Year of Release: 1940Country of Origin: USA
Director: Garson Kanin
Cast: Cary Grant, Irene Dunne, Gail Patrick, Randolph Scott
Plot outline: Ellen Arden arrives 7 years after being given up for dead in a shipwreck, to find her husband Nick just remarried to Bianca (IMDb).
If you've watched The Awful Truth, then you know pretty well what to expect in My Favorite Wife. Leo McCarey is, without compare, a master of the technique of the prolonged and amorous tease; and with an actress such as Irene Dunne through whom to apply it - she with her luxurious and mocking laughter, her roving eyes and come-hither glances - mere man is powerless before it. So obviously Cary Grant, a normally susceptible male, is thrown about, bewildered and helpless, like an iron filing, when he comes within the magnetic field of Dunne's allure. The script is full of lively wit and flashy back-talk. But, the direction is spotty, and there is evidence of faults in editing. The remaining cast is excellent: Gail Patrick as the second and neglected wife, who spends most of her time in negligee; Donald MacBride, as a darkly suspicious hotel manager; and Granville Bates as an acid, contemptuous and fuddle-brained judge. In fact, Bates deserves a separate mention for his masterpiece of comic creation. "Where did you go to school? " he inquires sharply of Grant. "Harvard," replies the latter. A black look, a lift of the eyebrows, then a casual "I'm a Yale man myself " leaves no doubt of Bates' sentiments. This movie owes a lot to him. (NYT)
My judgement: *** out of 4 stars
No comments:
Post a Comment