Madam Curie (1943)

A recent reviewing of Mrs. Miniver put me in the mood to watch some more Greer Garson. The choice of Madam Curie as my Garson vehicle to view was a fortuitous one, as it to boasts a number of the stars of Miniver in its cast, including Henry Travers and Dame May Whitney. Walter Pigon is here to as Pierre Curie, which is a major plus because he and Garson have such great chemistry together, probably the equal of Hepburn and Tracy. This sentimentalized bio-pic is more earnest and straightforward about its science then you could reasonable expect to see in a mainn stream picture today. While the discovery of radium is the central event or quest of the plot, it’s the relationship between the Curie’s that make it worth viewing. The courting and marriage of socially awkward scientists has great potential for both humor and warmth, and it is expertly realized in the film. However, even thought the film is about a great scientific discovery, and a ‘great’ romance, it never feels important enough to be great itself. It’s also not a film you have to, or even feel that compelled to, pay close attention to. For about half the movie I was sorting and boxing things and still following it fine. A three out of five this one.