Rebecca (1940)

Rebecca is a film about a young girl who meets a rich widower who falls in love with her while they're both in France, and then takes her home with him. When they get there, the young girl discovers that the late Mrs. De Winter, the man's first wife, is far from forgotten, and haunts everything and everyone at the great estate she is now the mistress of.

The new Mrs. De Winter is a timid girl and, after her whirlwind romance, is quite unprepared for the aristocratic life that she's signed on for. She can't quite seem to get used to the servants and the large house and the routine of a 'great lady', or at least can't do it in the way the late Mrs. De Winter, Rebecca, did it. In fact, she's bombarded with traces of Rebecca from the moment she first walks into the manor. Rebecca's initials are embroidered on everything, and the housekeeper, who seemed to have had a very strong attachment to Rebecca, always looks at her with a stern, almost disapproving gaze as she directs her in following Rebecca's footsteps. Her new husband, Maxim, also seems very distant, increasingly so as the pair get to know each other better. She feels like everyone is comparing her to the beautiful, intelligent, genteel Rebecca, and are finding her sadly lacking. What exactly are the details surrounding poor Rebecca's death? Will the new mistress ever find happiness in her new home, or win the love of her new husband? Will the memory of Rebecca haunt her and every other person in the house for eternity? Who knows!!

This was an amazing film. It was two hours long and I was enthralled from the get go. The acting was really well done. Our protagonist emotes such a nervous energy from the beginning of the film, and it morphs wonderfully into a stronger self-assuredness as the film nears its end and as she grows more confident in who she in and how she fits in to her situation. The way Rebecca was portrayed was also very well done. Even though we never once see her image nor are told directly or in great detail about her life, we are subtly made to know her character and traces of her are in almost every scene, and yet not enough to satisfy us. Just enough information about her is provided so as to ensure that the viewer is aware of her distinct importance and impact, but not enough to know in what regard, sparking wild curiosity. The cinematography was also very well done. At one point in the story as Mr. De Winters is reminiscing about Rebecca, the camera is aimed at a couch as he remembers the situation, and then it moves as though Rebecca is there and the camera is following her actions, but there's no one there. You can actually get into Maxim's mind's eye as he remembers, and are forced to imagine the memory he's sharing. Usually that kind of experience is reserved for books, or even radio, as flashbacks are typically shown in film leaving little to the imagination. Everything about Rebecca had to be imagined by the audience, which is what I think makes this film so special. It crosses a threshold in that respect and is truly a piece of art. It makes film not only something to idly watch, but something you can actually interact with and can put your own imagination to work. Brilliant.

This is a wonderful film full of suspense, romance, and mystery. I highly recommend it.

My Favourite Wife (1940)

This is a great movie about a woman, Ellen (Irene Dunne), who returns to her family after being shipwrecked on an island and declared dead. When she finally returns to her home, she speaks to her mother who tells her that her husband, Nick (Carey Grant), has remarried on that very day. Ellen goes to the honeymoon suite to try to find Nick, and when he sees her he's shocked and overjoyed... and acquires a whole new set of problems!

He has never stopped loving Ellen, but doesn't quite know how to break the news to his blushing (but of course snobby, potentially mean-spirited) bride. They all end up going back to the house and Ellen tells Bianca (new wife) and the kids, who don't know who she is, that she is a cousin from the south. The new wife gets more and more jealous of the bond between Nick and Ellen, and Nick seems to find it increasingly difficult to tell her that Ellen is in fact his first wife.

In the meantime, Nick finds out that Ellen was not alone for those seven years, but was stranded with a man. Nick completely drops his issue with Bianca and goes out of his mind with jealousy trying to find this man. When he finally does, he discovers that the man is very attractive, and is in love with Ellen!!

Just when things can't get any more complicated, Nick is arrested for bigamy. How will he get out of this scrape and will he and Ellen ever be able to be together!?

I really enjoyed this movie. It was a lighthearted, romantic, screwball comedy with a cheeky heroine and a hilarious scenario. Fun for the whole family!