Now, Voyager was made in 1942 and starred the impeccable Bette Davis and Paul Henreid. The movie is adapted from the original novel written by Olive Higgins Prouty, with a wonderful screenplay written by Casey Robinson.

The Story

Bette Davis stars in this classic early depiction of feminism and mental illness as Charlotte Vale, the daughter of a very prestigious Boston family with a controlling aristocratic mother who imposes a great deal of emotional and mental abuse upon Charlotte. As a result of this abuse Charlotte has broken down emotionally, completely losing her self-confidence.

While Charlotte wrestles with the depression and anxiety that stem from her mothers abuses, she is introduced to Dr. Jaquith a psychiatrist played by Claude Rains. He suggests that she leave the oppressive environent created by her mother and live in a sanitarium.

While in the sanitarium, Charlotte gradually becomes more independent and self-assured. So much so that she decides to take a cruise to South America before returning home.

Charlotte's new attitude allows her to display great charm, beauty and confidence. This is exactly what causes fellow passenger Jerry Durrance to take notice. Although Jerry is already married to a very jealous and dominant woman and only stays with her because of his daughter, Tina, he falls madly in love with Charlotte after they spend five days together on an island in South America as a result of a freak car accident.

They both agree to end their affair after leaving the island and Charlotte heads back to Boston. Arriving home, her entire family is in awe of her new found confidence, and her mother, in an effort to regain control over her daughter, uses guilt as a weapon in an effort to get Charlotte to marry one of the wealthiest widowers in Boston.

Charlotte refuses her mother stating "I am not in love with him", enraging her mother so much that she suffers a heart attack.

After the death of her mother, Charlotte, distraught and guilt ridden, returns to the sanitarium where she takes Jerry's daughter Tina under her wing. The two have the major commonalities of being unloved and unwanted by their mothers.

Charlotte overcomes the many obstacles of her life finding a new lease on love, happiness, and family. This would never have happened without the love of Jerry, Tina, and Dr. Jaquith.

In Conclusion

Bette Davis won a Best Actress nomination for this role, and even though she didn't win the Oscar, it proved once again that her acting abilities, and versatility have justifiably made her one of the eras biggest and most respected stars.

With a peek into early feminism, Bette Davis proves in Now, Voyager that a woman's rediscovery of herself and her independence is not only possible, it's imperative to having a good life. One of her lines, which is rated at #46 in the all time list of famous movie lines, was: "Don't lets ask for the moon......we have the stars".

Bette Davis in Now, Voyager is a definite must see for all classic movie devotees!