Goodbye Mr Chips DVD > Reviews > Goodbye Mr Chips.....classic

Author's product rating:   

Did you enjoy it?	Loved it
Story	Good
Characters / Performances	Outstanding
Special Effects	Standard
How does it compare to similar films?	Good

Advantages:	Classic film
Disadvantages:	old fashioned, watched it on video, couldnt find it on DVD .

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

This is a love story that begins in 1870 as a young Mr Chipping (Robert Donat won an oscar for this) who is known by friends and pupils as "chips" starts a new job at a boarding school called Brookfield.

Chips is a kind, soft spoken, shy firm but fair teacher.
Chips is on the verge of quitting very soon after he first started at Brookfield. The pupils take total advantage of him, in the end the headmaster has to come in and calm the boys down.
All his pupils eventually respect him because he is patient and has a good sense of humor.

Chips is an excellent teacher, but he has something missing from his life. He is away on holiday with his friend and fellow teacher Max, chips meets a young woman called Katherine Ellis (Greer Garson), she is very beautiful and Chips falls in love with her.

Their friendship turns into romance and eventually they get married. It is Kathy who gives him the nickname Chips. Mr Chips totally changes once she is in his life, everything about him changes and she helps to bring him out of his shy shell.

All the staff at Brookfiels are shocked at her beauty, they thought she would be very plain, just like Chips. She invites all the new boys over for tea and biscuits which became the custom every Sunday at 4 oclock. Katherine also encourages Chips to gain the boys trust and friendship by bending some of the rules.

Chips is transformed by the warmth of her love from the shy, quiet man into a kind and much-admired teacher and he is promoted to the long sought after post of housemaster.

Tragedy strikes after being together for just one year, when Kathy dies in childbirth, sadly the baby dies too. The whole school is washed over by sorrow. Chips never marrys again during his whole life. The whole school stands behind Chips....if Chips goes the school would fall apart. He carrys on teaching for along time.

The story continues with the passing of years. The Boer War, the First world War, sadly Mr Chips see 's so many of his former pupils killed in action.

As time passes, Chips holds on to methods and values he holds most dear. "Give a boy a sense of humor and sense of proportion," he tells the newest Headmaster, "and he'll stand to do anything." This same headmaster asks Chips to consider retirement, but much to the joy of both friends and pupils, Chips refuses.

He did eventually retire but was allowed to carry on living in the school grounds. He spent some of his time serving tea and biscuits to former students and masters.

Because of the wars and the lack of male leadership in the school, Mr Chips was called out of retirement and offered the post of Headmaster. With a photo of his late wife under his arm, Chips enters the headmaster's office and says " you were right my dear, I am headmaster now". He continues to be headmaster during the first world war and he teaches the boys with blackout curtains up. The end of the war in 1918 sends Chips back into retirement.

He is now in his 70's and once again he entertains the boys with tea and biscuits.

Have a tissue ready, this is a real tear jerker!

Goodbye Mr Chips.