NOW, VOYAGER

It would be so easy to dismiss this 1942 Bette Davis vehicle as a mere ‘weepie’, especially given the more implausible elements of the story.

Fortunately Bette Davis (spellbinding as only she can be) is supported by a strong cast, led by Claude Rains, Gladys Cooper and Paul Henreid, under the able direction of one Irving Rapper.  

Unsurprisingly Mr Rapper was a new name to me, given that his directorial career was not an especially long or distinguished one.  He was a friend of Davis, which might explain how he got this gig, and indeed went on to direct her in three more films (none as acclaimed as this one).  

The film also benefits from strong dialogue, courtesy of Casey Robinson, who worked on several of Bette Davis' films.

Davis plays Charlotte Vale, who when we first meet her is a neurotic mess thanks to the attentions of her tyrannical mother (Cooper).  But enter psychiatrist Dr Jaquith (Rains) and very quickly she is off on a luxury cruise, complete with stunning new wardrobe. The scene where we first see the new Charlotte, as she steps on to the deck, is one of several iconic moments in this picture.

On the cruise she meets handsome Jerry (Henreid) and it’s not long before they are madly in love with each other.  But the course of true love can't be allowed to run smooth in this type of film, and sure enough it turns out that he’s married, albeit unhappily.

Divorce doesn’t seem to be an option for Jerry, so they end the cruise by saying their sad goodbyes, never to see each other again, or so they think.

We then have the pleasure of seeing Charlotte standing up to her mother, and generally wowing her family and friends with her new look and self-confidence.  This leads to a marriage proposal from a local widower who socially speaking is a real catch.  Charlotte accepts, the prospect of creating an independent life (and maybe family) being very appealing.

But fate takes a hand when Jerry happens into her life again, purely by accident.  Although he does the decent thing and departs immediately upon learning she is engaged, meeting Jerry again reminds Charlotte what true love is, and so she breaks off the engagement.

Mother is very unhappy at this news (the marriage would have been a real feather in the cap of the Vale family), so unhappy in fact that she drops dead, leaving her estate to Charlotte.

Feeling somewhat responsible for her mother's death, Charlotte returns to Dr Jaquith's sanatorium, where she happens to meet Tina, a teenage daughter of Jerry's.  

For those thinking this is a whopper of a coincidence I would point out that of course Charlotte would have extolled Jaquith's expertise to Jerry whilst on the cruise, so it’s no surprise that Jerry would send Tina to Jaquith's sanatorium, especially since Tina's problems are not a million miles away from those which afflicted young Charlotte. 

Given that she sees something of her former self in Tina, it's quite natural that Charlotte should take Tina under her wing.  

What is a surprise is the outlandish conclusion of the drama, in which Charlotte and Jerry are allowed by Jaquith to share the job of raising Tina, provided they don't revive their love affair. Tina's mum can safely be ignored on the grounds that she was the source of Tina's lack of self-esteem in the first place. 

OK, when written down the ending does seem silly, but when watching the film I was fine with it.

The famous last line, spoken by Charlotte, ("Oh, Jerry, don't ask for the moon. We have the stars.") is her saying that the arrangement they have agreed to is good enough, and it's an inspired way to draw things to a close.

RATING: ✓✓ Good Times