Hills of Home

1948
Approved
1h 37m

IMDb RATING

YOUR RATING

Janet Leigh, Tom Drake, Edmund Gwenn, and Pal in Hills of Home (1948)

William McClure is the villlage doctor in a remote Scottish glen. Tricked into buying Lassie, a collie afraid of water, he sets about teaching her to swim. At the same time he has the bigger... Read allWilliam McClure is the villlage doctor in a remote Scottish glen. Tricked into buying Lassie, a collie afraid of water, he sets about teaching her to swim. At the same time he has the bigger problem that he is getting older and must ensure the glen will have a new local doctor re... Read allWilliam McClure is the villlage doctor in a remote Scottish glen. Tricked into buying Lassie, a collie afraid of water, he sets about teaching her to swim. At the same time he has the bigger problem that he is getting older and must ensure the glen will have a new local doctor ready.

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IMDb RATING

6.5/10

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YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

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6SnoopyStyle

swim Lassie swim

In remote Scotland, sheep dog Lassie is afraid of water and loses two lambs to drowning. Her owner is angry. She gets sold to unwitting Dr. William MacLure (Edmund Gwenn) who tries to train her to swim.

This is obviously going to end with Lassie swimming to save someone, preferably someone young and helpless. This ending is a version of that, but not the version I want. Even though the ending isn't what I want, it still packs an emotional punch. The rest of the movie is a bit meandering. It is up and down. Edmund Gwenn is Santa of course. Again, I want a kid with Lassie. It just works better.

4wes-connors

It's Water Under the Bridge

In the beautiful hills of Scotland, Lassie is a good-for-nothing collie. Afraid of water, the dog lets sheep drown. So, owner Rhys Williams (as Milton) trades her in, to lovable old doctor Edmund Gwenn (as William MacLure). Mr. Williams' son Tom Drake (as Tammas Milton) is studying doctoring with Mr. Gwenn, but his father wants him to be a farmer. Mr. Drake is courting pretty young Janet Leigh (as Margit Mitchell).

A colorful MGM gloss makes "Hills of Home" pleasant viewing, at times. The movie winds up far less carefully made than the initial scenic images suggest, however. It's nice to see Donald Crisp return to Lassie's supporting cast; his scenes with Gwenn provide some Scottish accented fun. Lassie veteran Tom Drake and starlet Janet Leigh are nice, but the lack of a child co-star hurts the story. Lassie's crossing of a river's broken bridge, to save her master, it a film highlight; though, it's difficult to accept Lassie was ever afraid of water.

**** Hills of Home (11/25/48) Fred M. Wilcox ~ Edmund Gwenn, Donald Crisp, Tom Drake, Lassie

4moonspinner55

Smart dog, stubborn humans, fill-in-the-blanks plot

In an idyllic Scottish village, poor collie dog Lassie fails at sheepherding because she's afraid of crossing through water; a crusty old doc inherits Lassie, but he doesn't much want her either, even after she warns him of a collapsed bridge down the road. Despite a handsome MGM production, this non-adventure is unrelievedly depressing and infuriating (if the simple-minded plot doesn't gnaw at you, the ridiculous Scottish accents and muttonchops on the men certainly will). The collie dog used for the film is a beautiful animal but, let's face it, not particularly gifted for the camera (most of the time, she hovers about on the edge of the frame, constantly looking to one side for directions). Lassie takes a real beating in this one (including harsh owners, icy, raging rivers and bad weather of all sorts), yet, oddly, much of the focus is on doctor Edmund Gwenn and the wet-eyed, hand-wringing families of his patients. This downer is truly one of the dreariest family films of all time, not helped by a colorless supporting cast which includes a wooden Janet Leigh in an early role. *1/2 from ****

6Doylenf

Edmund Gwenn steals a warm-hearted Lassie film...

Although this is a minor Lassie film, it did open at the famous Radio City Music Hall in 1948, where the showplace must have decided it was the perfect theater to show this family film--in a theater that catered to wholesome films above all others.

It's a charmer, helped considerably by the performances of EDMUND GWENN, as an old-fashioned Scottish doctor who acquires a dog who is afraid of water, and LASSIE as the collie who has to overcome his fear of water when his master is in danger and needs him to swim for help.

DONALD CRISP, as Gwenn's loyal friend, and young JANET LEIGH and TOM DRAKE as the love interest, form a pleasant supporting cast responding well to Fred M. Wilcox's able direction. All the resources of the MGM studio went into recreating the Scottish settings and atmosphere that pervade the film, so much so that we can forgive the occasional lapses in the Scottish accents.

It passes the time pleasantly, but is not the typical Lassie film with him displaying all sorts of intelligence and courage. And this time, EDMUND GWENN actually steals scenes from the famous collie, holding much of the spotlight with a warm and easy performance as the crusty old doctor.

8tad58

Charming, touching slice of life

They don't make'em like this any more, they can't. A picture postcard of a time long lost is captured in this beautiful film. The characters are not perfect, they have flaws like real people. Edmund Gwenn turns in a performance as Dr.McClure that lets the viewer in and identify with him as he relates to difficult people and takes anger in stride from the distraught and scared citizens of his village. Lassie is presented as frightened and imperfect also, something new to me since I had seen only the television features showing this dog as brave, smart, and resourceful. The relationship that develops between the doctor and his dog is fulfilling on every level and the responsibility he feels towards those who depend on him is inspirational. Catch this if you can, you'll find it worthy of your attention.

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Trivia
This film was first telecast in Chicago Saturday 3 August 1957 on WBBM (Channel 2); it first aired in Norfolk VA 12 August 1957 on WTAR (Channel 3), in Memphis 17 August 1957 on WHBQ (Channel 13), in Seattle 22 August 1957 on KING (Channel 5), in Portland OR 10 September 1957 on KGW (Channel 8), in Philadelphia 12 September 1957 on WFIL (Channel 6), in New Haven CT 26 September 1957 on WNHC (Channel 8), in Honolulu 6 October 1957 on KHVH (Channel 13), in Altoona PA 13 October 1957 on WFBG (Channel 10), in Salt Lake City 5 December 1957 on KTVT (Channel 4), in Windsor ON (serving Detroit) 30 December 1957 on CKLW (Channel 9), in New York City 3 March 1958 on WCBS (Channel 2), in Adams MA 6 March 1958 on WCDC (Channel 19), and in San Francisco 11 November 1958 on KGO (Channel 7); Lassie finally came down from the Hills in Los Angeles 10 May 1959 on KTTV (Channel 11). At this time, color broadcasting was in its infancy, limited to only a small number of high rated programs, primarily on NBC and NBC affiliated stations, so these film showings were all still in B&W. Viewers were not offered the opportunity to see these films in their original Technicolor until several years later.

Goofs
When Dr McClure is called to a pub Lassie carries his bag in her mouth and drops it on the pub floor. The doctor, finding his patient, the landlord's son, only has stomach ache storms out but without his bag.