Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #13478 in VHS
• Released on: 1995-02-24
• Rating: G (General Audience)
• Formats: Color, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of tapes: 1
• Running time: 155 minutes

Amazon.com
Robert Donat won an Oscar for his portrayal of the humble British don in the 1939 film Goodbye, Mr. Chips--and Peter O'Toole was nominated for his version of the role in this lackluster musical (he, along with Dustin Hoffman and Jon Voight of Midnight Cowboy, lost to John Wayne in True Grit). O'Toole is affecting as the shy English schoolteacher at a private boys' school who is brought out of his shell by the love of a good woman, then goes on to become a teaching legend after her tragic death. But the idea of turning this touching tale into a musical (with totally forgettable songs by John Williams and Leslie Bricusse) was almost as wrong-headed as having O'Toole do his own singing--or as casting singer Petula Clark as his wife. --Marshall Fine

Customer Reviews

A film classic!
Peter O'Toole and Petula Clark shine in this vastly underrated 1969 musical adaptation of James Hilton's classic novel. Beautifully directed by Herbert Ross, this film deserves to be restored to its 70MM / 6 track stereophonic glory and released in theaters and on widescreen DVD.

This is a heart-warming film for the entire family. Some would argue the acting isn't great, O'Toole can't sing and Robert Donat was better in the 1939 original. They miss the point. This film has a soul. It has grace, charm, warmth, music and is in a class of its own. I didn't expect to like this film and its songs -- but I do. Leslie Bricusse and John Williams won the Oscar for Best Music, Score of a Musical Picture (Original or Adaptation) and picked up the Golden Globe as well. O'Toole was nominated for, but did not win, the Oscar that year. However he did win the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture Actor - Musical/Comedy and the NBR Best Actor Award for this film. And Petula Clark sings beautifully!

Please, whoever holds the film rights (MGM or Warner), give us O'Toole and Clark in this wonderful, heart-warming film, both on DVD and CD. Delightful film. Highly recommended!

January 27, 2009 UPDATE:
See: ASIN: B00005JO3W. The restored film was released on DVD in its original widescreen format and 5.1 surround sound. Yes!

"Chips" is glorious!
"Goodbye, Mr. Chips" was a huge surprise to me when I first saw it in 1969. I had read the reviews (but most critics panned musicals no matter how much they really enjoyed them). I hadn't read anything that credited the tremendous quality lavished on every component of the film. Peter O'Toole, whose performance was singled out by most critics, is startlingly wonderful as the shy, yet intensely interesting Mr. Chippings. Petula Clark is totally luminous as Katherine. It was a wonderful follow-up role to her stunning debut in "Finian's Rainbow". We are most unfortunate that we never got more of her musical talents on film.

The music is stunning. You just don't hear music arranged/orchestrated like this any more. Most of the lyrics are simplistic, and often quite funny, but I think they all are endearing and enduring. I have friends who love this film as much as I. Whenever one of us is ready for another look (via the widescreen MGM laserdisc...not YET available on DVD, drat it!) we usually let the others know by quoting the lyrics to "London is London" (can there be any doubt about it?).

This film stands up much better than most film musicals of the era. For sheer entertainment value and an emotional wallop, it's nearly in a class by itself. O'Toole's then-wife, Sian Phillips, has one of the most delicious turns in film musical history as a man-mad (and man-eating) vamp.

Anyone who loves musicals will find this among the best they've ever seen.

John Williams adapted and conducted the score. Songs were written by Leslie Bricusse. Williams' adaptation efforts were to take Bricusse's songs and create an underscore that seamlessly blended with the songs and action on the film. He accomplished this with a brilliance we have since become accustomed to. For his magnificent efforts, Williams was nominated for the 1969 Best Scoring (adaptation) Oscar but did NOT win (Lennie Hayton and Lionel Newman won for "Hello, Dolly!"

This Chips Needs to Be on DVD!!
With all the films going on DVD, there is no reason why this musical version of "Goodbye, Mr. Chips" should be released immediately. There has never been a more sensitive, completely vulnerable performance than that of Peter O'Toole--with a devastating long close-up shot as he says goodbye to his school as he retires. And, I'm sorry, but Petula Clark has just the right theatricality for her role as a West End musical comedy star. Her performance rings much truer than Julie Andrews pale rendering of Gertrude Lawrence in "Star." Finally there's the score which is the epitome of a movie musical score, with "Walk Through the World With Me", "You and I", "What a Bunch of Flowers" and "London" as great examples of cinematic musical numbers. There's even an added treat in the comic turn of Siann Phillips as Tallulah Bankhead wanna be Ursula. How many five star reviews does it take to get MGM to put this "Goodbye, Mr. Chips" on DVD?