White Banners (1938)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Edmund Goulding

Writers:

Lenore J. Coffee (screenplay)
Lloyd C. Douglas (book)

Release Date:

28 January 1938 (Denmark)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A homeless woman named Hannah (Fay Bainter) drifts into the lives of the kindly Ward family, in a small Indiana town in 1919...

Plot Keywords:

Housekeeper | Family Home | Jealousy | Box | Secret

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar.

Cast

Claude Rains	...	Paul Ward
Fay Bainter	...	Hannah Parmalee
Jackie Cooper	...	Peter Trimble
Bonita Granville	...	Sally Ward
Henry O'Neill	...	Sam Trimble
Kay Johnson	...	Mrs. Marcia Ward
James Stephenson	...	Thomas Bradford
J. Farrell MacDonald	...	Dr. Thompson
William Pawley	...	Joe Ellis
Edward Pawley	...	Bill Ellis
John Ridgely	...	Charles Ellis
Mary Field	...	Hester, Trimble's Secretary
Edward McWade	...	Sloan the furniture dealer

Runtime:

92 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved | Finland:S

Company:

Cosmopolitan Productions

Trivia:

News item - Saturday, May 14,1938 -Burbank, California: Warners is rushing scoring of "White Banners," based upon the Lloyd C. Douglas novel, in order to have the film ready for screening at the Dallas sales convention (Warners)which opens Monday. Max Steiner, who is composing the original score, is working day and night to complete the assignment.

Quotes:

Paul Ward: You don't think I have a fighting chance!
Hannah: I don't think you have a chance, fighting!

Worth every minute.

I caught this gem early one morning, after waking up early unable to fall back asleep. How fortunate, White Banners is a movie I had never heard or knew about. I really did not expect much. Was I surprised how quickly I was drawn into this wonderful light drama. Wonderfully written and directed. The casting superb in all choices and Fay Bainter was simply magnificent and unforgettable. Truly a most memorable and haunting performance. Claude Rains, always great, gives a spunky and marvelously slightly eccentric touch to his masterful performance. Cooper and Granville are great together. Kay Johnson (Madam Satan) what a surprise! Very nice subdued performance. I was really glad to have discovered this forgotten classic. As wonderful as A Wonderful Life. I highly recommend making time to catch this, it's worth every minute of it's 92 minutes; wish it was longer.