.

John Dall is excellent in what was his first major role, as is Joan Lorring as Bessie (the girl who takes his mind off his studies). Nigel Bruce, Mildred Dunnock and Rosalind Ivan create fully rounded performances under Irving Rapper's sensitive direction. But it is Davis, of course, who holds the spotlight with one of her most tasteful performances--intelligent and yet full of feeling and emotion.

As I said earlier, all of it shows its stage origins and the singing of the Welsh miners is a bit too perfect for reality--but the film is both entertaining and thought-provoking, dealing as it does with some serious issues. Ahead of its time, in its out-of-wedlock theme.

Bette Davis in her career got 10 nominations and two Oscars for Best Actress. I was amazed to learn that The Corn Is Green was not one of the ten. This has to be one of her five best films. And the interesting thing about it is that her performance as Ms. Moffatt contains none of the Bette Davis shtick we associate with her.

The Corn Is Green, a play by Emlyn Williams ran for 477 performances on Broadway between 1940 to 1942 and then in 1943 the road company was called back to Broadway to give another 56 performances during that season. The role of Ms. Moffatt the school teacher originated with Ethel Barrymore and three members of the Broadway cast repeated their roles for the screen, Mildred Dunnock, Rosalind Ivan, and Rhys Williams.

Because Ethel Barrymore would have been 61 at the time she debuted with The Corn is Green on Broadway and Davis only 37 of necessity the interpretations would have been different. Davis has been left some property in a Welsh village and she's unlike any woman who's ever come there. She has an MA from Oxford, the fact she can read and write strikes some as amazing. She resolves to teach the young folks in the village to do the same, a plan with which a lot of the villagers are opposed.

Most notably opposed is Nigel Bruce who plays the local titled gentry in the place and who prides the fact that the folks there call him 'squire' in many different tones of voice. He's a living embodiment of the Colonel Blimp character from Great Britain. He also is an owner of the local mine and he's quite frank in that if you start teaching people how to read and write who knows what kind of unrest it could lead to. He was my favorite character in the film. One scene in it is priceless how Bette Davis who first tells him what an oaf he is later decides to use a little flattery to get what she wants from him.

What she wants is his patronage for a certain young miner who shows great promise and a literary bent. That would be John Dall who if he can tear himself away from his drinking buddies at the tavern and the attentions of town tart Joan Lorring has a chance to go to Oxford, he's that intelligent.

Education was the theme here and a theme in that other Welsh classic How Green Was My Valley where the hopes and dreams of the Morgan family are wrapped up in Roddy McDowall going to school and getting an education to escape a life in the coal mines. But I found better comparisons with The Corn Is Green to a couple of modern classics, Good Will Hunting and All The Right Moves. Robin Williams reacted the same way in Good Will Hunting when he saw janitor Matt Damon do those math equations. Also John Dall wants to use his writing talents to escape the mines the same way Tom Cruise wants to use a football scholarship to escape the coal mines in Pennsylvania. And Cruise gets a lot of the same opposition that Dall gets from those jealous he has an opportunity to leave the mines.

Though Bette Davis was not nominated for anything, The Corn Is Green got two nominations John Dall for Best Supporting Actor and Joan Lorring for Best Supporting Actress. They lost to James Dunn and Anne Revere respectively.

Dall's career never got the momentum it should have from this film and from Alfred Hitchcock's Rope. He was very much in the celluloid closet and fear of exposure haunted him throughout a life that was given to a lot of substance abuse.

As for Lorring you have not seen too many low class tramps on the screen to match her. Dall gets her pregnant and her condition leads to the climax of the film. Lorring also never quite fulfilled the promise she showed in The Corn Is Green.

The themes of education and literacy are timeless, you can see it in the more modern films I've compared The Corn Is Green too. It's a film not to be missed or acquired if possible. And for Bette Davis's devoted fans, an absolute must. She would not get a part as good as Ms. Moffatt until she did All About Eve.

