Happy Ever After
The entire village grieves when General O'Leary, the proprietor of a hunting estate in South Ireland, dies in an accident. His nephew, Jasper O'Leary, inherits the estate and quickly earns the resentment of everyone except Serena McGluskey, who is every bit as cunning as he is unscrupulous. Under the leadership of Thady O'Heggarty, the villagers conspire to force Jasper out. They seize upon "O'Leary Night," when the ghost of the original O'Leary is said to roam the halls, to unleash widespread disorder.
Director(s)
Mario Zampi
Elaine Schreyeck
Gus Agosti
Cast & Crew
Details
Reviews
CinemaSerf
It's quite unusual to see David Niven play what amounts to the baddie, but he does it quite enjoyably here in this story of rural Irish shenanigans. When the death-defying "Gen. O'Leary" (AE Matthews) goes hunting and finally fails with the defying bit, his estate falls to great-nephew "Jasper" (Niven) who arrives determined to shake things up. No more country balls, fêtes, community functions - all of that is to go the way of the dodo. The new squire is a pompous ass who's only interested in cash! With many of the locals now facing bankruptcy, it seems that only "Serena" (Yvonne De Carlo) will give him a second look. She likes his money. He likes his money - and to spend it on her, so the pair look like a match made in heaven. With the villagers facing ruination it might just be that their only recourse is to the legendary ghost of the mansion. Might it be able to thwart the venal ambitions of their new landlord? It's a whimsical adventure this with a decent effort from the star and from De Carlo, who gel quite well together as the story trots along for an admittedly overlong ninety minutes. It's quite wittily written now and again, though also a little prone to stereotyping too, and with engaging contributions from the always reliable Barry Fitzgerald and Liam Redmond, it makes for an amiable vehicle for a charismatic star going through the motions. Not great, no, but amiable enough.