Imagine going through life feeling that you are ugly and unattractive, but one day you look into a mirror which shockingly reveals that have been transformed into an attractive human being through some fantastic miracle. That is the story of the 1945 classic film, The Enchanted Cottage.
From Warner Archives PR: “A homely maid and a scarred ex-GI meet at the cottage where she works and where he was to spend his honeymoon prior to his accident. The two develop a bond and agree to marry, more out of loneliness than love. The romantic spirit of the cottage, however, overtakes them and they undergo a miraculous transformation.”
The Enchanted Cottage is a beautiful romantic drama, chock full of atmosphere, great acting, story and direction. It dives deep into the supernatural with the two main characters Dorothy McGuire (Gentleman’s Agreement, Trial) in the role of the homely maid Laura Pennington and Robert Young (Strange Interlude, The Mortal Storm) as Oliver Bradford whose face is scarred, and his body is wrecked due to an accident while at war during the Battle of Java. Oliver was once engaged to Beatrice Alexander (Hilary Brooke, Strange Impersonation, Lost Continent) and is unceremoniously dumped because of his injuries and facial scars. Because Laura and Oliver are so lonely they decide to wed. Not really the best reason to get married but for them they had nothing more to lose! After they are married suddenly, they appear to have been transformed to an attractive couple when they look in a mirror and at each other. Nobody else but the couple sees this transformation, which obviously they are both happy about. Screen legend Herbert Marshall (Foreign Correspondent, The Letter) is blind man Major John Hillgrove who supports the notion that Oliver and Laura have miraculously been transformed. And when Oliver’s parents pay a visit, it’s up to Hillgrove to convince them that they have transformed into an attractive couple or the fantasy world they live in will be shattered.
John Cromwell’s direction for this movie is fluid and acting in this movie is top-notch. Dorothy McGuire is perfect as Laura Pennington and is quite credible in her part as the homely maid. It is a magnificent performance. This is one of my favorite films with Robert Young as man who has trouble coming to grips to how he looks after the accident. Herbert Marshall was perfect casting as John Hargrove. Mildred Natwick (The Trouble with Harry, The Quiet Man) as Mrs. Abigail Minnett, a widowed homeowner who hires Laura to be a caretaker is also tremendous in her role.
The Warner Archive Collection has given this picture a Blu-ray release. Per their press release it is a “New 2025 1080p HD Master from 4K Scans of the original nitrate camera negative!” The picture quality for this Blu-ray is up to Warner’s usual standards of excellence with dark black levels, clear whites and a balanced greyscale. This is without question a big improvement over the DVD release from several years ago. The higher contrast helps in showing more details to the characters and their surroundings. The cinematography by Ted Tetzlaff looks better than ever. Film grain is present, and outside of a couple of speckles, the image is clean and looks wonderful!
The English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono for this Blu-ray boats audio that is sharp and crystal clear with easy-to-follow dialogue. The various sounds in the film, be it a phone ring or a door knocking as well as the Oscar nominated musical scores by Roy Webb are all clear without anything being overly aggressive. Around the middle of the picture there are some minor hissing sounds, but nothing to really ruin the listening experience. Outside of that, the audio quality is perfectly fine with no other hissing sounds, crackles or pops. English SDH subtitles are offered for this release.
Bonus features include an audio-only Lux Radio Theater 9/3/45 broadcast and General Electric Theater 9/24/53 broadcast, and the original theatrical trailer. It’s a little something and should be of interest.
The Warner Archive Collection has once again given another classic title a beautiful Blu-ray release that I can highly recommend to fans of this magical picture!
The Enchanted Cottage
Director – John Cromwell
Cast- Robert Young, Dorothy McGuire, Herbert Marshall
Country of Origin-USA
Distributor – Warner Archive/ Warner Home Video
Number of Discs –1
Reviewed by – David Steigman
Date- 6/25/2025