I admit off the bat that I know shamefully little about Director Claude Binyon, who nonetheless made noteworthy films like the madcap comedy TRUE CONFESSION (1937) and the musical, SING YOU SINNERS (1938).
Of course, with the experience and success accumulated from those and other productions, it is unforgivable that by 1950 Binyon lacked the capacity to forecast CGI, human cardboard cutout characters caused by the end of the job for life and the emergence of the job for the month, plus all the other consequences of the BRAVE NEW WORLD that not even Aldous Huxley predicted with exact precision.
At least Binyon had the good taste to cast two physically beautiful specimens - the immensely elegant Dorothy McGuire quickly charmed by, and soon hypnotic to, the tall and handsome medical doctor William Lundigan. Needless to say, in 1950 the scene where they first meet in the good doctor's office was perfectly modern in 1950, but by 2024 you would expect them to throw caution and clothes to the wind, and engage in safe but pulsating, throbbing, and knee-trembling intercourse immediately. Possibly the next step in 2024 would be McGuire forcing the GP to marry her for unprofessional conduct, and then divorcing him to get his hard-earned fortune.
Unfortunately, in 1950 the world had just come out of a world war and there was still much to be learned. Instead, what MOTHER DIDN'T TELL ME shows is that mankind would still have to go through a lot of learning before achieving the social perfection of 2024.
To be honest, I prefer the "dated" behavior of the characters in 1950. I prefer it to the never ending succession of genuine love lost in courtrooms, financial battles, and the stress that stalks almost the entire human population of today, apart from the fortunate few in power and with fabulous fortunes.
I liked MOTHER DIDN'T TELL ME in its 1950 capsule. Competent cinematography, generally interesting script. I loved the human beings in it, which reminded me of the gentleness of my mother, and my dad's concern with the family's well-being.
Call me dated, too. 7/10.
