I Remember Mama (1948)

User Rating:

8.2/10   

Director:

George Stevens

Writers:

Kathryn Forbes (novel)
John Van Druten (play)

Release Date:

17 March 1948 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Family

Tagline:

You'll just love...MAMA!

Plot:

The ups and downs of a Norwegian immigrant family, circa 1910.

Plot Keywords:

Immigrant | Love | 1910s | Uncle | Extended Family

Awards:

Nominated for 5 Oscars. Another 1 win & 3 nominations

Cast

Irene Dunne	...	Martha 'Mama' Hanson
Barbara Bel Geddes	...	Katrin Hanson
Oskar Homolka	...	Uncle Chris Halverson
Philip Dorn	...	Lars Hanson
Cedric Hardwicke	...	Jonathan Hyde (as Sir Cedric Hardwicke)
Edgar Bergen	...	Peter Thorkelson
Rudy Vallee	...	Dr. Johnson
Barbara O'Neil	...	Jessie Brown
Florence Bates	...	Florence Dana Moorhead
Peggy McIntyre	...	Christine Hanson
June Hedin	...	Dagmar Hanson
Steve Brown	...	Nels Hanson
Ellen Corby	...	Aunt Trina
Hope Landin	...	Aunt Jenny
Edith Evanson	...	Aunt Sigrid

Runtime:

134 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Norwegian | Latin | French

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Finland:S | Sweden:Btl | UK:U | USA:Approved

Filming Locations:

San Francisco, California, USA

Company:

RKO Radio Pictures

Trivia:

In order to physically submerse herself in the role of Mama, Irene Dunne wore no make up and used body padding to make herself appear heavier.

Goofs:

Continuity: When the aunts are sitting at the table drinking coffee, Jenny is on the right and Sigrid are on the left. After Jenny asks, "Where are the children?" and gets up, she and Sigrid have switched places.

Quotes:

Katrin Hanson: [reading the novel that she's just finished] "For long as I could remember, the house on the Larkin Street Hill had been home. Papa and Mama had both born in Norway but they came to San Francisco because Mama's sisters were here, all of us were born here. Nels, the oldest and the only boy, my sister Christine and the littlest sister Dagmar but first and foremost I remember Mama".

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Enfant Terrible: A Conversation with Patty McCormack (2004) (V)

Soundtrack:

Sovnen

Just Superb

Funny, warm movie about Norwegian family in San Francisco before WW I. How Irene Dunne lost the Oscar to Jane Wyman (Johnny Belinda) is a mystery. Dunne is so totally wonderful in this film--and what a film. Beautifully directed by George Stevens, he captures all the humor and life of this family. Stevens also uses techniques like fore- and background action--there's always several things going on in every scene. He also uses overlapping dialog 20 years before Robert Altman made it fashionable. And what a perfect cast. Irene Dunne (maybe her best performance ever) stars with Barbara Bel Geddes, Oscar Homolka, and Ellen Corby (heartbreaking yet funny as Trina)--all Oscar nominated. Then there is Philip Dorn, Edgar Bergen, Rudy Vallee, Hope Landin, Edith Evanson, Barbara O'Neil, Florence Bates, Cedric Hardwicke, and Steve Brown. The novel by Kathryn Forbes spawned this movie, a play, a TV series, and finally a Broadway musical. At one point Greta Garbo was considered as Mama, and even Marlene Dietrich sought the role. Thank goodness they gave it to Irene Dunne! The aunts as played by Corby, Landin, and Evanson are wonderful. And oh BTW, Homolka lost to Walter Huston for The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, while Corby and Bel Geddes lost to Claire Trevor for Key Largo.