Conflito Sentimental

This is a typical Maureen O'Hara film where she shines as beautifully as ever in a tragical role for a change, but she couldn't be more convincing - she always is. William Bendix shines better than her husband (John Payne), Bendix is always an advantage to every film he is in, and here he at least makes an effort at child psychology, which the playwright doesn't. Cedric Hardwicke is the family doctor and as good as such as ever, while the child (Connie Marshall) makes the film. The story is interesting enough with its touch on parapsychology, but entering the imaginative mind of a child, everything is made credible. This is actually how it could work. Maureen feels she has to leave Bill which worries her, so she finds a child to adopt to take care of him when she is gone, which he at first fails to realize and appreciate. There is sugared music all through, and nothing wrong with that, it establishes the soft mood of sadness of the film and sticks to it, and it is finally the music that opens Bill's mind when everything else has failed. This is also quite obvious and natural. This is a film to love for its sincere warm-heartedness, and the stormy ocean is brought into the picture to accentuate the drama.

William and Julie Weatherly (John Payne and Maureen O'Hara) are people of the theater. He is a director and she is an actress. They have been married for quite some time, but their love for each other is stronger than ever. Unfortunately, Julie discovers that her health cannot handle the stress of her life. She takes a break from the theater and stumbles upon an orphan girl named Hitty (Connie Marshall). Hitty is imaginative and lonely, just as Julie was as a young girl. Julie is convinced that she would make a great mother for this little lost girl, so she convinces Bill to adopt her. From here, they form a family, though Bill is a bit jealous of the attention that Hitty receives.

Soon, Julie's health gets the better of her, but Hitty knows what to do. She pampers Bill just the way Julie did, hoping to bring the family back together again.

This movie has all the potential to be wonderful, but it walks a fine line that easily takes into kitsch. Sometimes, it is emotional and sweet, but the occasional lapse into over-sentimentality makes it a less than perfect film. Each actor tries hard though, which makes the characters interesting and enjoyable to watch.

Well written, directed older movie. John Payne (1), Maureen O'Hara, William Bendix, Connie Marshall did a fine performance. Saw this movie when I was a child. Have waited awhile for it to appear on pay TV. Definite tear jerker. Generally a womens movie.

I think that the beautiful comments left here already describe this wonderful movie perfectly, so all there is left to do is to tell you about the last time I watched this movie.

It was less then 24 hours ago, and I was reminded of two couples by Julie and Bill.

One couple was Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne, because Ozzy is the more fragile of the two, and Sharon hopes to have beaten her cancer completely so that she can stick around and take care of him.

Another couple was a young couple of college age who were very much in love, but the woman was killed in a tragic automobile accident.

Her boyfriend was with her, but he survived.

Two decades, give or take, have passed, and he's never found anyone else who can take the place of this special woman, and he has a lot of emotional conflict going on because of this where he doesn't always respond to people who care about him in the best of ways.

I even thought that Bill resembled him in physical appearance.

Hittie could represent any of us who care about this special guy and want the best for him, because she commits herself to trying to ease Bill's deep-seated pain.

Watching the movie this last time got me to thinking about this precious friend, and I ended up writing him an e-mail just to let him know I was thinking of him.

This is indeed a sadly neglected film and the fact that it has never been made available on either video tape or DVD must remain a matter of deep regret. I must wholeheartedly agree that the performance delivered by child actress Connie Marshall is quite outstanding. Cinematic depictions of the effects of bereavement upon children are of necessity somewhat difficult to portray with any degree of conviction and the pitfall of lapsing into overt sentimentality must be avoided. However, certain films, including this one,I think convey something of a young child's pain and confusion regarding death and its consequences without becoming too morbid or sentimental. The scenes where Hitty is apparently visited by the spirit of her adoptive mother remind me very much of the closing sequences in Jacques Doillon's "Ponette" (1996) Are both of these little girls really experiencing a much longed for reunion, if only transitory, with their beloved mothers or does the whole thing exist solely within the realm of imagination a mere psychological device enabling them to accept and so come to terms with their loss? It is up to each individual viewer to construe such matters for themselves.