Dorathen Better Late Then Never

Spoonatects Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

FuzzyTagz If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

Yazmin Close shines in drama with strong language, adult themes.

GusF Released in the US under the sappier title "I'll Never Forget You", the film is a remake of the 1933 film "Berkeley Square" starring Leslie Howard which was itself based on a 1929 Broadway play of the same name. This film sticks quite closely to the storyline of the play and the earlier film but it updated it for the 1950s. It concerns Peter Standish, played by Tyrone Power, a reserved, introspective American nuclear physicist living in London who seeks to escape to the "wonderful age" of the 18th Century. He is guilt stricken by the moral implications of his work, perhaps in particular because he worked at Los Alamos during World War II, and fears the prospect of nuclear war. As a result of a bolt of lightning, he switches places with his ancestor of the same name in 1784. While in the past, Peter falls in law with Helen Pettigrew, played by Ann Blyth, who is destined to be the elder Peter's sister-in-law. Having had access to the elder Peter's diary in 1951, the younger Peter knows many little details of the Pettigrews' lives that the elder Peter did not yet know in 1784 and, on several occasions, makes the mistake of the mentioning them. He does the same when it comes to revealing his knowledge of more general events that have not happened yet and uses expressions like "cockeyed" that did not exist in the 18th Century. This leads people to fear him and the elder Peter's would-be wife Kate to break off the engagement as he believes that he has been possessed by a demon.Power may not have been as good an actor as Howard but he does extremely well in the role of Peter, who is a more interesting and likable character in this version. In an unfortunate coincidence, both men died young. In both films, Peter gradually becomes disillusioned with life in 1784 but we get a better indication as to why here as we are shown the squalor and filth of the incredibly poor, disease ridden areas of 18th Century London where child labour was common. He establishes a laboratory in Shepherd Market where he creates rudimentary but operational versions of a lightbulb and camera. He hopes to use his scientific knowledge to better the lives of the people of 1784 but his hopes are dashed by the superstitions of the natives, almost all of whom regard him as either possessed or insane.Helen is the only person who either believes him or believes in him. Ann Blyth, who is still alive at 86, is absolutely enchanting in the role, a stronger character than her "Berkeley Square" counterpart who learns that Peter is from the future far earlier in this film. She and Power have flawless chemistry and, while the script of their final scene together is taken almost verbatim from the 1933 film, it is far more moving on this occasion. The ending of this version is even sadder.The film has a stronger supporting cast than its predecessor, including Michael Rennie as Roger Forsyth (another nuclear physicist and the only major character created for the film), an hilarious Dennis Price as the incredibly foppish Tom Pettigrew, Beatrice Campbell as Kate Pettigrew, Raymond Huntley as Mr. Throstle, Felix Aylmer as Sir William, Kathleen Byron as the Duchess of Devonshire and, reprising her role from the earlier version, Irene Browne as Lady Anne Pettigrew. Helmed by future "A Night to Remember" director and Hammer stalwart Roy Ward Baker, the film takes a page from "The Wizard of Oz"'s book in that the framing scenes set in 1951 were shot in black and white while the 1784 scenes were shot in glorious Technicolor. This is certainly to the film's advantage as, like Peter, we feel as if we have entered another world when he is transported back in time. It is also in keeping with Peter's belief that the 18th Century was a more colourful age.Overall, this is a beautiful film which is more moving and thought-provoking than "Berkeley Square". It is a remake which achieves the rare feat of being better than the original.

ddidee I, too, saw this film when I was young; it is a wonderful fantasy of a man getting transported back to the 18th century. Tyrone is extremely handsome and dashing, as always. The sets and costumes are lovely. I was enchanted by the pretext of the film, as time travel is a favorite film theme of mine. It fulfilled my young girl's fantasy of romance. I watched the "Eddy Duchin Story" tonight and was reminded of this film, but I couldn't come up with the name...of course it was listed on IMDb! I am disappointed, however, to see that it is not available for purchase. I hope in the future that this under-seen film can be enjoyed again! Maybe TCM will play it soon...

silverscreen888 This is a powerful and disturbing film. Its fantasy-for-the-sake-of-idea storyline sends a man back in time to the days of Samuel Johnson, Boswell, and the England of the bygone era. The time traveling scientist is played most ably by Tyrone Power. He falls in love back in time, runs afoul of those who wonder how he can know the future, and is compelled to return to his own era. This film was adapted from John Balderston's eerie play "Berkeley Square" by Ranald Macdougall. The director of this beautiful; B/W dramatic gem was Roy Baker. In the cast along with Power were Ann Blyth, Michael Rennie, Kathleen Byron, Beatrice Capmbell, Irene Browne, Raymond Huntley, Felix Aylmer, Ronald Adam, Robert Atkins, Alex McCrindle, Ronald Simpson and many more. Whenever the time traveler makes an error in tenses, the 18th Century denizens grow afraid of him, wondering if he is a witch or a madman. But he is able to see and converse with Sir Joshua Reynolds, Samuel Johnson, Boswell and others; and the time traveler returns home to an even stranger ending than he had imagined--or that the viewers could have guessed. The film boasts very fine music by William Alwyn, wonderful costumes by Margaret Furse and art direction by C.P. Norman that is a delight to behold. This is a powerful production, unforgettable, and a bit unusual until one gets used to it. The B/W sets look densely photographed and very convincing; for some reason, the feature hard-to-find in this country but not to be missed if you get the opportunity. Also known as "The House On the Square".

snowmaxbear This was one of the best 'love story' movies that I remember when I was a teen. I haven't seen this movie also in about 40 plus years. I hope somewhere that a copy was saved and released as a DVD. I think it was one of Tyrone Powers great love stories and the cast was excellent to match. I have wanted to see this movie so many times and looked in so many places to try and find a way to either see it again or obtain some sort of copy. I'd like to think that before I drop dead I would like to be able to see this movie one last time. I hope again that it hasn't been lost forever. The movie has already been described by others at IMDb. I wish more movies were made like this one and we had more actors like the ones in this movie. I remember seeing it on a black and white TV and being brought to tears after watching it on the Late show in NYC. One thing I remember about this movie was the strong love between Ann Blyth and Tyrone Power and how one could actually die of heart break.