One of the TEN great films that Davis worked on with Director Irving Rapper, "The Corn is Green" tells the true story of a Welsh school marm who takes on the town. The first big name we see is the pompous "Squire", played by Nigel Bruce, who was Dr. Watson for so many years in all those Sherlock Holmes stories. Davis could play any part, and didn't care how bad or frumpy she looked, as long as she could sink her teeth into the part and make it a strong personality. That's just what she does here as the self-made teacher, Miss Moffat, determined to educate the town's poor workers, who sing on the way to and from work. She needs the help of Mr. Jone's (Rhys Williams, who had a role in How Green was my Valley). At 115 minutes, they pack a lot into the story, including several songs by the Saint Lukes Episcopal Chorus, which had performed in about 20 films in the 1930s and 1940s. Cute bits by Thomas Louden as the old man doing his best to learn. Also Joan Lorring as Bessie Watty, one of the antagonists.

The Corn is Green is definitely one of my favorite movies of all time. Thoroughly engaging and full of comic as well as dramatic moments. Bette Davis is fantastic and is backed up by a varied and talented cast. It's sentimental and sharp. A perfect blend. It gets overlooked so often by "best lists" and it's a shame. I remember the first time I saw it back in the late 1980's. I wondered how such a treasure could be ignored for so long. I hope it gets released to DVD soon. Unfortunately the current print that's on VHS and shown on Turner Classic Movies is worn and looks like it's falling apart. Maybe that print is all that's available. No matter. Don't pass up a chance on seeing this cinematic gem. This is great movie making and theatre all in one.

It's 1895 in the small remote Welsh village of Glansarno. Schoolteacher Lilly Moffat (Bette Davis) is left a building by her uncle. Everybody expected a man and is surprised especially her degree in Master of Arts. She is dismayed by the illiterate children working in the coal mines and she sets up a school for them. Safe Mr. Jones and spinster Miss Ronberry are enlisted to help. Her housekeeper Mrs. Watty tries to be helpful but her daughter Bessie (Joan Lorring) is quite a gossiping schemer. The Squire who owns most of the town including a half-share of the mine opposes Moffat's school. She takes an interest in promising student Morgan Evans (John Dall) who she hopes to go to Oxford University.

This is a simple traditional proper principled woman coming to rescue poor disadvantaged kids. The 'kids' could look a bit younger. John Dall is pass his mid-20s. Although both him and Joan Lorring did get Oscar nominations for their performance. This is workable formulaic film.

Definately a must see! Davis's performance was remarkable, subdued but full of emotion and depth without over acting. The actor playing Morgan Evan's is very remarkable being his first film. He and Davis exchange witty banter that makes you appreciate both actors without taking any of the lime light away from the other. The characters were complex and showed facets of ourselves. This movie really makes you think. It's my favorite Davis picture. The themes were very mature and ahead of their time. It's sort of like a early Peyton Place!

With her degree, an inherited estate in a small Welsh village, and a modest amount of money in the bank, Miss Lilly Moffat--a confirmed and not-reluctant spinster in 1895 who shows early signs of women's liberation--opens a school on her property for the uneducated locals and the illiterate boys who work in the nearby coal mine. Surely finding a hidden scholar amongst her pupils would bring Miss Moffat pride, but it may require a life-long sacrifice from her... Terrific drama from Warner Bros. with light and sentimental moments, music from the song-happy miners and students, and theatrical yet effective performances from the large cast. Bette Davis brings a persnickety wisdom to Miss Moffat, a clipped yet jaunty stride which invites warm human interaction during the infrequent moments when she's not all business. The students do not worship the regal Miss Moffat in fearful admiration, nor do the townspeople question her reign over the educational system--everyone, in fact, falls right in league with her, as if she were the Pied Piper of teachers. The background noise is kept to a blessed minimum in order to concentrate on the relationship between teacher and student; quite amazingly, each of the many characters blossoms as a result. Smartly-attuned adaptation of Emlyn Williams' play provides the perfect vehicle for Davis (seldom better), as well as John Dall (Oscar-nominated as the miner whose early essay signals to his teacher that he may have much more to offer than meets the eye). Slightly hoked-up near the finale, but still a sprightly, hearty film, beautifully produced. *** from ****

