Tom Brown's Schooldays (1951)

6.9 ? Apr 17, 1951 1h 33m

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Overview

When Tom Brown arrives at Rugby boarding school, he’s mercilessly tormented by the school’s evil bully Flashman. With the help of his friend East, plucky Brown devises a plan to get back at Flashman; in the meantime, he’s asked to look out for a timid new student, whose life is accidentally put in peril during a school race.

Overview

Genres

Drama

Release Date

April 17, 1951

Rating

6.9 /10

Runtime

1h 33m

John Howard Davies

Tom Brown

Robert Newton

Thomas Arnold

James Hayter

Old Thomas

John Charlesworth

East

John Forrest

Flashman

Michael Hordern

Wilkes

Max Bygraves

Coach Guard

Francis de Wolff

Squire Brown

Amy Veness

Mrs. Wixie

Brian Worth

Judd

Rachel Gurney

Mrs. Arthur

Michael Brennan

Black Bart

Michael Ward

Master

Neil North

Diggs

Glyn Dearman

Arthur

Diana Wynyard

Mrs. Arnold

Hermione Baddeley

Sally Harrowell

Kathleen Byron

Mrs. Brown

CinemaSerf

7.0/10

Jan 01, 2023

John Howard Davies - probably most famous for his portrayal of orphan "Oliver Twist" in David Lean's classic - is a little too weedy, for me, as the title character in this adaptation of Thomas Hughes' story about a young boy sent to the prestigious Rugby School in the 1830's where he encounters bullies; brutality and ultimately kindness. Robert Newton turns in a great performance as "Dr. Arnold" who believes that the somewhat cruel educational practices are of the past, and so he and "Tom Brown" try to improve things. This film is not so faithful to the book; but uses the two lead performances, as well as a convincing effort from John Forrest as his nemesis "Flashman", to convey much of it's sentiment. I probably preferred the 1940 version, but there's not much in it.

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