Has Anybody Seen My Gal? (1942) :
Brief Review -
A fine feel-good comedy that's cut short of becoming a classic. The rich man learning lessons about life from the poor is an old idea and a very nice one. It works 9 out of 10 times if the writer and director can only think about it from a generous point of view. Directors like Frank Capra and George Cukor were too good with such feel-good comedies made in the 30s and 40s, and I can say it is clear that Douglas Sirk was far behind them despite coming late and having so many influences to learn from. Capra's "You Can Take It With You" (1938) and a few other films in the 40s and 50s have managed to make evergreen movies on the same theme, with a different set-up, of course. Sirk's comedy starts off on a promising note and is quite healthy throughout, but it misses a classic tag with a few flaws in the story and screenplay. Fulton's prelude is fantastic; the past love and new family stuff are so nicely written. The problem appears in the Blaisdell family, as all the characters behave childishly except Roberta, who is already a child. Harriet's dominance over all the decisions was irritating. Her daughter, son, and even her husband don't say anything against her, despite not liking what she is doing. Her daughter has no brain of her own to decide whom to marry. What a chaotic mess Dan and Millie's love story created! Illogical and detestable. Her husband had no voice, I guess. The son was kicked to the side. Even our protagonist, John Smith, didn't help much either. The film could've been finer, more logical, and more emotional with these things. At the end, Fulton walks away, and Blaisdells don't even get to know who he was. How can one miss a big scene like this? It could have ended the film on a stronger note, even though it failed to make some honest and sentimental speeches despite its great scope. Overall, a good film that didn't realise its huge potential.
RATING - 6.5/10*
By - #samthebestest.
A fine feel-good comedy that's cut short of becoming a classic. The rich man learning lessons about life from the poor is an old idea and a very nice one. It works 9 out of 10 times if the writer and director can only think about it from a generous point of view. Directors like Frank Capra and George Cukor were too good with such feel-good comedies made in the 30s and 40s, and I can say it is clear that Douglas Sirk was far behind them despite coming late and having so many influences to learn from. Capra's "You Can Take It With You" (1938) and a few other films in the 40s and 50s have managed to make evergreen movies on the same theme, with a different set-up, of course. Sirk's comedy starts off on a promising note and is quite healthy throughout, but it misses a classic tag with a few flaws in the story and screenplay. Fulton's prelude is fantastic; the past love and new family stuff are so nicely written. The problem appears in the Blaisdell family, as all the characters behave childishly except Roberta, who is already a child. Harriet's dominance over all the decisions was irritating. Her daughter, son, and even her husband don't say anything against her, despite not liking what she is doing. Her daughter has no brain of her own to decide whom to marry. What a chaotic mess Dan and Millie's love story created! Illogical and detestable. Her husband had no voice, I guess. The son was kicked to the side. Even our protagonist, John Smith, didn't help much either. The film could've been finer, more logical, and more emotional with these things. At the end, Fulton walks away, and Blaisdells don't even get to know who he was. How can one miss a big scene like this? It could have ended the film on a stronger note, even though it failed to make some honest and sentimental speeches despite its great scope. Overall, a good film that didn't realise its huge potential.
RATING - 6.5/10*
By - #samthebestest.