In some magical way? Not explained in the film. Strange how he would break off an engagement with a woman he was madly in love with in order to take care of the frogman. Besides, there were other people at the castle to tend to the reptile man. He had his own career and was not in desperate need of any money from the castle estate. A mystery to me.
shareFair point.
But Gerald was obviously tremendously affected by the situation - the gray hair, the drawn unsmiling face. That moment at dinner when he's forced into a bare grin at his friend's awful joke is quite touching. But then he's instantly forced back to the responsibility he feels for the old guy - er, frog. For good or ill he has made the horrible decision to devote his life, even to an early death like his ancestors, to that responsibility. (The only thing that could free him, you remember he scratched out in his letter, was a death.)
Could he have just hired another couple helpers for his two devoted servants, forgotten the whole thing, and remained in Cannes? Maybe. People put their mothers away in homes never to visit them again. But mother isn't a toad. And Gerald is more civilized than that. The point is plainly made that despite his appearance, the creature is fully, mentally - spiritually? - a human, a man who could somehow even make his wishes known. Also, we know that a third servant just died, frightened to death by the castle horror. Is it right to place someone else in such danger as you while away the time on the Riviera? And how do you advertise for such help, anyway? "Applicant must be punctual, hard-working, wear ridiculously old-fashioned clothing, and not be afraid of amphibians"?
Gerald does his duty as he sees it, to his family and humanity. That duty includes breaking off the marriage (which also, don't forget, protects his beloved from the madness of a Craven Castle curse so horrifying that he's aged twenty years in a few weeks!)
Perhaps a less outlandish, more human costume (along the lines of the Gill-man?) would make us sympathize more with the familial emotions Gerald suffers. ("All I can say is, my own [anguish] has been almost unbearable," he confesses to Kitty at the end.) Alas, Menzies did the best he could with the budget he had and gave us a guy crawling around in a mudpuppy suit to which we must do our best to attribute real humanity.
I had the same wonderings. Even after reading the previous poster's great reply, I still think to myself, "that's what all the big secrecy was? Kitty said many times that she would accept whatever was his burden and that she would not leave him. She was truly dedicated." Sometimes I miss things like that and wish I had a time machine to go back to a time in the US where more couples were devoted to each other working like a team together.
Anyway, I thought it was such a great movie and being careful to make my statement without spoilers, I just think the movie would have been perfect if it were a more serious big deal even though I thought the costume was well made for what it was, I couldnt help but laugh at the site of WHAT IT WAS. This movie reminded me of "Die Monster Die (1965)" the HG Wells (or HP Lovecraft) story movie with Boris Karloff and the toxic green stuff and monstrosities at the end. The one where nothing would grow on the land and the girl and guy were forbidden to go to the greenhouse. Or the Thriller show's episode also with Boris Karfloff that has Dick York and his new bride going to uncle Boris Karloff's castle to stay and Boris Karloff locks them in at night. Same exact story but much better ending.
When it was said that the last woman to marry into the family was 200 years before, I wondered where the nephews (who all inherited) came from.
Camera adds 10lbs;internet subtracts 50.
Good question. I just watched this movie on Netflix and it was very effective til that ending, which was SO laughable!
shareI wondered that, too, but they must all have been descendants of Sir Froggy's brother(s). Apparently, the previous almost-the-baronets were not so particular about marrying as Gerald was, or perhaps they all, until Gerald, had younger brothers who married to carry on the family responsibilities. (Remember that Gerald's predecessor was his uncle.)
One wonders what Gerald thought would happen to Sir Froggy after his own death, since he had neither brother nor son.
I think it was supposed to be that Gerald needed to act as lord of the manor to keep up appearances. Why on earth he’d do that, who knows. It’s not like the frogman could bribe him with an inheritance since he was almost immortal.
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