Enchantment (film)
Encyclopedia
Enchantment is a romantic film starring David Niven
and Teresa Wright
. It was directed by Irving Reis
and produced by Samuel Goldwyn
. It was based on the novel Take Three Tenses by Rumer Godden
.
) pays a visit to her granduncle, aged General Sir Roland 'Rollo' Dane (David Niven
), looking for a place to stay. At first reluctant to disturb his routine, Rollo soon gives in.
Interspersed flashback
s reveal the past history of the Dane family. The first takes place when Rollo (Peter Miles
) is a child. He and his older siblings, Selina (Sherlee Collier) and Pelham (Warwick Gregson), are introduced to Lark Ingoldsby (Gigi Perreau
) by their father (Colin Keith-Johnston
). He explains that her parents have been killed in a train accident and that she will be living with them as a member of the family. Selina immediately resents the newcomer.
The second flashback occurs when the children have grown up. Roland's father has died, leaving Selina (played as an adult by Jayne Meadows
) in charge of Lark (Teresa Wright
), whom she treats more like a servant than a member of the family. Rollo (David Niven) returns on leave from the army. When Lark asks Pelham (Philip Friend
) for a dress, the first that would not be a hand-me-down from Selina, he realizes that she is growing up and invites her to a dance. She becomes acquainted with the Marchese Guido De Laudi (Shepperd Strudwick
), a business associate of Pelham's.
In the last flashback, Lark is being courted by the Marchese. Pelham also unexpectedly reveals his love for her with a kiss, but her reaction makes it clear that she does not love him. Rollo surprises everyone by returning early from his latest posting on Lark's birthday. Rollo and Lark finally acknowledge their love for each other, but Selina has other plans. She has arranged for General Fitzgerald (Henry Stephenson
) to appoint Rollo to his staff for a five-year mission to Afghanistan
. However, Lark refuses to wait that long, living uneasily with both Selina and Pelham. When Rollo is indecisive, she goes up to her room. Rollo makes his choice; he hastens to refuse the appointment, but Selina confronts Lark, telling her that Rollo has decided to take the job. When he does not return by the next morning, Lark is convinced and leaves to marry the Marchese. Rollo returns too late, finding only a letter Lark wrote in which she says, "Selina was right." Furious at his sister's malicious meddling, Rollo vows never to enter the house again while she lives.
In the story set in World War II, ambulance driver Grizel transports injured Pilot Officer Pax Masterson (Farley Granger
) to a hospital. Later, she is surprised to find him in the general's house. It turns out he is Lark's nephew. While he waits for the old man to return home, Pax and Grizel become acquainted. As time goes on, they start falling in love. When Pax receives his orders, he asks her to marry him, but she is daunted by the uncertainties of war. As Pax is leaving, Rollo hands him a telegram addressed to him; it announces that Lark died the month before. Rollo talks to Grizel and convinces her not to throw away the chance for love as he did. She runs after Pax in the middle of a bombing raid and embraces him. While she is away, a bomb demolishes the house and kills Rollo.
David Niven
James David Graham Niven , known as David Niven, was a British actor and novelist, best known for his roles as Phileas Fogg in Around the World in 80 Days and Sir Charles Lytton, a.k.a. "the Phantom", in The Pink Panther...
and Teresa Wright
Teresa Wright
Teresa Wright was an American actress. She received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1942 for her performance in Mrs. Miniver. That same year, she received an Academy Award for Best Actress nomination for her performance in Pride of the Yankees opposite Gary Cooper...
. It was directed by Irving Reis
Irving Reis
Irving Reis, born May 7, 1906, in New York City – died July 3, 1953, in Woodland Hills, California, was a radio program producer & director, and a film director.Reis was the creator of the experimental anthology program on the radio, Columbia Workshop...
and produced by Samuel Goldwyn
Samuel Goldwyn
Samuel Goldwyn was an American film producer, and founding contributor executive of several motion picture studios.-Biography:...
. It was based on the novel Take Three Tenses by Rumer Godden
Rumer Godden
Margaret Rumer Godden OBE was an English author of over 60 fiction and nonfiction books written under the name of Rumer Godden. A few of her works were co-written by her sister, Jon Godden, who wrote several novels on her own...
.
