A young man loved by two sisters becomes a naval officer and sails to New Zealand, where he drunkenly writes a marriage proposal to the wrong sister, profoundly affecting the life of the oth... Read allA young man loved by two sisters becomes a naval officer and sails to New Zealand, where he drunkenly writes a marriage proposal to the wrong sister, profoundly affecting the life of the other.A young man loved by two sisters becomes a naval officer and sails to New Zealand, where he drunkenly writes a marriage proposal to the wrong sister, profoundly affecting the life of the other.
- Won 1 Oscar
- 1 win & 3 nominations total
- Mother Superior
- (as Dame May Whitty)
- Young Priest
- (uncredited)
- Corinne
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- Samson Raphaelson
- Elizabeth Goudge
- Carey Wilson(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaWhether it was a wig or dye, Lana Turner let her hair go back to its natural brown color for this role.
- Goofs(at around 2 mins) As the two nuns exit the gate, they go out the left one. However, the next shot appears to show them going out the right gate. The next exterior shot shows the nuns exiting the abbey; it is a tight angle shot without a clear view of the gates, but the nuns do, in fact, exit the gate (now on the right side due to change in camera view) that they entered.
- Quotes
Marianne Patourel: [Discussing William's love for Marguerite] But when you wrote to my father you lied. You asked for my hand in marriage.
William Ozanne: I didn't lie. Listen to me, Marianne. I love you.
Marianne Patourel: Listen to more lies! You never loved me! You loved *her*. But you sent for me. Why?
William Ozanne: It wasn't a lie. It was o...
Marianne Patourel: Why did you send for me?
William Ozanne: I'll tell you, Marianne. Now I must tell you. I never wanted you to know. I never thought you would ever find out. But now...
Marianne Patourel: What did you never want me to find out?
William Ozanne: That I accidentally wrote your name instead of Marguerite's in the letter to your father.
Marianne Patourel: [She looks crushed] You accidentally wrote my name? Our whole marriage has been a... slip of the pen?
William Ozanne: Marianne...
Marianne Patourel: Does Marguerite know of-of your slip of the pen?
William Ozanne: No. Absolutely not. I never even so much as hinted anything. Oh, please. Believe me, Marianne. I never told a living soul. Well, that's not quite true. I told Tai Haruru.
[She looks moritfied]
William Ozanne: I had to tell him.
Marianne Patourel: Tai Haruru knew? He knew that you hated me. I thought I reached the lowest depths of degradation. But I didn't expect this. So, Tai knew. Course he knew. Now I understand everything. Why you never would've married me if he hadn't forced you into it. Would you, William?
[He turns away guiltily]
Marianne Patourel: Oh, William. William don't ever speak to me again!
- ConnectionsFeatured in Challenge the Wilderness (1951)
I wouldn't say that director Victor Saville was a master of the camera, exactly, and some of his set-ups, as well as his long takes, in the dialogue sections of the story, are uninteresting or inept - lost opportunities in the creative or dramatic use of film. In MGM's glory days, such a mammoth film would possibly have been directed by King Vidor, or Sidney Franklin. What we have instead is almost a film that succeeds in spite of itself. It should not have worked, but it does. Not as a film classic but as a massive piece of hokum that is beautifully costumed, designed, and produced. There are no great performances, there are no scenes that thrill us with the artistry of their composition or the depth of their drama. There is no great direction. Nonetheless, one is swept along.
I can't imagine the film without Lana Turner, despite her performance being at times close to high-school-play level. Hers is a character along the lines of Scarlett O'Hara (though thankfully far less complex), wondering why all the fools around her worry about things like honor or ethics when there's status to be gained and money to be made. Donna Reed, as her more staid sister, Van Heflin, as a dark and brooding adventurer who loves her in secret, Richard Hart as her ineffectual but attractive husband, and Frank Morgan, Gladys Cooper, Dame May Witty, Edmund Gwenn, Reginald Owen, Moyna McGill, and Linda Christian round out the cast. But it's Lana's picture all the way.
Bronislau Kaper composed the big score that produced a hit song ("On Green Dolphin Street"), a jazz standard recorded by many of the greats.
The film was one of two that were based on novels MGM acquired through a contest sponsored by the studio in the late '40's, with a prize of 200,000 dollars. The other novel was Raintree County (not filmed until 1957).
- jhkp
- Jul 9, 2016
- How long is Green Dolphin Street?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
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- Also known as
- The Personal Touch
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $4,391,000 (estimated)
- Gross worldwide
- $2,482
- Runtime2 hours 21 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1