Johnny Belinda (1948)

In post-war Cape Breton, a doctor's efforts to tutor a deaf/mute woman are undermined when she is raped, and the resulting pregnancy causes scandal to swirl.

Director:

Jean Negulesco

Writers:

Irma von Cube (screenplay) (as Irmgard VonCube), Allen Vincent (screenplay)

Stars:

Jane Wyman, Lew Ayres, Charles Bickford

Won 1 Oscar. Another 4 wins & 13 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Jane Wyman	...	Belinda McDonald
Lew Ayres	...	Dr. Robert Richardson
Charles Bickford	...	Black MacDonald
Agnes Moorehead	...	Aggie MacDonald
Stephen McNally	...	Locky McCormick
Jan Sterling	...	Stella McCormick
Rosalind Ivan	...	Mrs. Poggety
Dan Seymour	...	Pacquet - Storekeeper
Mabel Paige	...	Mrs. Lutz
Ida Moore	...	Mrs. McKee
Alan Napier	...	Defense Attorney

Storyline

Dr. Robert Richardson, a dedicated young general practitioner, seeks to establish himself in an isolated fishing village on Cape Breton Island off the Nova Scotia coast. The population is poor and the struggling physician generally gets paid for his efforts in barter. When he meets Belinda McDonald, a young deaf mute callously dismissed by family and neighbors as "the dummy," he alone senses her innate intelligence. He overcomes the initial skepticism of her flinty, gruff father and indifferently cold aunt, who operate a hardscrabble grist mill and farm, and devotes himself to teaching the young girl sign language and lip-reading. Hopes are even raised that she might even eventually qualify for a medical procedure that might improve her condition. Her optimism is crushed, however, when she raped by Locky McCormick, a brutish local fisherman. Traumatized, she is unable to communicate the outrage to her family, who are baffled and angry when they learn she is pregnant. The local gossips...

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Plot Keywords:

flour | shotgun | floor plan | widower | single parent | 

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Taglines:

There was temptation in her helpless silence...and then torment

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English American Sign Language

Release Date:

14 September 1948 (USA)

Also Known As:

Belinda

Filming Locations:

Fort Bragg, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Widely considered to be the first Hollywood film to openly tackle the subject of rape.

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Goofs

The adoption papers from the council misspell the possessive "its" as "it's."

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Quotes

Dr. Robert Richardson: There's only one shame - failing a human being that needs you.

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Alternate Versions

Also shown in computer colorized version.

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Connections

Version of Johnny Belinda (1959)

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Soundtracks

Wedding March
(1843) (uncredited)
from "A Midsummer Night's Dream"
Music by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy
Played at the church after the wedding

User Reviews

It wears well.

Am 79 years old. Saw it at age 23. Saw it again on TV tonight.It is still a stunning film, the black and white cinematography could not be achieved by many of today's a.s.c. people. Anybody can shoot color.

She was poignant in every scene. The northern California coast doubles nicely for Nova Scotia from whence my maternal ancestors emigrated.

I have difficult time seeing Lew Ayers not in a German soldiers uniform but he was wonderful in this as he was in "All Quiet..." Bickford is always Bickford but in this he is truly in character. And who can deny Moorehead? Direction is flawless as is the casting. The score is gripping.