It was about a year ago that I saw most of this movie on AMC. I was very much taken by it. Recently, I have been searching and searching for the title. Using keywords like "epidemic", "polio", "infantile paralysis", and "The Man Who" in my searches were NOT successful. It was a pure fluke that trying to remember the title prompted me to look for "Remember" in the title. Yay! I am not certain just how close to a true story this is because I never bothered to look up the main character's name to check out the real person. But with an old 1938 movie, I am inclined to believe it is a true story because frankly, the world was more honest back then. Like some of the other reviewers, I agree that this movie stays with you for a long time. It reaches into your heart and gives it a tug that will last forever. I am ready to see this film again.

I recently saw this on TCM and it was the first time I had seen this film. The only surviving print of this film was discovered in a vault in the Netherlands and was preserved by the Netherlands Film Museum so it is in it's original English language form but with Dutch subtitles. the credits are in Dutch also as are notes and letters shown in the film and the credits and notes and letters appear to be of the same age of the film so it appears that the studio added them themselves for Dutch distribution when the film first was released in 1938. There are no subtitles in English however for the notes and letters pertaining to the story that appear frequently during the film that the preservationists would have needed to add for English-speaking audiences. This is based on the Katherine Havilland-Taylor story "Failure" that was made into the the 1933 film "One Man's journey" with Lionell Barrymore in the lead role. In this version for it's Dutch audience it is translated as The Country Doctor. Garson Kanin who enjoyed a long career as a writer and director and was nominated three times for an Oscar for his screenplays makes his debut as director here. Although best-known for his screenplays, he didn't adapt this story for film. Instead, Dalton Trumbo who became one of the blacklisted "Hollywood 10" along with Kanin's brother Michael, turned in the screenplay. Proliffic B-Movie cinematographer J. Roy Hunt did a great job photographing this film. It has an all-B-Movie cast with Edward Ellis as Dr. John Abbot, Lee Bowman as his son Dick Abbott and Anne Shirley as Dr. Abbott's adopted daughter Jean in the principal roles. Dr. Abbott is a small town doctor whose patients are poor farmers, factory workers the the indigent and in his life he gets little respect from the more respected medical community and wealthier townspeople until late in his career when he saves the towns children from an infantile polio epidemic the would soon sweep the neighboring counties. It's a sentimental story and kind of sappy at times but it has its charm and Ellis is wonderful in the title role. A mildly disturbing sub story to the film is a developing romantic relationship between Dr. Abbott's son Dick who himself has gone on to become a doctor and Dick's adopted sister Jean that really doesn't seem to be necessary or even make sense to the film. It's strange and only seems to imply that they may have had a relationship back before they became adults. It's a fairly good film however and a slice of small town Americana of the 30's and worth a look. I would give it a 7.0 out of 10.

Opening at the funeral of John Abbott, doctor of the small town, three men that Abbott owed money to are eager to wait for Abbott's assets to be distributed so they can reclaim their money. Abbott's effects however are a series of notes each with their own story to tell, such as a remittance for a doctor's fee for the birth of a baby girl, Jean, whom Abbott adopts, paid bills where the doctor provided everything he could for sacks of potatoes or a couple of dollars, as well as other memories of Abbott helping the town get their hospital, stopping a polio epidemic, sacrificing an advanced career in a more prosperous city, watching his son, Dick, following in his dad's footsteps, eventually taking over his practice, and more which make the men think that Dr. Abbott has paid his debts many times over. The film is a great slice of small town Americana that is very moving and brilliantly presented (by first time director Kanin). Edward Ellis in probably his only leading role is perfect even surpassing Lionel Barrymore's understated performance in an earlier version, One Man's Journey. Shirley and Bowman also lend fine support and a great mix of character actors play up the sentimentality of the film. Sad thing is the only surviving print is a Dutch subtitled version, but it is in good quality and it is a rare treat to watch. Rating, 9

This is one of the great unheralded films...called movies in those days...of the century. I saw it the age of 10 and it remained clearly in my mind for 50 years. Now that IMDB has refreshed my memory with the names of the director (Garson Kanin) and screenwriter (Dalton Trumbo), I understand why it remains one of my favorites in the entire history of the cinema.