Desire Me (1947)

Writers:

Zoe Akins (writer)
Leonhard Frank (play)

Release Date:

31 October 1947 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance | War

Plot:

Shortly after WWII, flashbacks tell the story of Marise, her husband Paul, and Jean, who was imprisoned with Paul in a German camp...

Plot Keywords:

Escape | Death | WWII | Brittany | Love

Cast

Greer Garson	...	Marise Aubert
Robert Mitchum	...	Paul Aubert
Richard Hart	...	Jean Renaud
Morris Ankrum	...	Hector Martin
George Zucco	...	Father Donnard
Cecil Humphreys	...	Dr. Andre Leclair
David Hoffman	...	Alex (the postman)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Florence Bates	...	Mrs.Lannie (scenes deleted)
Clinton Sundberg	...	Salesman (scenes deleted)
Harry Woods	...	Joseph (scenes deleted)

Also Known As:

A Woman of My Own (USA) (pre-release title)

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | USA:Approved (PCA #11783, General Audience)

Filming Locations:

Victorine Ranch - Highway 1, Carmel, California, USA

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

It took Greer Garson 125 takes to enunciate the word "No" to the director's satisfaction. Co-star Robert Mitchum claimed later that this incident was when he first stopped taking Hollywood seriously.

Quotes:

Jean Renaud: Only frightened people are religious.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Private Screenings: Robert Mitchum and Jane Russell" (1996)

A Plodding Turgid Mess

After seeing Desire Me, I looked in Lee Server's new book about Robert Mitchum. He was as unhappy as with the film as everyone else was in 1947.

The film is set in postwar Brittany and it has to do with Richard Hart arriving in a small Breton fishing village. He's decided to look up Greer Garson who's the widow of a former buddy Robert Mitchum from a POW camp. He woos and wins her and then Mitchum shows up.

I have to say that Mitchum, Garson, and Hart are about as convincingly French as Barry Fitzgerald. And the story is just something you want to shout to the screen, get it over with, the story just plods along so.

For MGM the film location for Brittany was the California coast at Monterey. Another reviewer mentioned about Garson nearly being drowned with a sudden wave during a scene on the beach. I'm sure that caused her to lose interest in the film.

Mitchum and Garson hated each other. In typical Mitchum fashion for what he felt was Garson's condescending ways, he used to eat sandwiches with onions and roquefort cheese before their closeups. That ain't a look of passion Garson's giving out with when you see this.

Because Cukor got into a fight with Garson as opposed to Mitchum who was in on a pass from that inferior studio RKO, he quit the film. Mervyn LeRoy came on, Jack Conway came on, a few others did who had a spare moment or two and the thing was finished. Not a moment too soon.

And NO ONE wanted to be listed as director. So the film was inflicted on the public without a directorial credit.

My only question is, if this thing had turned out like Gone With the Wind which was another collaborative effort, who would have gotten the Oscar nomination for Best Director?