Blithe Spirit (1945)

Adapted from a play by Noel Coward, Charles and his second wife Ruth, are haunted by the ghost of his first wife, Elvira. Medium Madame Arcati tries to help things out by contacting the ghost.

Director:

David Lean

Writers:

David Lean (adapted for the screen by), Ronald Neame (adapted for the screen by),

Stars:

Rex Harrison, Constance Cummings, Kay Hammond

Won 1 Oscar. Another 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Rex Harrison	...	Charles Condomine
Constance Cummings	...	Ruth Condomine
Kay Hammond	...	Elvira Condomine
Margaret Rutherford	...	Madame Arcati
Hugh Wakefield	...	Dr. George Bradman
Joyce Carey	...	Violet Bradman
Jacqueline Clarke	...	Edith (as Jaqueline Clarke)

Storyline

Adapted from a play by Noel Coward, Charles and his second wife Ruth, are haunted by the ghost of his first wife, Elvira. Medium Madame Arcati tries to help things out by contacting the ghost.

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Plot Keywords:

ghost | medium | author | ectoplasm | dinner party | 

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Taglines:

One Wife Too Many

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Genres:

Comedy | Fantasy

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 May 1945 (UK)

Also Known As:

Uma Mulher do Outro Mundo

Filming Locations:

D&P Studios, Denham Studios, Denham, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Two Cities Films, Noel Coward-Cineguild

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Margaret Rutherford and Kay Hammond played Madame Arcati and Elvira, respectively, in the original West End production. Jacqueline Clarke played Edith in the original Broadway production.

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Goofs

After requesting, and drinking "Dry Martinis" the liquid in the glasses is distinctly brown instead of clear.

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Quotes

[first lines]
words on a Victorian sampler: "When we are young / We read and believe / The most fantastic things. / When we are older / We learn with regret / That these things cannot be"
Narrator: We are quite, quite wrong!

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Crazy Credits

The voice at the end of the credits page that utters, "We are quite, quite WRONG!" is Noel Coward's

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Connections

Version of Geisterkomödie - Eine unwahrscheinliche Komödie (1965)

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Soundtracks

"Always"
(uncredited)
Written by Irving Berlin
Sung by Jacqueline Clarke

User Reviews

Fun from the 40's Brit flick

This is the second of three collaborations in film done in the mid 1940's between David Lean as a Director and playwright Noel Coward including This Happy Breed and Brief Encounter. This is an early film in Lean's directorial career who would of course go on to make such major films as Doctor Zhivago, The Bridge on the River Kwai and A Passage to India. Coward produces and narrates this film as well. A great cast with Rex Harrison as a novelist, Constance Cummings as his second wife, Kay Hammond as his first wife and Margaret Rutherford as the medium Madame Arcadi. This is a fun fantasy/comedy/romantic story. I haven't seen this in years. I would give it an 8.0 of a scale of 10.