Country: US
Technical: bw 104m
Director: Henry Koster
Cast: James Stewart, Josephine Hull, Cecil Kellaway, Charles Drake, Peggy Dow
Synopsis:
A sister finally determines to do something about her genially potty brother, who is persuaded that his best friend and drinking partner is a six-foot white rabbit.
Review:
Since the brother is Jimmy Stewart recreating his stage success in the role, and he is all but synonymous with homespun, folksy charm, we naturally do not want him to be disabused as to Harvey's existence. This is a comic gem of a performance, and the film has many cherishable moments, not least the quid pro quo concerning the doctor and Nurse Kelly's 'mistake'. The unexceptionable message is naturally that we could all do with some of Elwood's benign acceptance of his fellow human beings, but the road map would more alarmingly seem to involve becoming a deluded alcoholic. A flight-from-reality piece of whimsy that offers a glimpse into contemporary mistrust of psychoanalysis, but whose theatrical origins are often apparent.
Country: US
Technical: bw 104m
Director: Henry Koster
Cast: James Stewart, Josephine Hull, Cecil Kellaway, Charles Drake, Peggy Dow
Synopsis:
A sister finally determines to do something about her genially potty brother, who is persuaded that his best friend and drinking partner is a six-foot white rabbit.
Review:
Since the brother is Jimmy Stewart recreating his stage success in the role, and he is all but synonymous with homespun, folksy charm, we naturally do not want him to be disabused as to Harvey's existence. This is a comic gem of a performance, and the film has many cherishable moments, not least the quid pro quo concerning the doctor and Nurse Kelly's 'mistake'. The unexceptionable message is naturally that we could all do with some of Elwood's benign acceptance of his fellow human beings, but the road map would more alarmingly seem to involve becoming a deluded alcoholic. A flight-from-reality piece of whimsy that offers a glimpse into contemporary mistrust of psychoanalysis, but whose theatrical origins are often apparent.
