[box cover]  Goodbye, Mr. Chips  Earnest, sweet, and charming,
1939's Goodbye, Mr. Chips is one of those classic films that
falls under the category of "they just don't make 'em like they
used to." It's hard to picture modern studio execs greenlighting
the poignant life story of a boys' school teacher — unless (as
in The Emperor's Club) it had some kind of important moral or
message. Mr. Chips' only message is that even those who've given
up on love and fulfillment can find it waiting for them in the
most unexpected places. It's unexpected love, in the form of
lovely, spirited Katherine (Greer Garson, making her big-screen
debut) that transforms the life of shy, strict Mr. Chipping
(Robert Donat, in an Oscar-winning performance), a classics
master at England's venerable Brookfield School. Terrified of
losing his students' respect — and his job — as a young teacher
in the 1870s, Chipping earns a reputation as a cheerless, boring
taskmaster who cares more about facts than winning the cricket
cup. But when frien