That Forsyte Woman

There was real potential for 'The Forsyte Saga' to be a good film. The casting did sound odd but with performances this talented there was a chance that they could have pulled it off. It was from a studio with so many classics under its belt. It looked incredibly handsome seeing its advertising and stills. The source material is absolutely brilliant, though did worry that because it is so rich it would not lend itself well to merely a feature length film.

Which were my feelings exactly when getting round to seeing 'The Forsyte Saga'. It is watchable and has a number of obvious good things, but with more consistent pacing and more suitable casting it could have been a winner but turned out to be instead an interesting and noble disappointment. Proof too that when it comes to adapting the source material for feature length it is best leaving it alone, and the vastly superior television series from the 60s showed that it works much better adapted as a serial/mini-series.

Good things are quite a few. It is a very handsomely mounted film, especially the quite exquisite photography and the costumes won an Oscar for good reason. The other best thing is Errol Flynn, this was courageous casting for a role he on paper sounded wrong for and would have been quite different for him. He however was one of the few actors that came off well, showing that he can do dramatic and less sympathetic roles and does so in an admirably restrained way. Walter Pidgeon is also charming.

Bronislau Kaper's score is lush and induces a lot of emotions. The main theme is one that is not easy to forget. Greer Garson has some affecting moments.

She also doesn't always look comfortable or like her heart was properly in it, Eleanor Parker would have been a better choice. Janet Leigh does her best and brings some charm but her role is practically a plot device and has nothing to it. Worst of it is a too old and far too cold Robert Young, who has no charm or likeability. The characters seemed underdeveloped, with the one exception being Soames. The direction seemed rather pedestrian.

Much of the script was very stilted and rambled. The film did need a longer length and more of the story elaborated upon and taking longer to unfold. There was no substance to the storytelling either, to me there was very little tension and emotion and it all feels undernourished. A tighter pace was also in order and there are similarly scenes that drag as a result of padding out material that works a lot better in mini-series format.

On the whole, watchable but there was a potentially good film in there somewhere that doesn't materialise. 5/10

Greer Garson is That Forsyte Woman. The story begins with Greer in the nighttime fog of London rushing to a hospital to see someone. Errol Flynn and Walter Pidgeon are right behind her. Who is she visiting? Why is she in such a state of panic? By way of a flashback, we are shown just how they have all come to this point. Errol is captivated by Greer and means to have her. By wooing her and sending her flowers, he insists she is to be his, despite all her refusals to marry him. But, she doesn't love him. Through a series of events, she finally acquiesces. But, will she learn to love him? Will Errol be able to hang on to her? How does she get the label of That Forsyte Woman? Also starring Robert Young and Janet Leigh, this is yet another example of Hollywood at its best in storytelling. The viewer is caught up completely in her world. But, despite all the truths unearthed and developments of the plot, the biggest asset to this film are the acting chops of Garson, Pidgeon, and Flynn. Especially Errol Flynn. For someone who was typecast and primarily known as "Robin Hood" and "Don Juan" in his career, he is exceptional in this; I can't overemphasize just how great he is. This may just be one of his best performances, outside of "Gentleman Jim." Of course, the presence of Garson and Pidgeon together is a plus, but its Flynn's presence that carries the plot along. The characters of Robert Young and Janet Leigh are a little too cardboard or cookie-cutter to really stand out, but the viewer will leave this film, feeling very satisfied, with the story and Flynn and company's acting. And, this has a great last line. It may be far from perfect, with its loopholes or even seem a bit static or old-fashioned to some, but if you will only sit back and relax, the rewards are there for you to enjoy.

This film was cited as one of the ones that Errol Flynn felt he gave a good performance in, and that assessment is certainly true. He completely played against type in this role as an emotionally restricted man of property and did a fine job. The problem is not in his playing but in the heavily edited screenplay and miscasting. Robert Young is laughable as the "young" architect and Greer Garson too genteel by half for the role of the scheming adulteress Irene who freezes Soames out-Eleanor Parker would have been ideal for this role,but one gets the feeling MGM couldn't allow Garson to be the adventuress the role demanded because of her image. Also,the film's lack of the pivotal rape scene that ends the marriage in the novel undermines the reason why Irene detests Soames so much. Flynn portrays Soames well enough that he could have followed through in such a scene in good form. He did a great job with this character's motivations and was still quite handsome. An underrated performance in a so-so adaptation of a classic novel.

How could any woman choose another man over Errol Flynn? I don't know either. That's why I didn't buy the premise of this but was impressed with the performances. Errol Flynn is always great to watch and proves here that he can deliver the acting goods and always of course looks distractingly handsome. Greer Garson and Walter Pigeon are a treat to watch together. A previous poster mentioned the fact that Greer Garson having an adulterous affair didn't work because she was just too likable really doesn't apply here because the fact that their marriage is unhappy is established. Robert Young comes off less sympathetic than Flynn's Soames Forsythe, in my opinion. Here he takes advantage of the young and naive June Forsythe and the unhappy marriage of Mrs. Forsythe at the same time. The story is contrived but overall a good flick to watch on a rainy day. I would recommend it.

I'm not surprised that many viewers find this film frustrating, particularly those unfamiliar with the novels or the later TV adaptations - coming to this film with such knowledge definitely helps one be more charitable towards it.

THAT FORSYTE WOMAN is one of MGM's "prestige" literary productions, tackling the first novel of one of Britain's most beloved series of novels by one of its most beloved authors, John Galsworthy. It's another well-executed, professional MGM effort. Yet it's another strange choice for MGM (as was THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY earlier in the decade), since in this case the story's main plot is an adulterous affair,casting its two leading players (Flynn and Garson) very much 'against type' - one can't blame Flynn for being willing, but I'd like to know just exactly which MGM executive thought to cast Greer Garson as the adulteress! The lady was simply too likable!

These are complex characters, and it actually took Galsworthy 6 novels to reveal them fully to the reader. Neither Soames nor Irene (the Garson role) are particularly likable in the first novel - both seem selfish and willful, but the reader ultimately comes to understand both of them better (although Galsworthy never really does give a satisfactory reason for Irene's loathing of Soames).

MGM originally produced the film under the title THE FORSYTE SAGA (I have a copy of the movie tie-in edition of the novel published by Scribners in 1949)) but, since the film was merely a slice of the Saga anyway, they changed the title to the more catchy THAT FORSYTE WOMAN emphasizing Irene's 'fast' nature. It remained THE FORSYTE SAGA in the UK.

One has to admire MGM's ambitious attempt, but let's face it, they'd really bitten off more than they could chew: THE FORSYTE SAGA was too big, too rich, and too multi-layered for one film. Rather, it was a work destined for success in another medium which was still in its infancy - television, in a format to which its breadth, length and varied cast of characters would be perfectly suited - the "mini-series", for which it would provide the pioneer effort with spectacular success in the late 1960s.