Between Two Worlds

I haven't seen this movie for decades, but I still remember it well. It has a haunting 'twilight zone' twist to it and is very entertaining. I'm surprised, in this in this 'post Titanic megahit' time, that an ocean liner backdrop to an eerie, romantic story has not been recycled as was 'Death Takes a Holiday'. It might even be re-incarnated as a 'Fantasy Island' type TV series with new passengers every week.

You expect justice and good to win out in movies of this era. It's nice they left enough 'wiggle' room to do the right thing. And I think people take a comfort from a good movie showing us going on after death. It's a trip we all hope to take one day....

I saw this movie when I was 7 years old. Up until last year I didn't even know the name of the movie, but I remembered seeing it and kept trying to discover the name and if I would ever get to see it again now that I am older and would have a better understanding.

Last year I discovered IMDb's web site and because of them, I now know the name. I also discovered that Between Two Worlds is a remake of the 1936 Outward Bound. I keep checking on a regular basis hoping that these movies will be issued on DVD one day soon. My hope is that until then, Turner Classic Movies will obtain copies so that I can put my 42yrs desire and search to an end.

I remember finding the movie very fascinating. I need to know if it really was or if it was just a childish perspective

The dead victims of a London bombing and two suicides are on a ship headed - well, they're not sure - in "Between Two Worlds," a 1944 film starring John Garfield, Sydney Greenstret, Paul Henried, Eleanor Parker, Edmund Gwenn, Faye Emerson and George Coulouris. The suicides, a married couple played by Henried and Parker, are the only ones at first who realize they're dead, but the others find out soon enough. Then they learn that "The Examiner" will be coming on board to evaluate them and decide their final destination.

The film employs a stark set for the ship, and it works beautifully as the tense passengers wait to learn their individual fates.

The acting is marvelous all around. Eleanor Parker reminded me very much of Gene Tierney - at first, I didn't recognize her until I heard her voice. She and Henried are excellent as the only two people who have chosen their destinies. Parker's role especially is written almost melodramatically so at times, she seems over the top, but the story seems to call for it. Greenstreet, with his powerful presence, makes a good examiner. Faye Emerson is lovely as an actress who made a lot of wrong choices, and John Garfield is strong as a belligerent no-good whose life didn't add up to much.

During World War II, it's not surprising that people were giving a lot of thought to the afterlife. After World War II, there were all kinds of films about people come back to earth and angels walking among us. The view of "Between Two Worlds" is that each of us makes our own heaven and hell on earth, that in the end, we sow what we reap, and that love is stronger than any other force. I loved it.

"Between Two Worlds" is one of the best examples of one of the rarest of move genres, a fantasy for grown-ups. I can't think of many other successful examples of this sort of thing off hand beyond, perhaps, Powell and Pressburger's "A Matter of Life and Death".

By "adult" I do not, of course, mean that there is anything off-color or X-rated about the film. On the contrary, it's pretty tame by today's standards. This film is simply a fantasy for adults in the sense that it was not for or about children or adolescents.

A small, ill-assorted group of people find themselves together at night on a fog-shrouded passenger ship with no other passengers, and no crew save for a single steward. Two of the passengers, who are slightly apart from the others, have committed suicide and are aware that they are dead. The others know nothing. The steward, who knows what is going on, caters to the passengers wishes and pretends that everything is normal.

The film is very well done, with a first-rate cast of the sort of character actors they simply can't assemble anymore, wonderfully atmospheric sets, and set against an excellent Korngold musical score. I understand there was an earlier version with Leslie Howard, called "Outward Bound". I've never seen it, but it would be interesting to see it and compare it with this version.

Between Two Worlds was a 1944 remake of the 1930 Leslie Howard film, Outward Bound, which was a hit on Broadway. This allegorical tale about death was the perfect World War II film and boasted a super ensemble cast--each and every cast member is wonderful. The stars, John Garfield, Paul Henreid, Eleanor Parker, and Sydney Greenstreet, give top-notch performances, but the film also boasts high points in the careers of Isobel Elsom, Faye Emerson, Dennis King, Sara Allgood, Gilbert Emery, and Edmund Gwenn. Each actor gets a share of the spotlight as they slowly discover their fate and face the final judgment. Nicely directed with a good set, although the music picks up bits from Casablanca. Moody and yes maybe talky by today's standards, but very effective and moving. My favorite is haughty Isobel Elsom, the great British actress who came to Hollywood in the mid 30s, after being one of England's biggest silent-film stars. She has the role Alison Skipworth played in the 1930 version, but her imperious demeanor takes on a whole new meaning in 1944, set against the war. This is the kind of film that can't be made any more, and when film-makers try, their efforts sink from view very quickly. Powerful and touching film filled with great moments. This one is a must see.