Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939) Review

Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939)

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My Review

“Goodbye, Mr. Chips” is a drama film about a retired school teacher reminiscing about his decades-long career and the scores of students under his tutelage. Director Sam Wood (“A Night at the Opera” 1935) put together an excellent movie with outstanding performances, wonderful production values, and great writing. The script was penned by R. C. Sheriff, Claudine West, and Eric Maschwitz, adapted from the 1934 novel of the same name by James Hilton.

Robert Donat is at the head of the class (and cast), playing the title role of popular teacher Charles Chipping. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his outstanding effort. He bested show biz heavyweights Clark Gable, James Stewart, and Laurence Olivier in the Best Actor catagory. Co-stars include Greer Garson, John Mills, Paul Henreid, Terry Kilburn, and Louise Hampton.

The watchable and sentimental tale “Goodbye, Mr. Chips” was very popular in theatrical release for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the sixth highest grossing film of 1939. Metro produced four other pictures in the top ten that year, including “Gone with the Wind,” “The Wizard of Oz,” “Babes in Arms,” and “The Women.”

It was nominated for seven Academy Awards, winning one for Best Actor for Bobby Donat. The non-winners were Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress (Garson), Best Screenplay, Best Editing, and Best Sound Recording. Many remakes have been released over the years, most notably the 1969 musical version starring Peter O’Toole and Petula Clark, also from MGM. It was filmed on location in England.

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