Film Forum

U.K., 1935
Directed by René Clair
Based on Sir Tristram Goes West by Eric Keown
With Robert Donat, Jean Parker, Eugene Pallette
Cinematography by Harold Rosson
Approx. 95 min. 35mm. 

An old-world ghost gets a taste of new-world values in this sly supernatural satire. When an ancient Scottish castle is taken down and moved to Florida to be rebuilt brick by brick, the new American owners discover that the kilt-sporting eighteenth-century spirit (Robert Donat) who haunts it has made the trip as well. French fantasist René Clair brings his customary charm and invention to this sparkling tale of culture clash from beyond the grave. Clair’s English-language debut.

35mm print courtesy the British Film Institute.

Presented with support from the Ada Katz Fund for Literature in Film

Reviews

“THE GHOST GOES WEST is the first important film of the new year, and a joyous one. It is the cream of an ebullient jest.”
– Andre Sennwald, The New York Times

“A deft and richly amusing jest about a ghost and his living double.”
– Meyer Levin, Esquire

“Shows that Clair still has full rein on his sense of humor and one of the screen’s best from an artistic and intelligent standpoint.”
– Variety