The Snow Goose
The Snow Goose
| 15 November 1971 (USA)
The Snow Goose Trailers

Based upon Paul Gallico's delicate novel, Patrick Garland's Golden Globe winning The Snow Goose is a stark and hauntingly beautiful drama set amongst the striking scenery of the Essex salt marshes during the early years of WWII. A bearded Richard Harris leads the modest cast with his sensitive portrayal of tormented soul Philip Rhayader, a lonely misshapen man shunned by society but with a great love of life; Harris isnt overly bitter of his treatment and expresses his compassion through his paintings and love of the waterfowl that surround him. Harris is ably supported by the waiflike Jenny Agutter as Frith, who radiates the requisite amount of youthful innocence and naivety, and won a best supporting actress Emmy Award for her performance.

Reviews
Hellen I like the storyline of this show,it attract me so much
NekoHomey Purely Joyful Movie!
PiraBit if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.
Stephanie There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes
rsubber This justly famous short story is surprisingly simple in its construction and densely emotional in its impact. There are familiar plot elements: ugly old man meets beautiful young girl, they develop a close relationship. In some ways one is moved to think of Silas Marner, there are both rich and rigid qualities in their love, never consummated, sharply constrained. The eroticism of Rhayader's relationship with the girl, Fritha, is almost totally suppressed but it is bursting out of the story repeatedly before the final scenes. It's like the sensual heat of Girl With A Pearl Earring, deeply heartfelt and almost completely unexpressed. Vermeer painted the girl from life; Rhayader painted his girl from memory, a symbolic reflection of his restrained character and the repressed relationship. The story line of Snow Goose is mostly mundane, Gallico easily sustains a dramatic tension, although the Dunkirk evacuation scenes are almost disembodied, almost a charade with the forced Cockney accents dominating the dialog. Snow Goose is eminently poetic, the ending that every reader can anticipate occurs with realistic sadness and realistic revelation. Fritha feels the words in her heart: "Philip, I love 'ee." The long-patient viewer is finally released to wordless exultation. Read more on my blog: Barley Literate by Rick
vironpride I have always associated The Snow Goose with Christmas, as I believe one of the few times I saw it was at this time. Unfortunately, this was before the VCR came along, so it is now lost to me and everyone else who was lucky enough to have seen this masterpiece. I have read the story upon which it is based, and one of the few changes was that the injured snow goose was named, by Philip, "Le Princesse Perdue," or "The Lost Princess." In the film she is called by Frith (Jenny Agutter), "Fritha," after herself. The casting could not have been better. I must admit that I have never liked Richard Harris, but I make a very big exception here. He is brilliant beyond description, as is Jenny Agutter. I remember reading that the story caused quite a bit of controversy when it first came out, as some people thought it was unfitting for a "normal" girl to have a (you know what kind of) relationship with a deformed man. This was not stressed in the film, as I recall. In any case, the end is just heart-wrenching. Please, please, whoever has control of this gem, make it available again to all of us who remember it, and to those who will fall in love with it as we have!
Osibi I took my small kids to see the 1971 film and we all wept copiously.It was a wonderful movie.I note with trepidation the remake being filmed in LA right now with Billy Connoly and Olivier Martinez.Can OM possibly get anywhere near as good as Richard Harris ? OM is not noted for his ability to convey feelings one can empathise with.I hope I am wrong but most remakes are dreadful, including the Alfie one with Jude Law.Why not just re release this greatest masterpiece.? I had not thought about this movie for years but now recalling it I think it has to be up in my top 10.A gem for anyone between 2-102,even if it is essentially a kids story an somewhat heavily laden with saccharine.I do believe that black and white movies were an excellent vehicle for creating "moods".I miss the B/W movies.And dread my memory of this masterpiece taking a hit on the remake.
mbimdb1 I personally saw this film and count it as one of my favorites, if not most memorable ones, for all the reasons cited in previous comments. It is a great loss, to one time frequent filmgoers and serious 'buffs' such as I, that it is not commercially available since it is truly a cinematic work of art. I have sought its availability ever since videos were produced after I saw it (a couple of times) at the Musee de Cinema in Brussels, Belgium, where I went to school abroad in the early '70s. I don't know if the restrictions on its viewing include the Cinematheque there, but, since the facility is a center for film preservation and art and a film school and not for general public 'commercial' viewing per se, it may still be shown every couple of years or so, especially when they do specific monthly festivals, tributes or memoria to individual film celebrities/masters at memorable times of their deaths, anniversaries of their deaths or births, or genres: viz.Canadian films, Paul Gallico, R.Harris, J.Agutter, etc. Unfortunately, the Brussels Musee, on short staff and budget was not amenable when I last was there in the early '80s to sending out their monthly bulletins or giving easily available info. on the internet.