Johnny Belinda (1948)
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88% of critics liked it
(8 reviews) -
83% of users liked it
(1,338 ratings)
After years of dumb-blonde and best-friend roles, Jane Wyman proved her skills as a dramatic actress -- and won an Academy Award in the bargain -- in Johnny Belinda. Adapted from a stage play by Elmer Harris, the story takes place in Nova Scotia, where deaf-mute Belinda (Wyman) leads a lonely… More After years of dumb-blonde and best-friend roles, Jane Wyman proved her skills as a dramatic actress -- and won an Academy Award in the bargain -- in Johnny Belinda. Adapted from a stage play by Elmer Harris, the story takes place in Nova Scotia, where deaf-mute Belinda (Wyman) leads a lonely existence on the hardscrabble farm of her father Black Macdonald (Charles Bickford) and her aunt Aggie (Agnes Moorehead). Newly arrived doctor Robert Richardson (Lew Ayres) takes a special interest in Belinda, vowing to ease her road in life by teaching her sign language. Despite initial resistance from her father and aunt, Belinda quickly learns how to communicate with others, opening a whole, wonderful new world for her. But things take a sorry turn when local lout Locky (Stephan McNally) corners poor Belinda after a village dance and rapes her. If the ending seems a bit ambiguous, it is because director Jean Negulesco intended it that way, allowing the viewer to draw his or her own conclusion regarding Belinda's future relationship with her mentor Dr. Richardson. Upon accepting her Oscar, Jane Wyman commented on the fact that she accomplished this feat through the simple expedient of "keeping my mouth shut." But there is nothing simple or facile in Wyman's astonishing performance as Belinda, which far outclasses the actresses who repeated the role in the two TV remakes. Also worthy of praise is the lush musical score by Max Steiner, one of his best post-Casablanca efforts. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Directed By
- Jean Negulesco
- Genres
- Drama, Classics
Unrated,
- In Theaters
- Sep 14, 1948 Wide
Critic Reviews
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Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com
Jean Negulseco's melodrama is a moody, well-crafted if outdated saga with a star-making performance from Jane Wyman as a deaf-mute girl, who's raped and bears an illegitimate child.
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Christopher Null, Filmcritic.com
Try all you want to make yourself jaded over this, but in the end poor little Belinda wins us all over in the end.
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Steve Crum, Kansas City Kansan
Powerful Jane Wyman performance and Oscar caliber production overall.
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Michael W. Phillips, Jr., Goatdog's Movies
A touching, moving film that takes its time and doesn't rely on strident melodramatics to tell its story.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
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Cast
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Jane Wyman
as Belinda McDonald
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Lew Ayres
as Dr. Robert Richardson
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Charles Bickford
as Black McDonald
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Agnes Moorehead
as Aggie McDonald
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Stephen McNally
as Locky McCormick
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Jan Sterling
as Stella McCormick
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Rosalind Ivan
as Mrs. Poggety
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Dan Seymour
as Pacquet
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Mabel Paige
as Mrs. Lutz
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Ida Moore
as Mrs. McKee
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Alan Napier
as Defense Attorney
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Monte Blue
as Ben
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Douglas Kennedy
as Mountie
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James Craven
as Interpreter
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Richard Taylor
as Floyd McQuiggen
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Richard Walsh
as Fergus McQuiggen
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Joan Winfield
as Mrs. Tim Moore
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Ian Wolfe
as Rector
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Holmes Herbert
as Judge
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Jonathan Hale
as Dr. Gray
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Ray Montgomery
as Tim Moore
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Barbara Bates
as Gracie Anderson
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Franklin Farnum
as Juryman
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Creighton Hale
as Bailiff
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Charles Horvath
as Churchgoer
- Harry "Snub" Pollard
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Frederic Worlock
as Prosecutor
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Blayney Lewis
as Dan'l
