It's a battle of the sexes 50's style with the expected outcome but Bette Davis shows her light side ably supported by a stellar cast.
Since comedy wasn't Bette's long suit Warners filled out the cast with some of the premier light comic actors in the business. Robert Montgomery is ideally cast in the sort of facile smart alack that was his signature in his MGM days. He and Bette have a sand-papery chemistry that works fine but it seems that she might have had more rapport with Cary Grant or Clark Gable, two other masters of this kind of breezy fare. She had actually requested either Jack Carson or Dennis Morgan to costar but both were tied up with other commitments, Morgan might have been a stretch but the part would have fit the great Carson like a glove.
Surrounding them are two unique masters of the wry line reading-Fay Bainter and Mary Wickes. They add enormously to the film as do Tom Tully, as the bride's flummoxed father, James Burke as a photographer very fond of cheesecake snapshots and especially Betty Lynn in a scene stealing performance as mischief making younger sister Boo. She is an impish delight and handily takes scenes away from her more experienced cast mates.
You have to keep an eagle eye out but during the pre-wedding scene Debbie Reynolds makes her wordless screen bow sitting on a sofa. Blink and you'll miss her.
Spoiled somewhat by a cop out traditional ending that negates a great deal of what has come before but until that point this is a highly entertaining movie from Bette's late Warner Bros. period. Indeed in the dark days of Winter Meeting and Beyond the Forest this gives Miss Davis a breather to show off her new look hairdo and wardrobe in a slight but fun movie.
Since comedy wasn't Bette's long suit Warners filled out the cast with some of the premier light comic actors in the business. Robert Montgomery is ideally cast in the sort of facile smart alack that was his signature in his MGM days. He and Bette have a sand-papery chemistry that works fine but it seems that she might have had more rapport with Cary Grant or Clark Gable, two other masters of this kind of breezy fare. She had actually requested either Jack Carson or Dennis Morgan to costar but both were tied up with other commitments, Morgan might have been a stretch but the part would have fit the great Carson like a glove.
Surrounding them are two unique masters of the wry line reading-Fay Bainter and Mary Wickes. They add enormously to the film as do Tom Tully, as the bride's flummoxed father, James Burke as a photographer very fond of cheesecake snapshots and especially Betty Lynn in a scene stealing performance as mischief making younger sister Boo. She is an impish delight and handily takes scenes away from her more experienced cast mates.
You have to keep an eagle eye out but during the pre-wedding scene Debbie Reynolds makes her wordless screen bow sitting on a sofa. Blink and you'll miss her.
Spoiled somewhat by a cop out traditional ending that negates a great deal of what has come before but until that point this is a highly entertaining movie from Bette's late Warner Bros. period. Indeed in the dark days of Winter Meeting and Beyond the Forest this gives Miss Davis a breather to show off her new look hairdo and wardrobe in a slight but fun movie.