Plot summary
In World War II London, a bold American servicewoman named Grizel Dane (Evelyn KeyesEvelyn Keyes
Evelyn Louise Keyes was an American film actress. She is best-known for her role as Suellen O'Hara in the 1939 film Gone with the Wind.-Early life:...
) pays a visit to her granduncle, aged General Sir Roland 'Rollo' Dane (David Niven
David Niven
James David Graham Niven , known as David Niven, was a British actor and novelist, best known for his roles as Phileas Fogg in Around the World in 80 Days and Sir Charles Lytton, a.k.a. "the Phantom", in The Pink Panther...
), looking for a place to stay. At first reluctant to disturb his routine, Rollo soon gives in.
Interspersed flashback
Flashback (narrative)
Flashback is an interjected scene that takes the narrative back in time from the current point the story has reached. Flashbacks are often used to recount events that happened before the story’s primary sequence of events or to fill in crucial backstory...
s reveal the past history of the Dane family. The first takes place when Rollo (Peter Miles
Peter Miles (child actor)
Peter Miles was an American actor and writer.Born Gerald Richard Perreau-Saussine in Tokyo, Miles was the older brother of actress Gigi Perreau. He was educated at Beverly Hills Catholic School and graduated from Loyola High School in Los Angeles.Miles first screen appearance was as the son of...
) is a child. He and his older siblings, Selina (Sherlee Collier) and Pelham (Warwick Gregson), are introduced to Lark Ingoldsby (Gigi Perreau
Gigi Perreau
Gigi Perreau, , is an American actress.-Biography:She achieved success as a child actress in a number of films. She played the daughter of Claude Rains and Bette Davis's characters in the 1944 film Mr. Skeffington. In Shadow on the Wall , she starred as the sole witness to a murder...
) by their father (Colin Keith-Johnston
Colin Keith-Johnston
Colin Keith-Johnston was a British actor. As well as film appearances, he appeared onstage as Stanhope in the first production of Journey's End in the United States.-Partial filmography:* Somehow Good...
). He explains that her parents have been killed in a train accident and that she will be living with them as a member of the family. Selina immediately resents the newcomer.
The second flashback occurs when the children have grown up. Roland's father has died, leaving Selina (played as an adult by Jayne Meadows
Jayne Meadows
-Early life:Jayne Meadows was born as Jayne Cotter in Wu-ch'ang, in Heilongjiang, China, to Episcopal missionary parents, the Rev. Francis James Meadows Cotter and his wife, the former Ida Miller Taylor, who had married in 1915. Meadows is the older sister of the late actress Audrey Meadows. She...
) in charge of Lark (Teresa Wright
Teresa Wright
Teresa Wright was an American actress. She received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1942 for her performance in Mrs. Miniver. That same year, she received an Academy Award for Best Actress nomination for her performance in Pride of the Yankees opposite Gary Cooper...
), whom she treats more like a servant than a member of the family. Rollo (David Niven) returns on leave from the army. When Lark asks Pelham (Philip Friend
Philip Friend
Philip Wyndham Friend was a British film and television actor.-Filmography:* Inquest * The Midas Touch * Pimpernel Smith * The Day Will Dawn * In Which We Serve...
) for a dress, the first that would not be a hand-me-down from Selina, he realizes that she is growing up and invites her to a dance. She becomes acquainted with the Marchese Guido De Laudi (Shepperd Strudwick
Shepperd Strudwick
Shepperd Strudwick was an American actor of film, television, and stage....
), a business associate of Pelham's.
In the last flashback, Lark is being courted by the Marchese. Pelham also unexpectedly reveals his love for her with a kiss, but her reaction makes it clear that she does not love him. Rollo surprises everyone by returning early from his latest posting on Lark's birthday. Rollo and Lark finally acknowledge their love for each other, but Selina has other plans. She has arranged for General Fitzgerald (Henry Stephenson
Henry Stephenson
Henry Stephenson , sometimes credited as Harry Stephenson, was a British character actor....
) to appoint Rollo to his staff for a five-year mission to Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
. However, Lark refuses to wait that long, living uneasily with both Selina and Pelham. When Rollo is indecisive, she goes up to her room. Rollo makes his choice; he hastens to refuse the appointment, but Selina confronts Lark, telling her that Rollo has decided to take the job. When he does not return by the next morning, Lark is convinced and leaves to marry the Marchese. Rollo returns too late, finding only a letter Lark wrote in which she says, "Selina was right." Furious at his sister's malicious meddling, Rollo vows never to enter the house again while she lives.
