This whimsical fantasy comedy starred James Stewart as tippler Elwood P Dowd whose constant companion, Harvey, just happens to be a six-foot white rabbit who is invisible to everyone else.
Yet Dowd’s reliance on Harvey is quite enough to wreck the life of Elwood’s ever-patient yet socially prominent sister, and drastic action is called for.
James Stewart gives a knockout performance in this classic comic fantasy about the fine line between sanity and insanity, and Henry Koster directs this loving tribute to eccentricity and bar-room philosophy with a deft touch.
Alongside the satiric misunderstandings, character mix-ups and revitalised clichés come poignant comments about humanity’s lack of communication, which touch both the funny bone and the heart.
A 1996 remake was vastly inferior.
Elwood P Dowd
James Stewart
Veta Louise Simmons
Josephine Hull
Miss Kelly
Peggy Dow
Dr Sanderson
Charles Drake
Dr Chumley
Cecil Kellaway
Myrtle Mae
Victoria Horne
Wilson
Jesse White
Judge Gaffney
William Lynn
Lofgren
Wallace Ford
Mrs Chumley
Nana Bryant
Director
Henry Koster