The House in the Square (1951)

Blistering performances.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

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.

I saw this as a first run film and was impressed. both by the story (unusual for a teen age boy) and by how beautiful Ann Blyth was (not so unusual). It was, and is, a great film that not many people know about. The only thing that bothered me then, and also now when I watch the DVD, is why a man as brilliant as the professor didn't realize he was getting into trouble? He had plenty of warnings yet he continued doing things that almost anyone else would have realized that people of that time would regard as witchcraft or the work of the devil. Still, even with that defect, I think it is the best time travel film I have ever seen. Maybe not as flashy as some, but it leaves a deeper impression and a nicer memory.

I've searched nearly forty years for this film and was pleased to see it had finally been released on DVD. Having seen it as a child, I was desperately hoping that I would still like it as I did so many years ago. I was not disappointed. It's a great film, very well written, and beautifully restored. I loved it from beginning to end. I rented the film from Netflix and it includes another Tyrone Power film on the other side. "The Luck of the Irish," has been restored to the green color they used in the theatricle release. I'll probably watch that one too. I will definitely buy this DVD for my own library.Well worth the wait.

Like many I haven't seen this movie in years, but it gave me a lasting impression. Thing I remembered the most is when the gal in the past (Ann Blyth) knew that Tyrone was going back to the future (where have I heard that phrase before?) she told him that she would have the letters in her tombstone cut deep so that he could read them in the future. When he returned to the future (his present) he went to the cemetery and found her tombstone, old and fading, but still marked as she had promised. Touching, and sad. Then later, lo and behold, the spitting image of her appears in his present and he has a chance to "renew" his love. Great movie, in the great old black and white format. You could categorize it as the forerunner of Somewhere in Time, with Jane Seymour appearing as possibly the loveliest woman in film.