The Inn of the Sixth Happiness (1958)

All her life Englishwoman Gladys Aylward knew that China was the place where she belonged. Not qualified to be sent there as a missionary, Gladys works as a domestic to earn the money to ... See full summary »

Director:

Mark Robson

Writers:

Isobel Lennart (screenplay), Alan Burgess (novel)

Stars:

Ingrid Bergman, Robert Donat, Curd Jürgens

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 3 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Ingrid Bergman	...	Gladys Aylward
Curd Jürgens	...	Capt. Lin Nan (as Curt Jurgens)
Robert Donat	...	The Mandarin of Yang Cheng
Michael David	...	Hok-A
Athene Seyler	...	Jeannie Lawson
Ronald Squire	...	Sir Francis Jamison
Moultrie Kelsall	...	Dr. Robinson
Richard Wattis	...	Mr. Murfin
Peter Chong	...	Yang
Tsai Chin	...	Sui-Lan
Edith Sharpe	...	Secretary at China Inland Mission
Joan Young	...	Sir Francis' Cook
Lian-Shin Yang	...	Woman with Baby
Noel Hood	...	Miss Thompson (as Noël Hood)
Burt Kwouk	...	Li

Storyline

All her life Englishwoman Gladys Aylward knew that China was the place where she belonged. Not qualified to be sent there as a missionary, Gladys works as a domestic to earn the money to send herself to a poor, remote village. There she eventually lives a full and happy life: running the inn, acting as "foot inspector", advising the local Mandarin. and even winning the heart of mixed-race Captain Lin Nan. But Gladys discovers her real destiny when the country is invaded by Japan and the Chinese children need her to save their lives.

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Plot Keywords:

china | missionary | manipulative female | briton abroad | bare chested male | 

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Taglines:

Love had suddenly come to her under the China sky...love for this Eurasian soldier who now pressed his earthy, Oriental skin against her own...

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | War

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Japanese Mandarin Russian Cantonese

Release Date:

19 December 1958 (West Germany)

Also Known As:

A Hatodik Boldogság fogadója

Filming Locations:

Portmeirion, Gwynedd, Wales, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

158 min

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Final film of Robert Donat. NOTE: He died during its making. In the scene where he is saying goodbye to Gladys as the elders prepare to take their leave of the city, he says as though he was prophesying his death, "I fear we shall never see each other again."

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Goofs

The captain is talking with Gladys and says that someone will listen to anything for an extra bowl of rice. The story takes place in northern China and rice is only eaten in southern China. Noodles made from wheat was the mainstay of the Chinese diet in the north. Later in the film it appears Gladys takes a serving of rice from a large pot, and lastly on the journey with the children they come across some uncooked rice which Gladys picks it up.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Gladys Aylward: My name is Gladys Aylward. I've written to the head of the missionary society. His reply stated that he'd see me if I ever came to London. If he's busy, I can wait.

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Crazy Credits

The opening title card reads: "This story is based upon the life of Gladys Aylward, a woman of our time, who was, and is dedicated to the simple, joyful and rare belief that we are all responsible for each other."

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Connections

Referenced in Savage Harvest 2: October Blood (2006)

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Soundtracks

Onward Christian Soldiers
(uncredited)
Music by Arthur Sullivan and lyrics by Sabine Baring-Gould
Sung by Ingrid Bergman on the Trans-Siberian Train

User Reviews

Not too many movies like this one around

The Inn Of Sixth Happiness is a film about faith, but more importantly about faith AND works. What is the point of simply saying "I am a Christian", if you just sit in a comfortable house on a well kept street, and read your Bible once a month, and go to church for an hour each Sunday, but never care enough about other people to be ready to sacrifice your life for them to hear the gospel? Gladys was a young woman who felt led by God to go to one of the poorest, uncivilized areas of the world, to preach the story of Jesus, brave a treacherous trip across many lands, learn a strange new language, face the hostility of a people with a different religious background, etc. Comparitively few professing modern Christians would ever put themselves in the line of fire as Gladys did. Ingrid Bergman does a beautiful job playing the role. It was obvious she researched the woman quite deeply and cared about her part. Apparently after the film was made she tried to visit Gladys, but arrived several days too late: Gladys had died. In her modest home Ingrid saw a book with press clippings about the film that Gladys had put together. She had heard second hand that Gladys hadn't been too thrilled with the film; however the "fan book" seemed to declare that bit of gossip a fallacy.

Robert Donat does a wonderful job of acting as the leading official of the town. It doesn't matter that he was not an Asian actor, he makes it quite believable. Kudos to him. Curt Jurgen is masterful and manly as the soldier Gladys grows to love. I like the way the two of them slowly mellow towards each other during the progression of their relationship; it is one of the chief delights of the film.

I highly recommend this film to people of faith and to people without faith in God. With so few major motion pictures ever made about people who desire to preach the Christian gospel, it is a nice change to view this classic movie and be inspired.