Tacticalin An absolute waste of money

Lancoor A very feeble attempt at affirmatie action

Humbersi The first must-see film of the year.

Hadrina The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

d_m_s Michael Redgrave's performance is excellent in this film. I thought he played the unemotional, cuckolded husband perfectly throughout. I also enjoyed Wilfrid Hyd-White's comical performance (which is identical to his enjoyable performance in The Third Man).I like low-key films with plain, simple, un-flashy directing styles and Anthony Asquith's simple 'point & shoot' directing technique fitted the story perfectly.Other performances were not so good, often being a bit too OTT (I'm thinking mainly of the man having the affair with Redgrave's wife and some of the school boys).Overall, the film was enjoyable, though I don't feel it has any repeat-viewing value. I would have given it a higher score but the last 20 minutes or so became a bit too saccharine for me. I don't know if Terrence Rattigan wrote this from personal experience but the ending certainly felt like it was a bit of wish fulfilment and I found the excessive applause at the end of Redgrave's speech inauthentic. Also, the film was a bit too biased to be really exceptional. It was very much from the POV of Redgrave's character and very much against his wife but I do not feel we understood her character enough, since her background and reasons for her behaviour (though briefly touched upon by Redgrave late in the film) was not really explored. So it was a bit too biased in trying to make us sympathetic to Redgrave, which made it slightly less enjoyable for me.

MartinHafer This is an exceptionally written and acted film--one that I strongly recommend. However, I warn you up front that it is often hard to watch because it deals with some very sad and pathetic people--particularly the lead, played by Michael Redgrave. The film is about the final weeks in a job by a long-time teacher at an upper-class British school. It seems that a sickly middle-aged teacher (Redgrave) is leaving and, unfortunately, his leaving isn't causing any sense of loss among the students or faculty. That's because long ago this teacher's spirit dwindled away--much of because he is locked in a loveless marriage. And, over time, his disappointment in love has been translated into a coldness towards his students. It's a fascinating but powerful study of a pathetic man--a man, who at mid-life, has come to realize that his life has been a waste and his wife could care less about him.This is a wonderful film--and an interesting contrast to the old character from "Goodbye, Mr. Chips". While Chips was a bit stuffy, he adored his students and was beloved...whereas, with the character from this film Redgrave plays a man who is bitter and sad...yet by the end manages to keep some level of self-respect.By the way, my wife hated that this film never really got to the heart of why the teacher and his wife were so cold towards each other. There is a scene that alludes, mildly, to perhaps him being impotent or perhaps even gay--but she needed to know this in order to love the film and was disappointed it was never revealed. See the IMDb trivia for more on this, by the way.

edwagreen Michael Redgrave is absolutely phenomenal here. He gives a subtly powerful performance as a schoolmaster, forced to go to another school, where his workload will be lighter. He needs to do this as he has developed a serious heart condition.Redgrave is absolutely mesmerizing as the no nonsense teacher, utterly despised by his pupils for his cruelty and lack of human understanding and compassion for his charges.The man is literally obsessed with Greek translations and syntax. This is all he conveys to his pupils in his narrow-minded world. His contempt for everything and everyone is vividly depicted here in a totally memorable performance. He is equally matched by Jean Kent, who portrays his unfaithful wife.He too at the end realizes his shortcomings as depicted by his farewell speech in the assembly.

rooster_davis I am proud to join the others who have rated this film so highly. Despite being in black and white, despite there being no real 'action', this movie shows that a riveting story with engaging characters is all it takes to provide great cinema. Here we have an English schoolmaster, a very dry fellow who is unpopular with the students and married to a beautiful but evil woman who cheats on him. He is being forced to 'retire' from his position, just shy of being eligible for a pension. Just as he is upon his last day on faculty and preparing for his farewell address, two people get through the emotional wall he has built around himself - the man with whom his wife has been unfaithful to him, and a student who sees the humanity of the old schoolmaster, and actually likes him. I don't want to give away the story - but from the beginning to the end it will hold your attention. The old schoolmaster is brilliantly played by Michael Redgrave; his beautiful but ice-cold wife is the perfect villain; the young student "Taplow" could not have been played by a more believable or engaging youngster. The climax in the second from last scene is edge-of-your-seat powerful, and if you haven't been won over by this point, you will be after it.Forget special effects, 3-D, vapid starlets with big bosoms, and hip actors spouting vulgarities. Those are things of pale efforts and motion pictures which make far more money than they deserve. "The Browning Version" is a classic, a work of cinema which will stand forever as testimony to acting talent, brilliant writing, and most of all, a great story which draws you in and which you will never forget. I only wish I could give this movie more than a 10. It is THAT good.