Friendly Persuasion (1956)

I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

Blistering performances.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

"Friendly Persuasion" was released in 1956, a long time ago. But the movie is a timeless gem and I had the good fortune to watch it recently. Like the lives of real rural Quakers in the 1860s, the lives of the Birdwell's in the movie don't tell a conventional story with a beginning, middle and end. Instead, the movie links together a series of mostly humorous episodes, each of which could be the basis of a self-contained short story: The Birdwell's, father, mother, eligible daughter, teenage son and younger son attend a fair with unexpected consequences. Unknown to his wife, Jess buys a small organ. Its delivery ignites a dispute. Jess and his teenage son, Josh, make a two- week trip selling orchard stock to farmers. They stop at the home of a widow with three "man hungry" daughters who shower Josh with unwanted attention. The Civil War is remote until a plundering rebel patrol suddenly appears at their doorstep. Josh anguishes over killing. All of the actors and actresses turn in fine performances, but Gary Cooper shines. His expressive face can speak volumes without a single spoken word.

The plot is a good one, even if the storyline unfolds at a leisurely pace. Still it's a tribute to the movie makers that the interest level is kept up for over two-hours, mainly with a judicious use of amusement, charm, and drama. In short, can the Birdwell family, steeped in Quaker religious beliefs, resist the worldly temptations that keep coming their way, especially when Confederate raiders plunder the area. After all, it's hard holding onto non-violence when everything dear is threatened with destruction. But remember, this is Hollywood where rough edges tend to get finessed in crowd-pleasing fashion. And that's what happens here, though the compromises are rendered so smoothly, it's hard to notice.Hard to think of anyone more suited to the role of upright father than Gary Cooper. Every pore of his stature oozes rectitude. Thus we're sure that whatever he does will be morally correct. Same for the sweetly insistent Dorothy Mc Guire as mother Birdwell. However, Tony Perkins is Tony Perkins, twitches and all. Still, he's well suited to a conflicted young man, torn between what other young men are doing and the family's strict precepts. It was also astute to cast the rather plain Phyllis Love as the daughter instead of someone more glamorous. She and the wonderfully impish little Eyer make persuasive siblings. All in all, the movie is Hollywood entertainment at its shrewdest, such that it's hard to notice the moral and religious complexities that have been so cleverly finessed.

Gary Cooper was a quintessential male American Actor who reached the heights of movie stardom.His career deserves review as Cooper dead for nearly 50 years is sadly overlooked these days. Cooper's body of work Meet John Doe, Sargeant York, Mr. Deeds, High Noon, et al made Gary Cooper along with Clark Gable the great American Leading Man of his era. William Wyler was the greatest director of his era: Jezebel, The Little Foxes, Wuthering Heights, The Letter, Mrs. Miniver, The Best Years Of Our Lives, The Heiress, Ben Hur, Funny Girl, and this movie Friendly Persuasion. Bette Davis deemed Wyler the Great Love Of Her Life and Her Greatest Director: The Little Foxes, Jezebel and The LetterFriendly Persuasion is a beautiful film with a great co starring role for Dorothy McGuire.One of my favorite movies of all time. Thou Swell! Friendly Persuasion was a movie distributed by Allied Artists, a small studio, now defunct, and I am wondering if this film is on DVD? It is one of Gary Cooper's finest efforts as well as a signature film of William Wyler's. Mr. Wyler was a great Director known for many re takes of a scene, frustrating many of the great stars who worked for Wyler: Bette Davis, Olivia DeHavilland, Frederic March, Greer Garson, Laurence Olivier, Merle Oberon, Jennifer Jones, Audrey Hepburn, Shirley MacLaine. When De Havilland, a great actress, challenged Wyler on the amount of retakes, asked of Wyler, what do you want, Wyler replied " I Want it Better" I wonder how Gary Cooper so great an Actor he made his work seem effortless took to the many takes Wyler demanded in his pictures?

Spare me some of these critics - read 'em blue eyes vs. brown eyes; Cooper disliked the film/he liked it but not the way he looked in it; Perkins did not like McGuire/he did like McGuire. The most ridiculous claim was from the right wingers flapping their wings. Speaking of that, it should be mentioned that Samantha the goose was one helluva scene stealer. Four honks.I thought the movie was a beaut. I live in an area that was an early Quaker settlement, and there are still two active Friends churches. Needless to say the 'thou' and 'thee' are out of fashion, but the warmth remains.My only puzzlement is that the family, whose house still stands and is a tourist attraction were, like all Quakers, anti-slavery, but the family did own four slaves.Back to the movie. Cooper, the fightin' hero of "Sgt. York," does a complete turnaround as a pacifist poppa, and he does so wonderfully, telling his story not only by his words, but by his facial expressions.Perkins was perk-fect as the son of Cooper and McGuire. I wonder what Coop and Perk talked about between takes - hopefully not sexual preferences."Friendly Persuasion" told its story quite well, and is particularly enjoyable if you just watch and enjoy, instead of watching for things gone wrong. That is very un-friendly.