The Miracle Worker (1979 TV Movie) User Reviews

A miraculously engaging TV movie.

[OllieSuave-007 · 8/10 · 24 October 2015]

I first saw this movie during grade school when we were learning the history of Helen Keller. It was actually a very engaging movie of how Helen tries to cope with her blindness and how her teacher, Anne Sullivan, guides her along the way to live life as a blind person, and to also deal with her unruly attitude.

The part where Anne and Helen grapples around the dinner table sent the classroom to laughter. To see Anne have such patience in dealing with Helen's misbehavior and her condition is uplifting.

It's not a movie with some of the best acting, as some of the character interaction were just a little awkward. But overall, it's a pretty good TV movie about the courageousness of Helen Keller and the patience and understanding of Anne Sullivan.

Grade B

encore time

[capricorn9 · 7/10 · 16 October 2006]

Just finally got a copy of this on VHS off eBay. Been trying for years. Missed it the first time around and have never seen it listed in the TV guide since. Great to see Miss Duke-Astin return to this role. What a great idea in casting! Understand Melissa Gilbert put the project together so showcase her talents and she does that quite well. Although I do find a little more humor in Miss Duke-Astin's performance (more from facial expressions)I find it very believable and proves what an actress she can be when she wants to be. The supporting cast is well chosen and performs well and this is the perfect companion piece to the original.

The pupil becomes the teacher.

[ulicknormanowen · 8/10 · 4 February 2021]

It was not easy to redo "the miracle worker" after Arthur Penn's masterpiece featuring Anne Bancroft's and Pattie Duke's oscar-winning outstanding performances .

It's amazing to see Duke play the teacher ;her performance is inspired and influenced by that of the great Bancroft ,but who could be better than her in a play she knows so well for having performed it on stage and on screen?Duke really rises to the occasion.

Except for the last scene at dusk , the color version is faithful to its model; in the supporting part ,Diana Muldaur is particularly good as the imploring mom,who does not understand she poisons her daughter with protection and that Helen does not need any pity.Annie's visions of her appalling past were more impressive in the black and white version ,but the color MTV work does Helen and her teacher justice.

This film version has been underrated by some.

[hyjrrh · 2 May 2003]

I really loved this film, and miss seeing it. It would be wonderful to see it on television and on video. While I agree that Melissa's hair may have been a bit too long, it certainly accentuated the wild look Helen must have had, especially when she struggled against Annie.

It's easy to make comparisons between originals and remakes. I've done it. But, in all fairness, a remake should be viewed with as open a mind as possible. Patty and Melissa both showed great strength and endurance in the "wrestling" scenes. It couldn't have been easy. Anyway, I have always loved the story of Helen Keller, and try not to miss an opportunity to see anything about her. Please try to bring it back, for us. Thanks.

Even with its flaws, I still can't resist this.

[mark.waltz · 7/10 · 6 April 2022]

I must say that some of the dialog in the second version of the William Gibson play I find ludicrous, having played James Keller, the rather pompous half brother, in high school. Indeed, the constant challenging from James towards his father and step-mothsr and back, is an opening door for laughter, with the serious subject matter overshadowed by those elements. But for the Oscar winning Patty Duke as Helen Keller to go on to be the Emmy winning Patty Duke as Annie Sullivan is one of the great casting coups of the 70's, only 17 years after the 1962 film. Duke is as commanding as Ms. Sullivan as Anne Bancroft was, and Melissa Gilbert is as scary and pathetic as Duke was as Helen Keller.

Mainly faithful to the play (still embedded in my mind 45 years after doing the play), this could use an update to get rid of the unintentional camp humor. Diana Muldaur is terrific as Kate Keller and Charles Siebert deliciously pompous as Captain Keller. Stan Wells gets laughs as the deliberately defiant James, but a lot of it is based on what I consider to be over the top dialog that distracts from Helen and Annie's struggles. Serious discussions about the civil war and James' odd choice for grace are eye rolling bits of filler. Some of Annie's interactions with Helen seem abusuve, but this took place long before there were legitimate schools for the blind rather than the horrid sanatariums that Annie talks about in the play. The final scene is a heartbreaker even if it can seem to be rushed since the film is noticeably shorter than the play.

Not bad, but the 1962 black & white classic is better...

[Lori S · 5/10 · 3 January 1999]

This NBC Hallmark Hall of Fame version was filmed in Southern California, which is obvious from the very sunny scenes both inside and out. The older movie version is much darker and moodier, which not only fits the subject matter, but which is more accurate, due to the fact they only had lamplight most of the time. The big trivia here is that Patty Duke now plays Annie Sullivan, whereas she was Helen Keller in the 1962 movie (and won an Oscar for it). Melissa Gilbert was 15 when she filmed this, but is about the same weight as and an inch taller than Patty Duke, which makes Melissa look too old for the role. Also, Melissa's very long hair gets in the way of her wild tantrums - it either should have been cut, or she should have worn a short wig. Both Gilbert & Duke were nominated for Emmys for their roles, but only Duke won the day. Original playwright William Gibson not only wrote this 1979 adaptation, but also the very first one, broadcast on "Playhouse 90" in 1957, starring Patty McCormack, Theresa Wright, Patricia Neal and Burl Ives. That pre-dated the 1959 Broadway version, which starred Duke and Anne Bancroft...

good movie, actor played their roles very well

[Lil' "D" · 24 February 1999]

This was a very good movie. Helen was played very well. This movie helps people not take things for granted. It is an incredible story of how anyone is capable of doing anything. Annie was also played very well. She taught Helen many things. The closing scene when Helen realizes that everything has a name is very moving. The love shown between Annie and Helen was really an awesome thing.