The Secret Garden (1949)

When Cholera takes the parents of Mary Lennox, she is shipped from India to England to live with her Uncle Craven. Archibald Craven's house is dark, drafty, with over 100 rooms built on the... See full summary »

Director:

Fred M. Wilcox

Writers:

Robert Ardrey (screenplay), Frances Hodgson Burnett (novel)

Stars:

Margaret O'Brien, Herbert Marshall, Dean Stockwell

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Margaret O'Brien	...	Mary Lennox
Herbert Marshall	...	Archibald Craven
Dean Stockwell	...	Colin Craven
Gladys Cooper	...	Mrs. Medlock
Elsa Lanchester	...	Martha
Brian Roper	...	Dickon
Reginald Owen	...	Ben Weatherstaff
Aubrey Mather	...	Dr. Griddlestone
George Zucco	...	Dr. Fortescue
Lowell Gilmore	...	British Officer
Billy Bevan	...	Barney
Dennis Hoey	...	Mr. Pitcher
Matthew Boulton	...	Mr. Bromley (as Mathew Boulton)
Isobel Elsom	...	Governess
Norma Varden	...	Nurse

Storyline

When Cholera takes the parents of Mary Lennox, she is shipped from India to England to live with her Uncle Craven. Archibald Craven's house is dark, drafty, with over 100 rooms built on the edge of the moors. Mary finds that her Uncle does not wish to see her, which is fine with Mary as she herself is rude and spoiled. While walking the gardens the next day, Mary notices that there is a area in the garden surrounded with a high stone wall and no doorway. Dickon, brother of a house maid, tells her of the garden behind the wall. By the path, the raven unearths the hidden key so that Mary and Dickon are able to enter the walled garden to find it overgrown and neglected. Inside the house, she finds that Archibald has a son named Colin, who is crippled and as spoiled as she. Together these three work to make the secret garden their own world.

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Plot Keywords:

garden | cholera | india | secret | worm | 

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Genres:

Drama | Family

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 July 1949 (Brazil)

Also Known As:

A titkos kert

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Loew's

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Black and White Color (Technicolor) (uncredited)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In this film, Manchester-born George Zucco, the slimy mad doctor or smooth-talking villain of so many horror and mystery films - Prof. Moriarty in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes; Charlie Chan in Charlie Chan in Honolulu; The Hunchback of Notre Dame; The Mummy's Hand; The Mummy's Tomb; The Mad Ghoul; Voodoo Man; etc. - has one of his few sympathetic roles as the kindly Dr. Fortescue.

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Crazy Credits

No screen credit is given for the Technicolor sequences.

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Connections

Version of The Secret Garden (1987)

User Reviews

If only I had a secret garden...

This film's sweet imagery and quiet pace made me long for my own secret garden. It's hard to imagine there ever was a time when people could live in this sort of peaceful solitude, with no telephones, radios or any of modern life's other annoying distractions. I strongly recommend this movie for anyone who needs a brief respite from their hectic life. It will serve as a much needed reminder of the joys of a simpler time, whether that time ever really existed or not. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to check on available cottage rentals on the moors.

P.S. While this film was originally intended for children, I doubt that any but the brightest and most thoughtful of today's kids will enjoy it, due to it's slow, deliberate pacing and complete lack of comic-book action, though the tantrum scene between Margaret O'Brien and Dean Stockwell will probably grab their attention.