Adaptation of Thornton Wilder’s play is set in the small, fictional New England town of Grover’s Corner just before World War One. We get acquainted with this special place via our guide Mr. Morgan (Craven). The focus is on two neighboring families, the Gibbs’s (Mitchell and Bainter) and the Webb’s (Kibbee and Bondi). The Webb’s daughter Emily (Scott) earns A’s in high school, leading classmate George Gibbs (Holden) to request some tutoring. A sweet, chaste romance develops. As simple and happy as this life seems to be, time inevitably brings change.

Wilder won a Pulitzer for his 1938 play, which has been revived frequently over the years. The film, however, was not accorded the same reverence, falling into the public domain with only inferior prints available on DVD. The Blu-ray edition from ClassicFlix lovingly restores this forgotten classic. The whole cast shines, with Scott and Craven recreating their Broadway roles. Brilliant production design from William Cameron Menzies further elevates this nostalgic, bittersweet film. On release, it earned six Oscar nominations, including best picture and best original score for Aaron Copland. To experience what simpler times were like back in the day, visit “Our Town.”