User Reviews

In the movie DR is 17 and DP is supposedly about 35 (but looks 55). So he agrees to watch her over Christmas for 2 cops.. (ok suspend disbelief)... he's reminded she's underage. It starts out more like father daughter stuff then she falls for him. In an effort to make his fiancé Ann Francis jealous and get some good writing material they marry. This is when I hit pause to look up DR real age which is 22. I felt a bit creeped out if she was really 17. Glenda Farrell plays the old lady which is ironic since she's closer to Dick Powell's age. Anyway the acting is good and DR is adorable. I won't give too much away but it's not for everyone.

Restricting our overview to "dirty old men" with young chicks, there's a certain "yuk" factor that hits us in the gut when the guy is 25-years-old and the gal is, say, 12. On the other hand, a 51-year-old college biology prof getting biblical with a 25-ish grad assistant coed barely raises an eyebrow nowadays. In SUSAN SLEPT HERE, the relationship between Mark and his "Christmas gift" from the LAPD vice squad falls smack in the middle of "yuk" and "ho-hum." Mark is a 35- or 36-year-old confirmed bachelor; Susan, a 17-year-old who's never even been to a hotel before. Titillatioin overtly is the goal of the SUSAN SLEPT HERE film makers. If this movie was made a decade or two later, it's hard to guess the number of topless scenes in which Debbie Reynolds would have been chilled as "Susan." Fortunately for Ms. Reynolds, this racy flick came out in 1954, so she appears in suggestive but fully-clothed OKLAHOMA!-style pantomime dream sequences, instead.

Dick Powell is a struggling Hollywood writer, struggling, you see, to write serious material when he's known for writing froth for Jane Russell and such actors such as her. And, he's won an Oscar, too! In fact, the Oscar narrates the beginning of the film! When a female juvenile delinquent is arrested just before Christmas, she is brought to him, because the cop, who's a friend of Dick Powell's, thinks he is a nice enough guy to keep her for a few days, because you can't throw the book at her just before Christmas. Enter Debbie Reynolds, who was really 21 at the time, playing the 17-year-old juvenile delinquent, 6 months before turning 18. Dick Powell was 49 at the time, playing a 35-year-old in the movie. And, what do you think happens! In an intro to the movie, Robert Osbourne from TCM said considering the premise and the situation that Dick's thrown in in the film, you'd think there would have been outraged viewers and groups boycotting the movie. But there was barely much made of it at all, at the time this film came out in the movie theaters. It is a pleasant, fun little film with charming actors. But for some reason, I found myself losing interest in the last 30 minutes or so. I think that, after the novelty of the film wears off the viewer, it's just not that captivating. There's not enough zip to it, despite the presence of Debbie Reynolds, and Dick Powell never looking more handsome. This would be his last acting role in a film; he would only direct films from then on until his premature death. Glenda Farrell gives good support and livens up the picture to a point. After watching this, you'll probably be glad you did, but will wind up thinking it wasn't as good as you thought it would be considering the stars involved.

Two Warner Brothers contractees from the 1930's are reunited in this typical idea of younger girl/older man, and unfortunately, the female of the two old chums is not the young woman. She is, however, the shining supporting star of this colorful but unbelievable comedy where the male lead seems to think he's the cats meow for Hollywood's sweetheart, and it isn't a perfect match. Debbie Reynolds is miscast as a supposed juvenile delinquent, while 30's singing heartthrob Dick Powell plays the Oscar winning screenwriter who takes darling Debbie in as part of his research project. It is set over Christmas, so the holly and tinsel are colorfully aplenty, as are some campy costumes and even some songs.

The other old Warners star who ends up being the scene stealer is the former Torchy Blane, Glenda Farrell, who once paired up as a Laverne and Shirley style comic duo with Powell's ex-wife, Joan Blondell. Farrell is a delightfully funny dipso, mixing a martini with everything but vermouth and complains about the problems of sobriety. Powell's unfortunate sidekick (for the audience that is) is the unfunny Alvy Moore who slowed down the laughs on "Green Acres" and is dreadfully unfunny here. While Debbie scored with the older Gene Kelly, the chemistry with Powell is null.

A patronizing segment concerning the Academy Awards seems terribly forced. Anne Francis, pre-Forbidden Planet, is a scream (and screams a lot) as Powell's harpy girlfriend. But it gets pretty dull at times, suddenly livened by a wisecrack from Farrell, such as when Powell hands her a tiny Christmas present, to which she dryly replies, "I always wanted a mink coat." Debbie, supposedly 17 here, is closer to her real age than Powell is, claiming to be 35, which would have made him 13 when he made his film debut. It's cute in spots, but mostly corny, although some supporting players such as Maidie Norman, Ellen Corby, Les Tremayne and Lela Bliss (very funny in a bit as a drunk society matron) help speed things up. A surprise cameo is a nice touch, but it's not enough to elevate this overall.

