USA 88m Dir: Henry Hathaway Key Cast: Gary Cooper and Ann Harding
Peter Ibbetson is a rather unusual romance film. Set in the mid to late 19th century, it opens with two children who have a close bond, Gogo and Mimsey, who are neighbours that play with each other in their adjoining gardens in Paris. When Gogo's mother dies he is adopted and becomes Peter Ibbetson. He becomes an architect and is called to work on some stables for Mary, Duchess of Towers who he quickly falls in love with. Eventually the pair realise they are Gogo and Mimsey but there is a scuffle with Mary's husband who is killed and Peter is sentenced to life in prison.
For around three quarters of it's running time Peter Ibbetson is a fairly uninspiring romance. Gary Cooper considered himself miscast in the role of Peter and I can see why- there's not much wrong with his performance but it doesn't feel entirely right. Peter is a character who is utterly lost- essentially he has depression because he's still obsessed over his childhood sweetheart. A psychiatrist might wonder if his obsession over Mimsey really harks back to the loss of his mother and that he is still struggling to deal with her loss at such a young age.
The film then takes a fantastical turn as the pair begin to meet in their dreams. Suddenly the film becomes far less conventional as the pair live the rest of their lives having a relationship in a magical dream world. This is well achieved on screen and the film suddenly becomes a beautiful, slight surrealist piece. It's this final section which elevates the film into something more unique and the conclusion even starts exploring the concept of life after death.
No masterpiece but this is a charming love story with an unusual fantastical twist that works well.
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