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The Love Letter

  • TV Movie
  • 1998
  • PG
  • 1h 39m
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
2.6K
YOUR RATING
Jennifer Jason Leigh and Campbell Scott in The Love Letter (1998)
FantasyRomance

20th century computer games designer Scott exchanges love letters with 19th century poet Elizabeth Whitcomb through an antique desk that can make letters travel through time.20th century computer games designer Scott exchanges love letters with 19th century poet Elizabeth Whitcomb through an antique desk that can make letters travel through time.20th century computer games designer Scott exchanges love letters with 19th century poet Elizabeth Whitcomb through an antique desk that can make letters travel through time.

  • Director
    • Dan Curtis
  • Writers
    • Jack Finney
    • James S. Henerson
  • Stars
    • Campbell Scott
    • Jennifer Jason Leigh
    • David Dukes
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.2/10
    2.6K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Dan Curtis
    • Writers
      • Jack Finney
      • James S. Henerson
    • Stars
      • Campbell Scott
      • Jennifer Jason Leigh
      • David Dukes
    • 69User reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win total

    Photos10

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    Top cast27

    Edit
    Campbell Scott
    Campbell Scott
    • Scott Corrigan
    Jennifer Jason Leigh
    Jennifer Jason Leigh
    • Elizabeth Whitcomb
    David Dukes
    David Dukes
    • Everett Reagle
    Estelle Parsons
    Estelle Parsons
    • Beatrice Corrigan
    Daphne Ashbrook
    Daphne Ashbrook
    • Debra Zabriskie
    Myra Carter
    • Clarice Whitcomb
    Gerrit Graham
    Gerrit Graham
    • Warren Whitcomb
    Irma P. Hall
    Irma P. Hall
    • Mae Mullen
    Richard Woods
    • Jacob Campbell
    Kali Rocha
    Kali Rocha
    • Flossy Whitcomb
    Laurie Kennedy
    • Lavinia Whitcomb
    Edgar Smith
    • Potts the Postman
    Cara Stoner
    • Maggie the Maid
    George Gaffney
    • Bike Rider
    Tom Riis Farrell
    Tom Riis Farrell
    • Scott's Boss
    Mark Joy
    • Celebrity Author
    Linda Powell
    Linda Powell
    • Doctor
    Timothy J. Crowe
    • Charging Union Soldier
    • Director
      • Dan Curtis
    • Writers
      • Jack Finney
      • James S. Henerson
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews69

    7.22.6K
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    Featured reviews

    nz man

    Wonderful, charming. For all of us romantics!

    My wife and I were very tired, after a long day of work and coming home from dancing. We decided to have a quick look at the TV movie I taped, to see if it was worth keeping. What a surprise: it kept us awake late at night, in spite of our tiredness. A lovely movie!

    There are a few annoying flaws. The music at the beginning was out-of-date and I don't know how the director let a few shoddy scenes slip by, but they were probably on a tight budget. These are mainly due a script that, while generally good, was too stilted in parts. However, considering this is a made4TV movie, it is exceptionally good.

    So get your loved one, cuddle up, and have let some warmth into your hearts with this little gem.
    drawal44

    A different type of movie.

    I saw this movie on a plane without the sound track. Even then it held me spell-bound. What a premiss, a love affair between a civil war beauty and a contemporary man. Great inventiveness and well acted too.
    Melch

    Can see it over and over!

    This is a lovely movie -- the story is well-thought and although it seems tortuous, they pull it off nicely and make it entirely believable. I very much enjoy Leigh and Scott together. I've seen it several times already, and will continue to see it over and over.
    9dataphasia

    An Exceptionally Well Made TV Movie

    I came across this title in the IMDb as I have so many others -- by accident. The concept intrigued me, so I browsed Amazon.com and was lucky enough to find a relatively inexpensive used copy.

    I must admit, to begin, that I was a bit biased, in that I am a time-travel fanatic at heart. So, when a movie is themed as such, I am a sucker for it from the beginning. Though the actual traveling in this movie is mostly by way of a seemingly "magic" desk and an unusually efficient U.S. Mail service (Wouldn't that be nice?), it nevertheless fell within my realm of my fascination.

    I won't recap the story, as the IMDb does a good job of that already. My only comments are of the quality of the movie. I was pleased with the movie overall. Myself being a 29 year old male, anyone who sees this movie will plainly tell you that I was not the demographic that they were aiming for. It is a love story and I found myself very drawn into it, even with it's implausible premise -- but, we must remember that this movie IS a "fantasy" and it should be viewed with that in mind. Those who are looking for a good sci-fi flick should look elsewhere, because science does into enter into the picture here. It is a human story about two people who are separated from each other by time. It is well acted, beautifully filmed and well worth a look if you can pick it up at your local library, video store or online somewhere.

    I give it 9 out of 10. My only critiques would be Scotty's coma 'dreams' which left me scratching my head a bit and the ending -- but I won't spoil it for you. Watch, enjoy and you be the judge.
    nicholas.rhodes

    Top-notch Time Travel / Romantic Fantasy

    Unknown in Europe, this movie was recommended by someone from the States and I certainly wasn't disappointed once I'd received the DVD and watched it! On a par with "Somewhere in Time" and similar in some respects to "A Message from Charity" which was one of the "New Twilight Zone" episodes, this film is beautifully made and a real pleasure to watch over and over again. In fact nowadays, many of these so-called "TV Movies" are actually better than those made for the cinema !!

    Plots in time-travel movies cannot of course be logical but this film had a very reasonable and believable plot ( bar, of course the way the letters were supposed to travel in time ) but when you watch films of this nature, there is no point in worrying about details of that kind.

    The sets and picture quality were magnificent and I found the ending totally satisfactory although I would have perhaps wished the movie to continue on so that we see romance developing between Campbell Scott and the lady in the cemetery. I had already seen Campbell Scott in a film called 'Dying Young ' and do like this actor very much. This film was just suited to me as I don't really like time-travel movies with tons of special effects as they dont really appear believable ! So I hope people will make more movies like this because at present it is true that they are rather thin on the ground. And we do need doses of romantic fantasy to whisk us out and above of the dreariness of modern life !!

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    Related interests

    Elijah Wood in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
    Fantasy
    Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca (1942)
    Romance

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Based on a short story of the same name by Jack Finney. The story was first published in "The Saturday Evening Post" on August 1, 1959, and reprinted in the same magazine on January/February 1988.
    • Goofs
      Lizzie's hair is historically incorrect. She wears it in loose curls and has her photograph taken with her hair down. No woman in 1863 would wear loose curls or be photographed with her hair down. Hairstyles for women in the time period wore hair severely parted in the middle, draped over the ears in order to hide most of the ear except a small part of the earlobe, and fastened in the back of the head in a knot, either smooth or braided. All young women who were eligible for marriage and certainly married women wore their hair up.
    • Quotes

      Elizabeth Whitcomb: The hard truth is we are doomed to be chaste. To never touch each other, hear each other, see each other... so what harm can there be to write to each other?

    • Connections
      Edited into Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951)

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • February 1, 1998 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Official site
      • Hallmark Hall of Fame page.
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Hallmark Hall of Fame: The Love Letter (#47.3)
    • Filming locations
      • Petersburg, Virginia, USA
    • Production companies
      • Hallmark Entertainment
      • Hallmark Hall of Fame Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 39m(99 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Stereo
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

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