Invitation (1952)

Always believing she had a happy marriage, a young wife's trust in her husband is shaken when she discovers that her father had paid him to marry her.

Director:

Gottfried Reinhardt

Writers:

Paul Osborn, Jerome Weidman (story)

Stars:

Van Johnson, Dorothy McGuire, Ruth Roman

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Van Johnson	...	Daniel I. 'Dan' Pierce
Dorothy McGuire	...	Ellen Bowker Pierce
Ruth Roman	...	Maud Redwick
Louis Calhern	...	Simon Bowker
Ray Collins	...	Dr. Warren Pritchard
Michael Chekhov	...	Dr. Fromm
Lisa Golm	...	Agnes, the Maid
Diane Cassidy	...	Molly Eaton
Stapleton Kent	...	George, the Gardener
Barbara Ruick	...	Sarah
Norman Field	...	Arthur, the Chauffeur
Matt Moore	...	Paul, the Butler
Pat Conway	...	Bill (as Patrick Conway)
Alex Gerry	...	Professor Redwick
Lucille Curtis	...	Mrs. Redwick

Storyline

Always believing she had a happy marriage, a young wife's trust in her husband is shaken when she discovers that her father had paid him to marry her.

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Plot Keywords:

rheumatic fever | jealous woman | architect | avalanche | heart condition | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 August 1952 (Portugal)

Also Known As:

Geborgtes Glück

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

84 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The haunting theme music by Bronislau Kaper was actually introduced two years earlier in MGM's A Life of Her Own, but became a jazz standard under the title Invitation, especially associated with tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson.

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Quotes

Ellen: There is something much more important than keeping alive, and that is knowing that you have lived.

User Reviews

Dorothy McGuire corners the market on suffering...

Wealthy businessman's daughter, who as a young girl caught rheumatic fever and now suffers from a shortness of breath, discovers her marriage to a charming ne'er-do-well was arranged by daddy (whom she affectionately refers to as "Darling"); worse than that, she may in fact have only a few weeks left to live, leaving her husband free to marry her conniving romantic-rival. Pure bunk. Paul Osborn's screenplay (via Jerome Weidman's thin story) trots out the redundant flashbacks in the second-half instead of proceeding ahead with the plot, which submerges the already-soapy scenario in grim talk. Why go backwards when we can figure out what's happening for ourselves? This is a "woman's weeper" with no faith in its target audience, so simplistic is the set-up. Dorothy McGuire, swathed in furs for most of the picture, isn't a canny, clever heroine at all; when she's upset, she turns inward and stony. Upon realizing her marriage is basically a sham, she shrinks away from her husband like the consummate virgin (well, that's a possibility, she and Van Johnson sleep in separate beds after all!). Ruth Roman has the film's best moments as a society shark with her trap set for Van, but what exactly do these women see in him? Johnson can be charming when it's required, but put him in a melodramatic setting and he goes stony, too. MGM production values only so-so, however director Gottfried Reinhardt tries adding some visual flavor to the flashback segues and he attempts a lively pacing for the movie's initial half-hour. ** from ****