Robert Donat at the peak of his skills... as moving today as it was upon its premiere.
Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:16
Fresh:13
Rotten:3
Average Rating:7.8/10
Synopsis: Based on the novel by James Hilton, GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS is the story of a shy English schoolmaster who dedicates his life to his boys. In an Oscar-winning performance, Robert Donat plays Mr.... Based on the novel by James Hilton, GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS is the story of a shy English schoolmaster who dedicates his life to his boys. In an Oscar-winning performance, Robert Donat plays Mr. Chipping, a young classics scholar en route to his first assignment at the reputable Brookfield school. Although his first interactions with the boys go miserably, he remains determined to become headmaster. But Chipping is simply too stuck on propriety to ever become popular with the students. Depressed, Chipping goes hiking in the Tyrols, where he meets Katherine Ellis (Greer Garson, in her first screen role). The two meet again on the Danube in Vienna, where they waltz the night away and kiss for the first time. Katherine becomes Mrs. Chipping, and she renames him Mr. Chips when they return together to Brookfield. Over time, the charming Mrs. Chipping turns Mr. Chips into an amiable gentleman who is adored by his pupils. But just when the world looks its rosiest, the depths of tragedy await Mr. Chips. Directed by Sam Wood, highly regarded for his handling of collegiate subjects and tearjerking themes, GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS was one of the most critically acclaimed films of 1939. [More]
Starring: Robert Donat, Greer Garson, John Mills, Terry Kilburn
Starring: Robert Donat, Greer Garson, John Mills, Terry Kilburn, Paul Henreid, Judith Furse, Lyn Harding, Milton Rosmer, Frederick Leister
Director: Sam Wood, Sidney Franklin
Director: Sam Wood
Composer: John Williams
Producer: Victor Saville
Screenwriter: R.C. Sherriff, Claudine West
Director: Sidney Franklin
Composer: Richard Addinsell
Reviews for Goodbye, Mr. Chips
Inspirational, touching, classic work with Robert Donat's Oscar winning performance.
Robert Donat gives a strong performance as a legendary school teacher in this sentimental tribute, which introduced to American audiences British actress Greer Garson.
A standard story delivered well with not many stylistic discretions, which gives it a timeless quality.
The original inspirational-teacher story, and a beloved valentine to classical education, tradition, and the English public boarding schools of a bygone era.
...should continue to provide pleasure for as long as people value characterization and heart above plot contrivances and technical effects.
Start with It's a Wonderful Life and take away Christmas and all the bad stuff that happens, and you've got this movie.
Not as cloying as you might think; Donat is engaging, and Greer Garson is simply luminous.
Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939) is the classic, sentimental tale of much-loved British schoolteacher guiding many generations of schoolboys through almost 60 years
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