I Thank a Fool

Two of the more competent actors of their era were Peter Finch and Susan Hayward who star in this film shot in the British Isles at MGM's British Studio with some stunning location photography.

Academy Award Winner Susan Hayward looking as beautiful as ever inherited this movie after Academy Award Winner Ingrid Bergrman left the project, and Hayward who considered Bergman her favorite actress said"If It's Good Enough For Bergman It is Good Enough For Me". Always professional in her work Susan Hayward was a commanding actress one who dominated every scene Hayward was in. I am not sure I followed the story line of 'I Thank A Fool' and that maybe that Susan Hayward half way during the shoot objected to the Euthanasia theme and the story was a changed, so all of this seems a bit muddled.

This movie is strictly for Susan Hayward fans.

"I Thank a Fool" begins with a sick man in the hospital. You never know what he's suffering from, but it's exceptionally painful. Into the room comes his doctor (Susan Hayward) and she insists that she, not the nurse attending to him, give him a shot. Soon afterwords he dies and it is assumed she gave him an intentional lethal injection to ease his suffering. Next, she is in court--defending herself against a murder charge. She is convicted of a lesser charge, Manslaughter, and is sent to prison. When she gets out, she cannot find work and she is approached by the man who prosecuted her (Peter Finch)--he wants to hire her to help take care of his wife! It seems that the woman has some mental illness and of all people to choose, he picks this ex-doctor! While this setup for the story is difficult to believe, I did enjoy the euthanasia angle--it was pretty interesting and brings up a complex issue that is too seldom discussed. So where does all this go?

The idea is pretty intriguing and unusual--is what happens next worth your time? The answer is a definite yes--though the film does have a few plot holes here and there. You can't help but wonder why Hayward's character does some of the things she does--they aren't always very logical. Plus, there's the weird coming home scene in Ireland. I think I know what they were implying...but am not sure because it's so obtusely written. And, the very final scene is pretty bad. Still, despite these problems, the movie does keep you guessing and it is unusual. Not a great film but a very good one.

This movie was filmed in Crookhaven, a small fishing village (pop. 38) in West Cork. The village pub, O'Sullivan's Bar, has a large number of stills from the film on its walls. Many of the villagers were employed as extras in the film and some of them still live in the village. The current owner of the bar, Billy O'Sullivan, is pictured in one of the stills with Diane Cilento.

Stripped of her medical credentials after being convicted of manslaughter for the mercy killing of her ailing married lover, Canadian doctor in London serves 18 months behind bars, only to be hired by the prosecutor once she's released. His child-like wife requires a companion after suffering brain damage from a car accident, but the doctor (very slowly) discovers the wife's real problem is mental illness, specifically paranoid schizophrenia. Middling adaptation of Audrey Erskine-Lindop's 1958 novel, ostensibly a good vehicle for star Susan Hayward, though she's rather colorless as the physician who uncovers a house full of secrets. Moderately engrossing melodrama, handsomely produced on-location in London and Ireland, but saddled with a far-fetched explanation at the finish line. ** from ****

I became aware of this film in 2010 when i was asked by my (then) girlfriend's sister to find her a copy. Their family come from, (and several still live in), Crookhaven in West Cork where the final scenes of the film were shot and several members of her family were used as extras. An uncle appears in the pub scenes and two of her brothers can be seen in the graveyard scene. Also, many local people known to them were featured. I tracked down a copy of the film and sent it over. I'm told that several viewings were arranged for the villagers (who number only about fifty people in the "off season") and much fun was had identifying local people in the film. The film itself has a strange, pretty unbelievable plot and i really can't imagine why Peter Finch and Susan Hayward agreed to star in it! Maybe they fancied a trip to Ireland! There are several "mistakes" in the film, although these are only obvious if you know Crookhaven. The graveyard scene is supposed to be after a Catholic service but was actually filmed in the Protestant graveyard, and when the bus arrives in the village it comes from the wrong direction, and later leaves in the wrong direction, Crookhaven being a dead end, the bus arriving and leaving by a road that doesn't exist! Still, the film does provide interesting external shots of The Marconi Tower and O'Sullivan's bar is a very nice place to have a beer today, as it was then. Go and see for yourself and tell Dermot O'Sullivan that Jeff says hello!