Random Harvest

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Random Harvest

1942

2h 4m

Drama

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Popcornmeter

91%

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11 Reviews

89%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

A veteran of World War I, Charles Rainier (Ronald Colman) has lost all memory of his life before the war. Left to wander, Rainier meets a showgirl, Paula (Greer Garson), with whom he falls in love. Rainier and Paula are soon happily married, but when Rainier travels out of town, a car hits him -- erasing the memories of his life with Paula, but restoring those of his life before the war. While he returns to his previous life, Paula tries to find a way to be reunited with her husband.

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David Nusair

Reel Film Reviews

Apr 20

2.5/4

...a watchable yet far-from-enthralling drama that never becomes quite as stirring or emotionally resonant as one might’ve anticipated...

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Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

08/14/2020

10/10

Boasts a deviously heart-wrenching plot, dripping with sentimentality and efficaciously tear-jerking romance, even though it was altered notably from the source material.

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Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

03/01/2008

B-

LeRoy's schmaltzy and literary romantic melodrama, about a WWI vet who suffers from amnesia, was a huge commercial hit due to Greer Garson and Ronald Colman's acting and the fact that it was released in the midst of WWII.

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Steve Crum

Video-Reviewmaster.com

02/16/2006

4/5

Dated, but still moving '40s classic with Garson and Colman.

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Michael W. Phillips, Jr.

Goatdog's Movies

04/17/2005

2.5/5

Parts of it are tender and beautiful, but other parts are overplayed, maudlin, and about as subtle as a clunk on the head or a taxi across the sternum.

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Andy Klein

Los Angeles CityBeat

02/09/2005

5/5

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Claudio C

@Claudio666 Mar 3

Beautiful and Sad Romance (12,308 - 02 Mar 2026) In Melbridge, the veteran British office Smith is in the County Asylum, since he was found in 1917 in a trench amnesic and mute. He sneaks out of the asylum and is befriended by the singer Paula. She calls him Smithy and takes him to a country village. They fall in love, rent a cottage and marry. Smithy writes to the newspaper Mercury in Liverpool as a freelancer and they have a son. He is invited for a job interview and travels to Liverpool. But he is hit by a taxi and regains his past memory, forgetting Paula and the baby. "Random Harvest" (1942) is a beautiful and sad romance directed by Mervyn LeRoy. The story of a wealthy man with amnesia forgetting his true love is nice, with great performance of Greer Garson. Hollywood did not pay attention to the age of the cast and it is strange Ronald Colman being romantic pair of Susan Peters and Greer Garson. My vote is eight. Title (Brazil): "Na Noite do Passado" ("The Night in the Pasr")

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Michelle M

@RT09009270 04/05/2025

I remember seeing Random Harvest with my mom when I was a child. I have never forgotten what an absolutely beautiful romantic love story it was. Just watched it again after 60 years and it was even more wonderful! One of the best!

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Allan H

@RT32011085 02/28/2025

I never liked Greer Garson, not for any particularly critical reason, but she has me in this one, and the climax is one of the best for studying Affect and audience.

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05/10/2022

Everyone should see this film!

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steve d

@RT35616104 07/22/2020

It still works because of its stars.

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11/17/2019

Are you kidding me? What woman in their right mind would'nt reveal the truth? Pure torture...

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Mervyn LeRoy

Director

Ronald Colman

Charles Rainier

Greer Garson

Paula Ridgeway

Philip Dorn

Dr. Jonathan Benet

Susan Peters

Kitty Chilcet

Reginald Owen

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Synopsis

A veteran of World War I, Charles Rainier (Ronald Colman) has lost all memory of his life before the war. Left to wander, Rainier meets a showgirl, Paula (Greer Garson), with whom he falls in love. Rainier and Paula are soon happily married, but when Rainier travels out of town, a car hits him -- erasing the memories of his life with Paula, but restoring those of his life before the war. While he returns to his previous life, Paula tries to find a way to be reunited with her husband.

Director: Mervyn LeRoy
Producer: Sidney Franklin
Screenwriter: Claudine West, George Froeschel, Arthur Wimperis, James Hilton
Distributor: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Production Co: Metro Goldwyn Mayer
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 17, 1942, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 21, 2016
Runtime: 2h 4m