Back to Golden Days

This week on "Film Friday", I bring one of the most romantic films of all time and a personal favorite of mine. It's a proper tearjerker this one. Theatrical release poster Directed by Mervyn LeRoy , Random Harvest tells the story of Charles Rainier (Ronald Colman), a British officer confined to an asylum in the English countryside under the name of "John Smith", following a gas attack in the trenches during the First World War, which left him shell shocked and amnesiac. With the jubilation of Armistice Day, the asylum is left unguarded and he is able to escape. When he arrives in town, he meets a vivacious showgirl called Paula Ridgeway (Greer Garson), who nicknames him "Smithy" and nurses him back to health. The two soon fall in love and marry, settling in a cozy little cottage in the country where they live in blissful happiness for a few years. On a business trip to Liverpool, Smithy is hit by a taxicab and his early memory is re...