In the story set in World War II, ambulance driver Grizel transports injured Pilot Officer Pax Masterson (Farley Granger
Farley Granger
Farley Earle Granger was an American actor. In a career spanning several decades, he was perhaps best known for his two collaborations with Alfred Hitchcock, Rope in 1948 and Strangers on a Train in 1951.-Early life:...
) to a hospital. Later, she is surprised to find him in the general's house. It turns out he is Lark's nephew. While he waits for the old man to return home, Pax and Grizel become acquainted. As time goes on, they start falling in love. When Pax receives his orders, he asks her to marry him, but she is daunted by the uncertainties of war. As Pax is leaving, Rollo hands him a telegram addressed to him; it announces that Lark died the month before. Rollo talks to Grizel and convinces her not to throw away the chance for love as he did. She runs after Pax in the middle of a bombing raid and embraces him. While she is away, a bomb demolishes the house and kills Rollo.
Cast
- David NivenDavid NivenJames David Graham Niven , known as David Niven, was a British actor and novelist, best known for his roles as Phileas Fogg in Around the World in 80 Days and Sir Charles Lytton, a.k.a. "the Phantom", in The Pink Panther...
as General Sir Roland Dane - Teresa WrightTeresa WrightTeresa Wright was an American actress. She received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1942 for her performance in Mrs. Miniver. That same year, she received an Academy Award for Best Actress nomination for her performance in Pride of the Yankees opposite Gary Cooper...
as Lark Ingoldsby - Evelyn KeyesEvelyn KeyesEvelyn Louise Keyes was an American film actress. She is best-known for her role as Suellen O'Hara in the 1939 film Gone with the Wind.-Early life:...
as Grizel Dane - Farley GrangerFarley GrangerFarley Earle Granger was an American actor. In a career spanning several decades, he was perhaps best known for his two collaborations with Alfred Hitchcock, Rope in 1948 and Strangers on a Train in 1951.-Early life:...
as Pilot Officer Pax Masterson - Jayne MeadowsJayne Meadows-Early life:Jayne Meadows was born as Jayne Cotter in Wu-ch'ang, in Heilongjiang, China, to Episcopal missionary parents, the Rev. Francis James Meadows Cotter and his wife, the former Ida Miller Taylor, who had married in 1915. Meadows is the older sister of the late actress Audrey Meadows. She...
as Selina Dane - Leo G. CarrollLeo G. CarrollLeo Gratten Carroll was an English-born actor. He was best known for his roles in several Hitchcock films and The Man from U.N.C.L.E. and Topper.-Early life:...
as Proutie, the Dane family butler - Philip FriendPhilip FriendPhilip Wyndham Friend was a British film and television actor.-Filmography:* Inquest * The Midas Touch * Pimpernel Smith * The Day Will Dawn * In Which We Serve...
as Pelham Dane - Shepperd StrudwickShepperd StrudwickShepperd Strudwick was an American actor of film, television, and stage....
as the Marchese Guido De Laudi - Henry StephensonHenry StephensonHenry Stephenson , sometimes credited as Harry Stephenson, was a British character actor....
as General Fitzgerald - Colin Keith-JohnstonColin Keith-JohnstonColin Keith-Johnston was a British actor. As well as film appearances, he appeared onstage as Stanhope in the first production of Journey's End in the United States.-Partial filmography:* Somehow Good...
as Mr. Dane, the father of the Dane children - Gigi PerreauGigi PerreauGigi Perreau, , is an American actress.-Biography:She achieved success as a child actress in a number of films. She played the daughter of Claude Rains and Bette Davis's characters in the 1944 film Mr. Skeffington. In Shadow on the Wall , she starred as the sole witness to a murder...
as Lark as a child - Peter MilesPeter Miles (child actor)Peter Miles was an American actor and writer.Born Gerald Richard Perreau-Saussine in Tokyo, Miles was the older brother of actress Gigi Perreau. He was educated at Beverly Hills Catholic School and graduated from Loyola High School in Los Angeles.Miles first screen appearance was as the son of...
as Rollo as a child. Peter is Gigi Perreau's older brother. - Sherlee Collier as Selina as a child
- Warwick Gregson as Pelham as a child