Mrs. Miniver (1942)
- Starring:
- Greer Garson, Walter Pidgeon, (more)
- Director(s):
- William Wyler
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- NR
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As Academy Award-winning films go, Mrs. Miniver has not weathered the years all that well. This prettified, idealized view of the upper-class British home front during World War II sometimes seems over-calculated and contrived when seen today. In particular, Greer Garson's Oscar-winning performance in the title role often comes off as artificial, especially when she nobly tends her rose garden while her stalwart husband (Walter Pidgeon) participates in the evacuation at Dunkirk. However, even if the film has lost a good portion of its ability to move and inspire audiences, it is easy to see why it was so popular in 1942-and why Winston Churchill was moved to comment that its propaganda value was worth a dozen battleships. Everyone in the audience-even English audiences, closer to the events depicted in the film than American filmgoers-liked to believe that he or she was capable of behaving with as much grace under pressure as the Miniver family. The film's setpieces-the Minivers huddling in their bomb shelter during a Luftwaffe attack, Mrs. Miniver confronting a downed Nazi paratrooper in her kitchen, an annual flower show being staged despite the exigencies of bombing raids, cleric Henry Wilcoxon's climactic call to arms from the pulpit of his ruined church-are masterfully staged and acted, allowing one to ever so briefly forget that this is, after all, slick propagandizing. In addition to Best Picture and Best Actress, Mrs. Miniver garnered Oscars for best supporting actress (Teresa Wright), best director (William Wyler), best script (Arthur Wimperis, George Froschel, James Hilton, Claudine West), best cinematography (Joseph Ruttenberg) and best producer (Sidney Franklin). Sidebar: Richard Ney, who plays Greer Garson's son, later married the actress-and still later became a successful Wall Street financier. Mrs. Miniver was followed by a 1951 sequel, The Miniver Story, but without the wartime setting the bloom was off the rose. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Theatrical Feature Running Time:
- 133 mins
Complete Cast:
- Greer Garson - Mrs. Kay Miniver
- Teresa Wright - Carol Beldon
- Reginald Owen - Foley
- Henry Wilcoxon - Vicar
- Tom Conway - Man
- Brenda Forbes - Gladys, the Housemaid
- Stanley Mann - Workman
- Leslie Francis - Doctor
- Guy Bellis - Barman
- Mary Field - Miss Spriggins
- Harold Howard - Judge
- Sidney D'Albrook - Men in Store
- Arthur Wimperis - Sir Henry
- Clara Reid - Mrs. Huggins
- Peter Lawford - Pilot
- Louise M. Bates - Miniver Guest
- John Power - Men in Tavern
- Harry Allen - William
- Connie Leon - Simpson, The Maid
- Billy Bevan - Conductor
- Eric Lonsdale - Marston
- David Thursby - Farmer
- Douglas Gordon - Porter
- Leonard Carey - Haldon's Butler
- John Abbott - Fred, the Porter
- Gerald Oliver Smith - Car Dealer
- David Clyde - Carruthers
- Forrester Harvey - Mr. Huggins, Conductor
- Miles Mander - German Agent
- Walter Pidgeon - Clem Miniver
- Dame May Whitty - Lady Beldon
- Henry Travers - Mr. Ballard
- Richard Ney - Vin Miniver
- Christopher Severn - Toby Miniver
- Marie de Becker - Ada, The Cook
- Alec Craig - Joe
- John Burton - Halliday
- Leslie Vincent - Dancing Partner
- Paul Scardon - Nobby
- Florence Wix - Woman with Dog
- Aubrey Mather - The Innkeeper
- Clare Sanders - Judy Miniver
- Billy Engle - Townsman
- Helmut Dantine - German Flyer
- Colin Campbell - Bickles
- Charles Irwin - Mac
- Ben Webster - Ginger
- Thomas Lockyear - Mr. Verger
- Ian Wolfe - Dentist
- Edward Cooper - Waiter
- Charles Bennett - Milkman
- St. Luke's Choristers - Chorus
- Ottola Nesmith - Saleslady
- Rhys Williams - Horace Perkins
- Tudor Williams - Glee Club Member
- Bobby Hale - Old Man
- Colin Kenny - Policeman
- Director(s):
- William Wyler
- Writer(s):
- George Froeschel, James Hilton, Arthur Wimperis
- Producer(s):
- Sidney Franklin, Sidney Franklin
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- NR
- Closed Captioning:
- Check All Versions
- Subtitles:
- Check All Versions
- 1942 - Mrs. Miniver - Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences - Best Picture
- 1942 - Mrs. Miniver - Film Daily - 10 Best Films
- 1942 - Mrs. Miniver - National Board of Review - Best Acting
- 1942 - Mrs. Miniver - National Board of Review - Best Acting
- 1942 - Mrs. Miniver - New York Times - 10 Best Films
