Nuclear Scientist Peter Standish (Tyrone Power) expresses his displeasure with the modern world to his co-worker (Michael Rennie), who tries to pry Standish away from his home and weird thoughts of time travel. Soon after, a lightning strike sends Standish back in time to 1784 and into the body of his ancestor. There he meets foppish Tom Pettigrew (Dennis Price), his ancestor’s fiancée Kate Pettigrew, and her sister Helen (Ann Blyth), with whom he falls in love. His mentioning of future events and near constant use of unusual vocabulary turn many people against him, and his plan to add future technology in the form of “inventions” make him stand out even more.
Titled The House in the Square in England, this is a remake of 1933’s Berkeley Square, which was a version of a stage play. In the ’33 version, Standish, portrayed by Leslie Howard, seemed possessed by the haunted house. In this one the explanation for Standish’s weird behavior and his belief in time travel is simply that he’s unhappy with the modern atomic world. It didn’t work well in the first film, and it’s ridiculous this time.
There’s no explanation in either version for why Standish is such an idiot, and keeps bringing up future events. That sort of silliness can work in a comedy, but I’ll Never Forget You is supposed to be taken seriously (very seriously).
Standish’s scientific background is used to explain him dabbling in inventions, making this a semi-pulp science fiction film of the worst sort. Wedging science fiction elements into the supernatural story is awkward and would need a more competent hand than writer Ranald MacDougal’s. This is a tragic gothic love story, or at least it should be.
Having watched The Wizard of Oz the filmmakers decided to ape its gimmick of having the normal world in B&W and the past in Technicolor (a strangely muted Technicolor which reminds me of the 2-strip type). Unlike The Wizard of Oz, it doesn’t create a fantasy reality nor do anything significant. It would have worked better thematically had the modern sections been the ones in color since the past is shown to be grubby and disheartening.
I suppose nothing could have saved I’ll Never Forget You, though quality acting would have helped. Rennie is solid, and Price is amusing as he hams it up, but the film doesn’t play to Power’s strengths and to whatever strength Blyth may have had. They seem out of place, though it is hard to blame them as I can’t imagine anyone being comfortable in the roles as written. While the whole film is lacking, the ending, altered from the play and earlier version, is the capper, mitigating the tragic elements, which instead makes it uncomfortable. I’m not sure anyone involved knew what kind of movie they were making. The actors are too stiff for a love story. The “science” is too mechanical and heavy for a gothic fantasy. And the tone is grumpy instead of longing. I’m not a big fan of the Leslie Howard’s version, but it knew what it was, and if you want to watch this story, watch that one.