Enjoyed this great film classic from 1945 starring Betty Davis as Miss Lilly Moffat who inherits a home in Wales in a coal mining town where young men sing coming home from the mines full of coal dust and filth all over them. Lilly Moffat finds out how uneducated all the people are in the town and decides to start a school for everyone, even the coal miners. However, she discovers a young miner who has exceptional intelligence and has the ability to write, but his spelling is very poor. This young miner is Morgan Evans, (John Dall) who is given the opportunity to prepare for Oxford University but with many obstacles that enter into his life and distract him from a wonderful future. Bessie Watty, ( Joan Lorring ) is a wild young girl who flirts with Morgan Evans and they spend a night together that later on causes many problems for this determined young man to advance himself in higher institutions of learning. This is a great dramatic film with great acting by Nigel Bruce, (The Squire) and a wonderful actress Betty Davis. Enjoy a truly great Classic film from 1945.

The Corn Is Green is an adaptation of a 1938 play by Emlyn Williams. It is also a shameless attempt to cash in on the success of How Green Was My Valley and ought to be called "The Wheat is Golden" due to a single shot of a man cutting wheat. Welshman Rhys Williams stars in both films and here amongst the absent corn, gives another good performance. I should also mention Bette Davis is excellent in this too.

Some of the acting is unnecessarily over exaggerated particularly the femme fatale but that is true of many films of the time. If you choose not to draw comparison with more recent films it can be said that The Corn Is Green is thoughtful, entertaining and more importantly a champion of the virtues of education.

I hardly know where to start - so perhaps with the name of the town GLANSARNO. Since it is supposed to be set in the remote countryside of Wales, perhaps PONTSARNO or LLANSARNO or even TRESARNO would make it more believable. The FAQ asks what is the meaning of the name and DOESN'T EVEN ANSWER IT!! Most mining towns were NOT remote, and in 1895 were connected by railways. Oh dear, and what choices for the songs the miners sang travelling from work - hard songs even for the many excellent Welsh choirs and then near the end what an insult to have the pupils since one of the most well-known and famous Welsh songs 'Ar Hyd Y Nos' (All Through the Night') in ENGLISH!!! Most English speakers have trouble with Welsh and so to have a crafty illiterate Bessie Watty sing a beautiful song in perfect Welsh to the apple of her lusty eyes is also so unbelievable. Can't believe that to advertise the school to a town of illiterate and predominately Welsh-speaking townsfolk, Miss Moffat decides to use posters!!! That would not work and again - the poster of course is in English. Add to that, the English were distrusted and she would have needed to work hard very hard to gain acceptance. I can't believe there was anyone connected with the film who knew ANYTHING of Welsh country life and although many small independent 'schools' existed, every mining town had a State School by 1895 - they were not 'remote'. The stand-out character was John Dall and the only other believable characters were Rhys Williams (Mr Jones), Mildred Dunnock (Miss Ronberry) and Rosalind Ivan (Mrs Watty). Bette Davis depicted a strong character but one without empathy, love and conviction so necessary for her role as an educator. The imperious, isolated and punishing character she portrayed would not have gone well with the villagers or the potential students. A mine-owner (50% share) squire would have been feared rather than loved and although I like the bumbling Nigel Bruce I thought him poorly cast. When one sees a 'true' mining town so excellently depicted in 'How Green Was My Valley' it is truly the apogee when compared this film - the nadir in so many respects.

The Corn is Green is one of my favorite movies and for the longest time I never knew the title of it. Bette Davis is wonderful as the teacher who unleashes the genius of Morgan Evans, a Welsh mining town's prodigy. There are so many obstacles that Morgan must overcome, and to see him do this is wonderful. Every time I watch it I am still amazed at Bessie's devilishness and I just love the actress's voice! It is so interesting. Everything in this film makes me feel all good inside and no movie collection is complete without it. The Corn is Green deserves five stars, two thumbs up, and a perfect ten. Everyone should watch this movie. It gives you a new perspective on the world, and even on the life of people at one time in history. I truly love The Corn is Green and if I had not seen it, I would not be who I am today.

