Plot
In British India, two officers locate Mary Lennox, a recently orphaned girl, whose parents have died during the cholera epidemic. She boards a ship to Yorkshire, England to stay with her widowed uncle Archibald Craven at the Misselthwaite Manor. Mrs. Medlock, Craven's housekeeper, escorts her to the mansion and informs Mary that her uncle will not be seeing her. Mary hears loud crying outside her room, but Mrs. Medlock forbids her from lurking around the manor. When Mary questions her orders, Mrs. Medlock locks her inside her room.
The next morning, Mary meets Martha Sowerby, a servant maid, who refuses to obey Mary's orders and instead responds with incessant laughter. Outside, Mary meets Martha's young brother Dickon, who has befriended a raven. He tells Mary about a secret garden locked inside a vine-covered wall, to which Craven has buried the key. Later that night, Mary meets her uncle, who is prepared to leave for London. Mary inquires her uncle about a painting, to which Craven responds the portrait was his wife, who died ten years ago.
The next day, Mary meets Ben Weatherstaff, a gardener, and learns the garden has kept locked for the same ten years. Shortly after, the raven unearths the buried key and Mary hides it inside her pocket. One night, Mary locates the bedroom of Colin Craven, Archibald's son and Mary's cousin, who has been an sickly invalid his entire life. Colin confesses he throws tantrums and states his father barely sees him in fear that Colin will die soon. Mary locates the same painting of Craven's wife, to which Colin states his mother died after a tree branch fell on her.
A day later, Mary and Dickon unlock the entrance into the garden behind the hedges. Inside, they find the garden has become neglected and locate the branch, which accidentally killed Craven's wife. Back inside the mansion, Colin's mood improves when Mary calms him down and during the next day, she brings nearby animals inside his bedroom. Mary then introduces Colin to Dickon, and overnight, she shares stories with Colin about the secret garden as he falls asleep.
Colin's physician Doctor Fortescue believes Colin is merely afraid, and only needs fresh air and new friends. He also suggests that the irons placed on his legs to be removed. Mary and Dickon stroll Colin in a wheelchair to the secret garden, which has flourished with new flowers. Meanwhile, Craven, who has returned from London, resents Fortescue for his medical report. Fortescue then accuses Craven of wallowing in grief, which in turn is affecting Colin's physical health.
Ben Weatherstaff locates the children inside the garden and demands they leave. Overnight, Craven enters Colin's bedroom that he plans to sell the estate and move to Italy, which upsets Colin. The next morning, Craven meets with his attorney and stipulates the garden be destroyed. However, he suddenly has a change of heart and walks towards the garden. Inside, Colin rises from his wheelchair and walks towards his father. The two embrace, and Craven decides not to sell the estate.
Reception
Box office
According to MGM records, The Secret Garden earned $610,000 in the US and Canada and $383,000 overseas, resulting in a loss of $848,000. [1]
Critical reaction
Variety described The Secret Garden as "a highly unusual picture" that "deserves a gold star on that basis, at least. But the vaguely allegorical story is confused in appeal and the result is a top-quality production stand-point that will be spotty at the [box office]." [6] Harrison's Reports wrote: "Despite its many good touches, however, the picture is handicapped by a story that is too involved and too hazy in its psychological overtones, and by too much conversation, slowing up the action." [7]
Margarita Landazuri, in an article for Turner Classic Movies (TCM), wrote that at the time of release, many critics "felt, as did the Variety critic, that 'the allegorical and psychological implications that have been carried over from Frances Hodgson Burnett's book are clearly for the grown-up trade. Not only that, but a good bit of the production is designed to create eerie terror that may discourage parents from letting moppets see the pic.' In this era when even the youngest 'moppets' take Harry Potter in stride, however, such criticism seems quaint, and The Secret Garden seems ahead of its time". [2]
Among retrospective reviews, Leonard Maltin, in his Classic Movie Guide, gave the film three out of four stars, stating it is a "vividly atmospheric film with some color sequences." [8]
