The Gift of Love
Fearing she will die, a physicist's wife hopes her husband will be consoled by the orphan she adopts.
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- Cast:
- Lauren Bacall , Robert Stack , Evelyn Rudie , Lorne Greene , Anne Seymour , Edward Platt , Joseph Kearns
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Reviews
Good movie but grossly overrated
The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.
Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.
A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.
Typical Hollywood fanfare with tinsel town probably taking advantage of Bob Stack and Lauren Bacalle two years before in "Written on the Wind." From the beginning, you would swear that this was going to be a comedy. That all changes when Lauren Bacall discovers a fatal illness and hopes that by adopting a child, the latter can continue to do the things her husband, Stack, is used to.Unfortunately, the father and child really can't relate to one another and of course the situated is exacerbated when the Bacalle character dies.Notice how the child constantly refers to her parents by their first names and that Bacall smokes after learning of her fate. Ed Platt, who was the doctor in "Written on the Wind," repeats his doctor-like role in this one as well.The ending is typical Hollywood with love conquering all. Doesn't one think that Stack was miscast here? Cary Grant or Jimmy Stewart would have been much better.
From the very beginning, where Vic Damone sings the BEAUTIFUL Title Song, to the end where I sit teary-eyed, again, I LOVE this film. I also loved the original, "Sentimental Journey" just as much. Both may be a bit unrealistic in today's no-room-for-sentiment world, but they are heartwarming and wonderful movies that most women of my generation appreciate and WANT to see-----------often! This movie is NOT shown often enough. Lauren Bacall is as beautiful as beautiful gets and Robert Stack gives a fine performance. I did notice that the lovely background music played throughout both films, is basically the same song, but played to a somewhat different beat. In both films, even the music pulls at your heartstrings. One of my favorites!
I was quite young (around 14) when I saw this movie on TV. While I could not remember the cast very much at that time, the story and the way the actors/actresses had carried the story through made a lasting impression on me - what it means when any child can be your child - it takes only to show love and how it can fill the gaps in our lives. This story of this film helped me to help many of my friends who did not have their own children and that they can enjoy the gift if they open their minds and hearts to them - as the leading lady impresses upon the husband. The beginning of romance between the two and the moments they draw together and next when we see them as a couple are all well portrayed.
I don't often remember most movies beyond a year or so - if that - but for some reason this movie that I saw as a 14 year old has stayed with me all these years. In searching for that movie on the web, I came across this site and the comments made by another fan. I was struck by her saying how this movie has "haunted her" since she saw it when she was about the same age as I was! Interesting that it had the same effect on us both. I remember that Robert Stack and Lauren Bacall did a convincing, significant job in their roles and made me want to see them in every thing else I could after that. The movie was very touching, and I could imagine what it would be like to be in their shoes. One scene in the movie was Lauren reflecting on her situation, looking out an upstairs window onto the garden -- I can still picture it after all these years. How I would love to see that movie again!!