Invitation (1952)

A young and very happily married wife (Dorothy McGuire), who is suffering from a bad heart, doesn't know how critically ill she is. As her marriage reaches its near one year mark, she discovers that her father (Louis Calhern) "bought" her a husband (Van Johnson) and now she must face, not only her mortality, but the possible fraud of her marriage. Based on the short story R.S.V.P. by Jerome Weidman and directed by Gottfried Reinhardt (TOWN WITHOUT PITY). This MGM melodrama is a nice example of its genre. But it lacks the texture and layers that a Douglas Sirk or Vincente Minnelli would have brought to such material. It's the kind of weepie that pulls you in but so disposable that a few weeks later you have a hard time remembering the details. It provides the wonderful Dorothy McGuire with a rare meaty leading role which she handles nicely and with restraint. But it's Ruth Roman as Johnson's bitchy ex-girlfriend who steals what acting honors the film has. The lovely score is by Bronislau Kaper and its main theme became a popular standard. With Michael Chekhov, Ray Collins, Barbara Ruick and Barbara Billingsley.