English spinster teacher Bette Davis (as Lilly Moffat) arrives to open a school in a Welsh coal-mining village; she meets opposition from backwards-thinking locals like Nigel Bruce (as Squire), but perseveres. Ms. Davis' efforts are rewarded as pupil John Dall (as Morgan Evans) shows great academic promise. Davis thinks Mr. Dall has what it takes to attend Oxford University. But, breaking Dall free of his socio-economic status proves to be especially difficult, after he has a child-producing dalliance with seductive Joan Lorring (as Bessie Watty). Emlyn Williams' play "The Corn Is Green" makes an oddly impassionate translation to film; however, its mannered performances are notable. Perhaps inadvertently, Davis and Dall help by giving the impression something forbidden is simmering beneath the surface of their scripted relationship.

******* The Corn Is Green (3/29/45) Irving Rapper ~ Bette Davis, John Dall, Joan Lorring, Nigel Bruce

Just as in The Glass Menagerie, I got spoiled by watching the remake first. The original pales in comparison. If you watch the 1945 movie first, you might like it. Bette Davis plays a self-sacrificing teacher who believes a low-class student, John Dall, has enormous potential. At first, he likes the different kind of attention he's never received before, but then he gets resentful of her expectations and how his scholarly efforts make him a laughing stock in town. He's a lowly miner, after all, and his friends want him to drink beer, use incorrect grammar, and have unkempt fingernails. When he expresses his frustration to Bette, she responds flippantly: "My dear boy, file your nails at home (...rather than in the pub...)." I am a huge Bette Davis fan, but I didn't like her interpretation of the character. I probably wouldn't have liked Ethel Barrymore's either, and she was in the Broadway show for years! I didn't think the dedicated teacher would have used so much sarcasm and glib dialogue. Ethel's famous smirk and twinkling eyes would have undoubtedly irritated me.

Katharine Hepburn played in the television remake, and she was so warm and full of passion. She truly cared about her student and even loved him like a son. Bette was cold and her usual clipped style of dialogue made it seem like she didn't care about the boy at all. John Dall's performance was very good, but again, I was spoiled and didn't appreciate the movie as much as I might have.

In comparison to past and her performances after 1945, Bette Davis gave a restrained but compelling performance as the schoolteacher in a Welsh town who wants to improve the education of the town's children (already mostly miners in "The How Green Was My Valley" vein) through education.

In this wonderful performance, I see elements of Davis's "The Little Foxes" as well as her 1944 film "Mr.Skeffington."

Leave it to Davis to find a brilliant student, a terrific John Dall, in her midst. The problem is that Dall is a drinker who feels he is betraying his fellow miners in pursuing an education. The maid's daughter, Bessie, played with evil intent by a fabulous Joan Loring, gets into trouble thanks to Dall, and she threatens to ruin all concerned. The end, where Davis agrees to take the unborn child and raise it herself, while vowing never to see Dall again, may be regarded today as corny but is well done.

This film is memorable because of its depiction of class structure and the opportunity for upward mobility. Both Dall and Loring received Oscar nominations in the supporting categories but Davis was denied a best actress nomination here which is somewhat surprising.

Mildred Dunnock and Rhys Williams costar as teachers in Ms. Moffat's school. Dunnock, so young here, but displays the same vulnerability as Elsie Thornton in 1957's "Peyton Place."

The plot goes around of a woman that has a school that tries to educate poor boys that worked in coal mines (?). Later the teacher (Ms Davis) tries to get a scholarship for one of the boys. I have not seen the movie completly from end to end, because I soon found it a little dragging and uninteresting. I do not find good the acting of Ms Davis. Other may critiquize me for not applauding Ms Davis, but my opinion has also a right here. I am sorry to dissapoint any fans.

This is a good drama and character study, and though the story moves a bit slowly at times, it incorporates some interesting angles. In the role of an erudite teacher trying to bring education to a Welsh mining community, Bette Davis is good even though the role is not ideal for her. The supporting cast complements her well, with John Dall particularly believable as her star student. Nigel Bruce has an entertaining, if somewhat exaggerated, role as the town Squire.

The story takes a pretty good look at the ups and downs of what Davis's character is trying to do, and the perspectives of the main characters are usually presented effectively. There isn't a lot of action, but it has a few good dramatic moments, and the characters are worth caring about.

It's worth seeing to watch Davis and the rest of the cast perform, and also for its thoughtful look at its characters.