Harrison's Reports (1946)

182 "The Perfect Marriage" with Loretta Young and David Niven (Paramount, no release date set; time, 87 min.) Fairly good. Revolving around the marital bicker' ings of a young couple, it is one of those smart comedies that is primarily entertainment for sophisticated audiences, who can enjoy a picture for the quality of the performances alone without paying too much at' tendon to the story. It is the type of story that has been done many times, and there it little about this version that is novel, but its thinness is overcome to a considerable degree by the clever dialogue and the lush production values. As a matter of fact, women will be fascinated by the exquisite clothes worn by the female players. Despite its air of sophistication, the picture has moments that are sentimentally appealing, but those who like excitement in their screen fare may find it a bit tedious, for it is all talk and no action: — Looked upon by their friends as a model married couple, Loretta Young and David Niven decide to celebrate their tenth wedding anniversary quietly at home with their little daughter (Nona Griffith). The peaceful setting is interrupted by the unexpected arrival of Jerome Cowan, Niven's lawyer, Rita Johnson, his gossipy wife, and Virginia Field, a gay divorcee. Niven, desiring privacy, gets rid of his unwanted guests, but his abrupt manner precipitates a quarrel between Loretta and himself, culminating in their decision that the happiness had gone out of their married life. They start to bicker over many petty differences, including one another's relatives, as well as the subject of Loretta placing her career as a fashion editor before that of a wife. Loretta finally decides to obtain a divorce. Word of their pending divorce spreads quickly, and Niven tries to ease his unhappiness by going out with Virginia, while Loretta, in retaliation, takes up with Eddie Albert, her former sweetheart. Their efforts to arouse each other's jealousy brings together their respective fathers-in-law, who do their best to effect a reconciliation. In the end, however, both are reunited, not only because of their mutual concern over the future happiness of their daughter, but also because each could not get along without the things they did not like about one another. Leonard Spigelglass wrote the screen play from a play by Samson Raphaelson, Hal Wallis produced it, and Lewis Allen directed t. The cast includes Charles Ruggles, Zazu Pitts, Nana Bryant, Louella Gear, and others. Unobjectionable morally. "Till the Clouds Roll By" with an all-star cast (MGM, no release date set; time, 120 min.) Supposedly biographical of the late Jerome Kern's career, and featuring his well-known melodies and ballads, this Technicolor musical shapes up as a satisfying mass entertainment, one that will undoubtedly do outstanding business mainly because of the marquee value of the many stars who appear in it. The story itself is ordinary, and its unfoldment offers little that is new, but warm and sympathetic performances by Robert Walker, as Kern, and by Van Heflin, as his arranger and dear friend, overcome its familiarity. Kern's music is, of course, the film's most delightful asset, and in the production numbers built around his songs there appear such personalities as June Allyson, Lucille Bremer, Judy Garland, Kathryn Grayson, Lena Home, Angela Lansbury, Van Johnson, Tony Martin, Virginia O'Brien, Dinah Shore, and Frank Sinatra, each singing or dancing. All please with their particular specialties, but outstanding among them is a song-and-dance number by Van Johnson and Lucille Bremer, executed in an hilarious tongue-in-cheek manner. In keeping with MGM standards, the production values are extremely lavish, yet one cannot but feel that, despite its cost and its roster of stars, the picture somehow fails to reach any unusual heights either in dramatic values or in the presentation of the production numbers: — Kern, an aspiring young song writer, visits James Hcsslcr, (Van Heflin), an expert music arranger, to seek his help on one of his compositions. Hessler recognizes the young man's ability and a close friendship develops between the two. Kern becomes convinced that the Broadway producers believed that musical number and productions, to be hits, must be imported from England. Determined to succeed, he goes to England, where he sells one of his songs to an English producer who turns it into a huge success. This hit is followed by others, and Kern soon finds himself commissioned by Charles Frohman (Harry Haydcn) to write the music for one of his Broadway shows. Meanwhile Kern had fallen in love with Eva Lcale (Dorothy Patrick), an English girl. Their romance is interrupted by Kern's trip to New York, but in due time he becomes even more successful and returns to England to make her his wife. With the passing years, Kern's successes continue and his happiness is marred only by the ill health of Hessler, his dear friend. A crisis develops when Kern, after promising Hessler's daughter, Sally (Lucille Bremer), that he would put her in a show and allow her to introduce one of his songs, is compelled by the producer to give the song to Marilyn Miller (Judy Garland), the star. Heartbroken, Sally runs away from home. Hessler sick with worry over her disappearance, dies. Interested in nothing but finding Sally, Kern loses interest in his music. He eventually locates her in a Mcmphs cafe, where she convinces him of her determination to make her own way in the entertainment world. His mind eased over Sally's welfare, Kern returns to his music and begins to write the score for "Showboat." Myles Connolly and Jean Holloway wrote the screen play from the story by Guy Bolton, Arthur Freed produced it, and Richard Whorf directed it. "Singin' in the Corn" with Judy Canova and Allen Jenkins (Columbia, Dec. 26; time, 66 min.) Just a mildly amusing program comedy. The humor is of the slapstick variety, and the action provides several laughs, but the story is so childish and silly that it cannot possibly hold the interest of matureminded audiences. As a matter of fact, it is two reel material stretched to feature length, and after a while it becomes boresome. Most of the characters are made to behave like imbeciles, and the situations they find themselves in are so inane that none but children will find them humorous. On the whole, the picture shapes up as material of little value, but it may get by in situations where Judy Canova's popularity is a telling factor at the box-office: — Judy, a carnival fortune-teller, inherits her grandfather's estate under a will that contained a provision requiring her to first redeem the old man's reputation by returning to a tribe of Indians the ghost town of McCoy's Gulch, which he had stolen from them years previously. Under the will, Judy had twenty-four hours in which to return the property, otherwise Alan Bridge, her grandfather's former partner, would become the beneficiary of the estate. Judy, aided by Allen Jenkins, her one-time carnival-spieler, prepares