The Miracle Worker

1962 Helen Keller movie

Rating: 16/20 (Jen: 13/20; Buster: 17/20)

Plot: Anne Sullivan tries to gain the trust of a blind and deaf girl named Helen Keller in order to teach her about the existence of language and the power of words.

My daughter's class did a "wax museum" project where they researched a famous person, threw together a trifold poster thing, and memorize a speech detailing the important events of the person's life. Buster got Helen Keller and wanted to watch this movie. I did not look forward to the experience, and things started off very poorly with some overacting from Inga Swenson who played Helen's mom, Helen Sr. That reaction when she discovers that her daughter is blind made me laugh out loud, and I got looks from both my wife and daughter. That wasn't the last time that I laughed at an inappropriate time. However, I really ended up liking this movie a lot.

I know I saw some version of The Miracle Worker when I was a kid, but the parts of this movie I think I remember are not all that cinematic. The scene that I should have remembered in this is an almost relentlessly lengthy scene where Anne Sullivan tries to get Helen Keller to eat her own food with a utensil and fold her napkin. That's intense stuff! I didn't expect that much action in a Helen Keller movie. There are other great scenes, too, including a few of the Helen Keller money shots you'd expect to see if you know anything about her story or have seen this play.

Both Anne Bancroft and Patty Duke as Anne Sullivan and Helen were really good, especially the latter. There wasn't a single time I didn't think that Patty Duke was actually a little blind and deaf girl, and I like how the director apparently told her to play the part in some of those more tense or loud sings as completely unleashed.