Perfect Strangers (1945 film)
| Perfect Strangers | |
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A poster with the film's US title: Vacation from Marriage
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| Directed by | Alexander Korda |
| Produced by | Alexander Korda |
| Screenplay by |
Clemence Dane Anthony Pelissier |
| Story by | Clemence Dane |
| Starring |
Robert Donat Deborah Kerr |
| Music by | Clifton Parker |
| Cinematography | Georges Périnal |
| Edited by | Edward B. Jarvis |
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Production
company |
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| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
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Release date
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Running time
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102 minutes (UK) 93 minutes (US) |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Perfect Strangers (United States title: Vacation from Marriage), is a 1945 British drama film made by London Films. It stars Robert Donat and Deborah Kerr as a married couple whose relationship is shaken by their service in the Second World War. The supporting cast includes Glynis Johns, Ann Todd and Roland Culver. It was produced and directed by Alexander Korda from a screenplay by Clemence Dane and Anthony Pelissier based on a story by Clemence Dane. Dane won the Academy Award for Best Story. The music score was by Clifton Parker and the cinematography by Georges Périnal.
Robert and Cathy Wilson (Robert Donat and Deborah Kerr) are a timid married couple in 1940 London. He is a bookkeeper, she a bored housewife. However, their tedium-filled lives are drastically changed by the war. He enlists in the Royal Navy, while she (against his wishes) joins the Wrens. During the three years the couple are apart, they are transformed, each becoming much more self-confident.
Cathy's assertive new friend, Dizzy Clayton (Glynis Johns), helps her break out of her shell. She begins going out with Dizzy's cousin, naval architect Richard (Roland Culver), who falls in love with her. However, she remains faithful (if unenthusiastically) to her husband.
Meanwhile, Robert toughens up on sea duty and in time becomes a petty officer. His hands are badly burned when his ship is sunk, but he stoically rows in the lifeboat for five days without complaint. He recuperates in a hospital, tended by Elena (Ann Todd), a beautiful nurse. On the last night of his stay, he asks her out to dinner. He is attracted to her, but she informs him that she lost her beloved husband only six months earlier, kisses him, and leaves.
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