Nevertheless, she persisted.
A sense that fighting back comes with a cost, but surrendering has an even steeper price.
William Churchill famously claimedMrs.
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For all his fury and boasts, hes no match for this valiant housewife.
(In tribute, a similar plotline was lifted for a 2010 episode ofDownton Abbey.)
Miniverlures the audience into these lighthearted plotlines only to shatter them.
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Thats why its so effective.
They requisitioned the whole character.
The original novel was not a war book.
Everett Collection
Despite the liberties the film took with her story, Struther did not criticize it.
Its antiwar message was too important, her granddaughter says.
She made certain to tell her children and family they were never to criticize it, Maxtone Graham says.
She could see the incredible effect it was having.
And she thought it was doing her bit of war work, which she took very seriously.
Thats the scene Louis B. Mayer famously wanted to soften, and Wyler stood his ground, Harris says.
Dec. 7, 1941 tipped the argument in Wylers favor.
With the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor, America was no longer neutral.
It was at war on two fronts.
There was no more concern about being unfair to Germany.
Hes not going to be a friendly little pilot but one of Goerings monsters.
For half the movie, we see the community in a state of normalcy and comfort.
Mrs. Minivers son, Vin (played by Richard Ney, who scandal!
And theyrereallyscared about their kids, Harris says.
You feel trapped in there with them.
By the movies end, some have given their lives, but not necessarily the ones we expect.
Thats another message of the film: There are no sidelines, no safe zones.
Theres no hiding, only fighting back.
Its still all about the importance of doing ones little bit, Maxtone Graham says.
In other words,Mrs.
