The Barretts of Wimpole Street ** (1957, Jennifer Jones, John Gielgud, Bill Travers, Virginia McKenna, Jean Anderson) – Classic Movie Review 10,420

The 1957 colour remake The Barretts of Wimpole Street is a stiff museum piece of a film, but John Gielgud makes something of the grand role of poet Elizabeth Barrett’s tyrannical brute of a father.

Director Sidney Franklin’s 1957 colour remake The Barretts of Wimpole Street is a stiff museum piece of a film, where more exuberance in both the handling and performing is needed.

More than 20 years later, Sidney Franklin, the director of the 1934 version of The Barretts of Wimpole Street returns to the scene of his great success, with much less satisfactory results, despite being a word-for-word, and nearly shot-for-shot remake in CinemaScope and Metrocolor.

John Gielgud makes something of the grand role of Elizabeth Barrett’s tyrannical brute of a father, Edward Moulton-Barrett, though Jennifer Jones and Bill Travers are dull and unappealing as the young lovers, Moulton-Barrett’s disabled poet daughter Elizabeth Barrett and the English poet Robert Browning, whom she is planning to marry in opposition to her father’s will.

Virginia McKenna is effective as Henrietta Barrett, Elizabeth’s romantically inclined, rebellious younger sister, and there is a strong British support cast of so-called ‘fine English actors’ to enjoy.

The Barretts of Wimpole Street is more than well enough crafted: there is nothing wrong with the screenplay (credited to John Dighton), the colour and widescreen cinematography by Freddie Young, the score by Bronislau Kaper or the designs by Alfred Junge. They are all impeccably professional.

Despite the screenplay being credited to John Dighton, director Franklin used exactly the same script for the second movie as he did for the 1934 version, written by Ernest Vajda, Claudine West and Donald Ogden Stewart, based on the successful 1930 play The Barretts of Wimpole Street by Rudolf Besier, which ran for 528 performances in London’s West End and for 370 performances on Broadway.

It is made at the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer British Studios in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, in the UK. Producer Sam Zimbalist moved filming there from the 1934 location in the US for ‘authenticity’. But, outside the studio, they did use as many correct locations as possible, including St Marylebone Parish Church in London.

Zimbalist said he wanted only ‘fine English actors’ but then the main star is American actress Jennifer Jones, Moultrie Kelsall is Scots, and Keith Baxter is Welsh.

It is Franklin’s last film as director; he died in 1972.

Also in the cast are Jean Anderson, Vernon Gray, Susan Stephen, Leslie Phillips, Maxine Audley, Laurence Naismith, Moultrie Kelsall, Michael Brill, Kenneth Fortescue, Richard Thorpe and Keith Baxter in his film debut.

Unlike the original film, it was an expensive financial flop. It earned $330,000 in North America and $725,000 elsewhere, resulting in a recorded loss of $1,897,000, against a budget of $2.2 million.

The Barretts of Wimpole Street is directed by Sidney Franklin, runs 105 minutes, is made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), is released by MGM, is written by John Dighton, based on the play by Rudolph Besier [Rudolf Besier], is shot in Metrocolor colour and CinemaScope widescreen by Freddie Young, is produced by Sam Zimbalist, is scored by Bronislau Kaper, and is designed by Alfred Junge.

Release date: 17 January 1957 (Radio City Music Hall).

The towering 6′ 4½ Bill Travers was married to Virginia McKenna from 20 September 1957 till his death on 29 March 1994, with four children.

The cast

The cast are John Gielgud as Edward Moulton-Barrett, Jennifer Jones as Elizabeth Barrett, Bill Travers as Robert Browning, Virginia McKenna as Henrietta Barrett, Vernon Gray as Captain Surtees Cook, Susan Stephen as Bella, Jean Anderson as Wilson, Maxine Audley as Arabel, Leslie Phillips as Harry Bevan, Laurence Naismith as Dr Chambers, Moultrie Kelsall as Dr Ford-Waterlow, Michael Brill as George, Kenneth Fortescue as Octavius, Nicholas Hawtrey as Henry, Richard Thorp as Alfred, Keith Baxter as Charles, Brian Smith as Septimus.

© Derek Winnert 2020 Classic Movie Review 10,420

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