Harvey (1950)
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An eccentric man's life is upended when his sister attempts to commit him to a sanatorium for his friendship with an invisible rabbit.
The story
Elwood P. Dowd is an eccentric man who claims to be best friends with Harvey, a púca—a benign but mischievous invisible rabbit from Celtic mythology. While Elwood's friends have accepted Harvey's existence, his older sister Veta and niece Myrtle Mae view the obsession as a sign of mental instability. After Elwood ruins a social gathering, Veta attempts to have him committed to a local sanatorium. However, a series of comedic misunderstandings occurs when Veta's own occasional sightings of Harvey lead a psychiatrist to mistake her for the patient, resulting in Veta being locked up while Elwood is released.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Elwood P. Dowd lives with his sister Veta and niece Myrtle Mae, spending his time socializing with his invisible friend, Harvey, a púca. When Veta tries to commit Elwood to a sanatorium, she admits to seeing Harvey herself, causing the psychiatrist, Dr. Sanderson, to lock her up instead. The head of the sanatorium, Dr. Chumley, realizes the mistake and tracks Elwood to his favorite bar. After a series of interactions where Elwood encourages the staff to dance and shares his history with Harvey, Wilson (an orderly) calls the police, and Elwood is returned to the sanatorium. Chumley, now convinced Harvey is real after an encounter with the invisible rabbit, seeks to use Harvey's powers to take him on a fantasy trip. Veta attempts to inject Elwood with a serum to stop his visions, but a taxi driver warns her that the serum turns people into 'stinkers.' Veta halts the procedure, realizing Harvey intervened to save her brother. Finally, Harvey decides to take Chumley on his trip, but returns to Elwood, allowing the man to walk into the sunrise with his sister and niece.
- First release year
- 1950
- Runtime (minutes)
- 104
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Henry Koster
- Writers
- Mary Chase · screenplay; Oscar Brodney · screenplay; Myles Connolly · screenplay (uncredited)
- Cast and characters
- James Stewart · Elwood P. Dowd; Josephine Hull · Veta; Charles Drake · Dr. Sanderson; Cecil Kellaway · Dr. Chumley; Jesse White · Wilson; Victoria Horne · Myrtle Mae; Wallace Ford · Judge Gaffney; Peggy Dow · taxi driver
- Genres
- fantasy; comedy; drama
- Themes
- friendship; mental health; imagination
- Tone and mood
- whimsical; lighthearted; droll
- Premise and plot tags
- fantasy; comedy; drama; invisible friend
- Source material / true-story basis
- 1944 play by Mary Chase
- Reception
- Reviews from critics were mostly positive, praising the screenplay, the direction, and the performances of James Stewart and Josephine Hull. TV Guide gave it five out of five stars.
- Awards and nominations
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Movie Quotes · Elwood P. Dowd: "Well, I've wrestled with reality for thirty five years, Doctor, and I’m happy to state I finally won out over it." · 2005 · Nominated
- Production trivia
- James Stewart took a percentage of the profits and earned an estimated $200,000.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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