This charming comic fantasy went through three leading men and two scripts before reaching the screen under Rene Clair's astute direction. Intrigued by Clair's work on such classics as Le Million and A Nous la Liberte (both 1931), British producer Alexander Korda hired him to work on a picture about Scotland. His source was the popular short story "Sir Tristram Goes West" by Eric Keown, about the ghost of a coward forced to haunt his family castle until one of his ancestors becomes a hero. At first they shaped the material for Charles Laughton, but as Clair and American playwright Robert E. Sherwood took the story in a more romantic direction, they tried to hire Laurence Olivier. With him unavailable, they had the good fortune to sign Robert Donat to play a double role as the ghost of Murdoch Glourie and his descendant, Donald Glourie, both in love with the daughter (Jean Parker) of American magnate Eugene Pallette. When Pallette buys the castle and transports it to his home in Florida, both Glouries go with him, creating some confusion for Parker, who can't tell which one she's in love with. The film was a huge hit, but Clair's last for Korda, who offended the director by reshooting some scenes.

By Frank Miller