Showing posts with label Nana Bryant. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nana Bryant. Show all posts
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| Irene Dunne |
Seemingly the whole town of Lynnfield, Connecticut is up in arms because a risque novel by a "Caroline Adams" is being gleefully serialized in the town paper by editor Jed Waterbury (Thomas Mitchell). The most outraged townsfolk are members of the Lynnfield ladies literary circle, who would be astonished to learn that one of their number, Theodora Lynn (Irene Dunne) is actually the author of the scandalous book! On a trip to New York to see her publisher, Arthur Stevenson (Thurston Hall), Theodora encounters a man named Michael (Melvyn Douglas), who follows her back to Lynnfield and threatens to expose her secret. Only Michael has secrets of his own ... Theodora Goes Wild still makes a timely statement today about small-town hypocrisy, how people are secretly titillated by what they profess to abhor, and the need to shed off constricting small-mindedness and be true to one's instincts and nature. Even better is that it has some very good performances and a number of laugh-out-loud funny sequences. Unfortunately, the middle section, with Michael coming to Lynnfield where he becomes a gardener for Theodora and her aunts and drives them crazy with his constant whistling (the audience as well!), drags a lot and is rather tiresome, although the movie picks up in the final quarter. Dunne and Douglas are fine, with great support from Mitchell and Hall, Nana Bryant (Possessed) as Hall's jealous wife, and Elisabeth Risdon (The Egg and I) and Margaret McWade as Theodora's prudish but loving aunts. Spring Byington (Walk Softly Stranger) has a great scene when she reads an "offensive" passage from Adams' book with such gusto that you can tell she's privately thrilled with it. Robert Greig also makes an impression as Theo's free-spirited Uncle John, who wants her out from under the influence of his spinster sisters. Jake the dog is rather wonderful, too. This comes so, so close to being a classic but misses by that much.
Verdict: Still good for a laugh or two and a lively message. ***.
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| Andy (Mickey Rooney) on a dispirited burro |
An old flame calls Judge Hardy (Lewis Stone) for help when she and her husband fear they'll lose their ranch over water rights. The judge takes the entire family with him to the west, and they sort of just move into this couple's ranch, make themselves at home, and raid the refrigerator as if they own the place. Marian Hardy (Cecelia Parker) falls for a rugged cowboy and widower named Ray (Gordon Jones of The Green Hornet), while his young daughter, "Jake" (Virginia Weidler), develops a crush on Andy (Mickey Rooney). Weidler and Rooney give the most memorable performances, but the others in the cast are swell, as Andy would put it. Fay Holden as Mrs. Hardy can't quite disguise her veddy proper British roots. Ralph Morgan [The Monster and the Ape] and Nana Bryant [Possessed] are the ranchers, and Tom Neal has a small role as a traffic violator in Judge Hardy's courtroom. An unusual aspect of this Hardy feature is that there are no beautiful starlets for Andy to play around and neck with.
Verdict: Pleasant time-waster: **1/2.