The Secret Garden *** (1949, Margaret O’Brien, Herbert Marshall, Dean Stockwell, Gladys Cooper, Elsa Lanchester) – Classic Movie Review 9259

Director Fred M Wilcox’s 1949 The Secret Garden stars Margaret O’Brien as little orphan Mary Lennox, who lives with grouchy uncle Archibald Craven (Herbert Marshall) and makes everything in the garden come up roses. She befriends the housemaid’s little brother, Dickon (Brian Roper), and Archibald’s son Colin Craven (Dean Stockwell), a boy in a wheelchair. Mary and Dickon find they are able to enter a secret walled garden surrounded by a high stone wall.

The Secret Garden is extremely pleasant children’s fare, thoroughly old-fashioned and gentle but in a good way, with a fine MGM production and a good British flavour thanks to a strong contingent of ex-patriate supporting star players Gladys Cooper, Elsa Lanchester, Reginald Owen, Aubrey Mather and George Zucco.

Robert Ardrey writes the screenplay, based on Frances Hodgson Burnett’s famous novel.

Also in the cast are Lowell Gilmore, Billy Bevan, Dennis Hoey, Matthew Boulton, Isobel Elsom, Norma Varden, Elspeth Dudgeon, Leonard Carey and Kathryn Beaumont.

After 17 films in nine years, this was O’Brien’s last as a child star (she was 12), after which she officially retired, though she reappeared from time to time, with Her First Romance (1951) her failed attempt to relaunch as a teen star.

It is shot in black and white, but with Technicolor in some sequences.

It is shot in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, 10202 W. Washington Blvd, Culver City, California.

The Secret Garden is directed by Fred M Wilcox, runs 92 minutes, is made and released by MGM, is written by Robert Ardrey, based on Frances Hodgson Burnett’s novel, is shot in black and white and some Technicolor by Ray June, is produced by Clarence Brown, is scored by Bronislau Kaper, and is designed by Cedric Gibbons and Urie McCleary.

Frances Hodgson Burnett’s 1911 story was previously filmed in 1919. It was remade for TV in 1987 (with Jennie James, Barret Oliver, Michael Hordern, Derek Jacobi, Billie Whitelaw and Colin Firth) and for cinemas in 1993 as The Secret Garden. There is a new version for 2020, with Dixie Egerickx, Colin Firth and Julie Walters.

© Derek Winnert 2019 Classic Movie Review 9259

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