Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969). A Review

GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS (1969)

Peter O'Toole sings!

Peter O'Toole sings?

I think Peter O'Toole bursting out in song is a strange sight. Goodbye, Mr. Chips will not convince people that O'Toole could carry a tune. However, the tunes themselves are quite lovely and the overall film is a delight that has been unfairly ignored and that hopefully will find a renaissance among the public.

For decades, Mr. Arthur Chipping (O'Toole) has worked formally, diligently and strictly at Brookfield School for Boys. His no-nonsense, by the book manner do not make him a student favorite, but as he is within the rules there is nothing the boys can do about "Ditchy" (short for "dishwater, dull as"). He takes his school break to visit a former student, Lord Longbridge (Michael Culver). Johnny Longbridge is besotted by showgirl Katherine Bridges (Petula Clark), a chanteuse who specializes in soubrette roles and starring in the hit West End production Flossie from Fulham.

Chipping, who genuinely has no idea what a "hit" show entails or what a "hit" even means is not enchanted by this showgirl. Katherine, for her part, finds "Mr. Chips" delightful if a bit square. A chance reunion in Pompeii between Chipping and Katherine when both go there (he on holiday, she to escape her faltering career) leads them to spend the day together. That day, seeing how And the Sky Smiled at her, Katherine falls in love with Mr. Chipping. He at first is shocked, almost appalled at the idea. 

Despite that, he slowly starts seeing Katherine socially and eventually falls in love with her as well. A quick marriage between the owl and the pussycat shocks everyone at Brookfield, her bubbly personality a counter to his staid manner. She eventually becomes a beloved schoolmaster's wife, and he lightens up his formerly stern and serious manner. Her past brings wealthy alumni to threaten withholding funds for a playing field, but Katherine is an old pro at handling arrogant wealthy men. As they go through life together, things look blissful until the Second World War comes. Tragedy and loss follow, but dear Mr. Chipping continues seeing to the care of his generations of boys. 

I am at a loss to understand why Goodbye, Mr. Chips could be disliked. I could see reasons to find fault in it, which I will go into. However, as I watched Goodbye, Mr. Chips, I was as utterly charmed by it as Arthur Chipping was charmed by Katherine Brisket (Katherine Bridges' original name).  

Chief among reasons to potentially dislike Goodbye, Mr. Chips is Peter O'Toole in the singing department. Attempting a variation of Rex Harrison's "talking-on-pitch" from My Fair Lady, O'Toole does Harrison one better by actually trying to sing. His voice is a bit thin to carry the songs he performs: Where Did My Childhood Go? and What a Lot of Flowers. The songs in and of themselves are fine, both wistful and romantic. It is O'Toole's efforts to sing them that comes across as weak. It is not terrible, but one has to be a bit forgiving to hear Peter O'Toole try to sing them.

The Leslie Bricusse songs are lovely, with almost all of them being lush and romantic. That does have a bit of a negative effect in that they do close to sounding similar. Out of the entire songbook, I think only London is London and Schooldays are upbeat. The rest are solid but if not slow at least more sedate. However, that does not take away from the joy they have. If Goodbye, Mr. Chips is rediscovered, I figure such songs as Fill the World with Love will become anthems of optimism.

Fortunately, Peter O'Toole does better at acting than in singing, rightfully earning his fourth out of eventually eight Oscar nominations for his performance. His Arthur Chipping is pitch-perfect (no pun intended). He is delightful and perfect in Chipping's tight, restrictive manner. He is not naive or unaware of the world. Instead, he is a man aware of himself, not bending his principles for anyone or anything. He knows himself and stays true to himself, even if he does not know what the actual meaning of "hit" means. Chipping is not opposed to women or romance, just in romance with a woman whom he thinks is a bit bonkers. "Musical comedy actresses can't be all that normal, with all that dressing up and skipping about", he tells his best friend Max Staefel (Michael Bryant). 

Despite that, he does fall in love with quirky free spirit Katherine. Petula Clark did not have a major acting career after Goodbye, Mr. Chips. While O'Toole was an actor who gave singing a try, Clark is a singer who gave acting a try. I think Clark has nothing to be ashamed of in Goodbye, Mr. Chips. She is charming, winning and enchanting as Katherine, this somewhat flighty figure who finds her dear Mr. Chips fun, funny and the man for her. Clark carries the bulk of the songbook, and she does a magnificent job with the music.

Walk Through the World and You and I should be simply better known. They are lovely, romantic, yearning and deeply moving. I found myself falling in love with Katherine and Petula as we hear her voiceover rendition of Walk Through the World. As a singer, Petula Clark did a knockout job. As an actress, she more than held her own against a titan like Peter O'Toole in Goodbye, Mr. Chips. She plays the part correctly and well: this woman of the world who is quirky, fun but also longs for stability and respectability, the two qualities that Arthur Chipping holds in spades. Her rendition of London is London is fun and jolly, making her reprise at the end of the film all the more moving. 

While it is a small role, Sian Phillips (O'Toole's wife at the time) steals every scene she is in as Ursula Mossbank, Katherine's very eccentric theatrical friend. Exaggerated without being too silly, Phillips' Ursula is a delightfully quirky figure, genuinely unaware of what is going on around her. Ursula's insistence that Mr. Chipping is an actor she worked with who did a great drunk in the third act is a nice running gag. It may be a bit part, but it is a lot of fun to watch.

Goodbye, Mr. Chips is to my mind an homage to the positive aspects of education. It also is a sweet love story of two totally opposite people who find their perfect mate in each other. It is a true love that only death can separate. I was won over by the songs, the performances from Clark and O'Toole, and the sincerity in Goodbye, Mr. Chips. The film is hampered, again, by some of the songs sounding similar. On the whole, however, Goodbye, Mr. Chips is a delight from start to finish that I hope is rediscovered and reevaluated. I'd be happy to Walk Through the World with this film. 

DECISION: A-