It must have been in the air at the time, though why in the Eisenhower Years?

In the 1950s several films (two by Billy Wilder) had successful marriages between young women and middle aged men. Wilder's two films were SABRINA (where Audrey Hepburn falls for Humphrey Bogart) and LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON (where Hepburn fell for Gary Cooper). Hepburn also was paired in FUNNY FACE with Fred Astaire. Astaire was also in the movie DADDY LONG LEGS with Leslie Caron as his ward turned lover. Caron would also be in GIGI where her little girl is paired off with a slightly older Louis Jourdan.

And there was SUSAN SLEPT HERE, Frank Tashlin's second feature film comedy, starring Dick Powell and Debbie Reynolds. The difference in ages is mentioned - Debbie Reynolds is supposed to be 17 (she was 21 at the time), but Powell is supposed to be roughly 20 years older. He is supposed to have been an early Oscar winner (for screenplay) and to have served in the navy with his friend Virgil (Alvy Moore), who was his superior officer. It is possible if Powell was 55 to concede this, but he is supposed to be about 43 or so. He just looks too old. But despite this the film does work. It has good lines in it (particularly some zingers used by Glenda Farrell at her favorite target Anne Francis, and by Les Tremayne as Powell's overwrought and overworked attorney).

Powell is a successful if jaded screenwriter who is dating Anne Francis, a snobbish Senator's daughter. On Christmas Eve he is visited by two members of the L.A. Vice Squad (Herb Vigran and Horace MacNally) who have a "gift" to drop off. Vigran had been an adviser on a film script that Powell worked on, and the latter made the mistake of mumbling an idea about having a day or so talk with a genuine juvenile delinquent about his lifestyle). Of course the problem is he meant a male juvenile delinquent.

Vigran (in what is really the only weakness of the story) has arrested Debbie Reynolds in a brawl with some military police, but has not reported it yet. He thinks she'd be perfect to give to Powell for his research over Christmas Day (Vigran eventually pays for this stupidity and it's outcome by getting demoted - he's lucky, in real life he might get arrested and charged with pimping). The plan is for Debbie to be "rearrested" on December 26th, and thus to act as though nothing wrong was done.

Powell is not pleased with this - he can't depend on his secretary Farrell, nor on Moore (who quickly takes a powder). He tries to work around the "Susan" problem, but no matter what he tries it blows up in his face. Worse, Reynolds answers the phone by habit, and Francis discovers that her boy friend has an underage girl in his house.

Slowly, however, Powell and Reynolds settle down and learn about each other's life. It turns out Reynolds mother is out of the U.S. with her second husband (a man Reynolds thinks was a better choice than the first husband, who was her own father). The mother is one of these modern types, and has left a note of consent for whomever Reynolds meets whom she may wish to marry. Powell finds that she is a feisty and independent young woman, and he finds himself falling for her. But when Moore learns that they shared Powell's apartment for the night, he drags Powell's lawyer Tremayne into it. Tremayne starts planning damage control to prevent a scandal or worse* But the detectives return to pick up Reynolds (Vigran's Sergeant is not very understanding about what they did - really hard to understand that reaction!!).

(*Having sexual relations with any underage child or girl is always treated quite harshly in the U.S., but California had a really heavy reputation in this area back in the 1920s - 1960s because of the Hollywood crowd. In the Marx Brothers' 1940 comedy GO WEST, Groucho's name of "S. Quentin Quayle" was based on the term "San Quentin quail" which was about under-aged, but attractive girls who got men into serious trouble when arrested. The trial of Errol Flynn for rape in 1944 was worse because the two victims were teenage girls. I may remind you also of the still odd situation involving director Roman Polanski today concerning a statutory rape charge from California.)

Powell flees with Reynolds to Las Vegas where they can get legally married despite her age. He reasons that they can remain married for a few months (while he is working in Sun Valley on a screenplay) and she can then get the marriage annulled, while he finds her a job. But Reynolds is determined to prove herself a good wife. And Powell is not all that sure if he wants her to cease being his wife - especially after Tremayne sees evidence that she may be pregnant.

The wit in the script is hard to describe - it ranges from comments like Farrell momentarily thinking Reynolds has arrived in Sun Valley, and welcoming her with a "Come to momma", but finding it is Francis (whom she loathes) and saying, "Oh, Dracula's daughter!", to Tremayne having a session with his psychiatrist interrupted by an angry Powell, and letting Powell take over his session as Tremayne can bill him for it later). The acting is good. Anyone who thinks of Moore only as "Hank Kimble" on GREEN ACRES should see his rather thoughtful Virgil, who gets an emotional slap-in-the-face from Reynolds that makes him rethink himself carefully. All in all it is far better than one would have thought - given the one blunder in the screenplay that I mentioned.

A kind hearted cop drops a 17yo criminal off at a wealthy writers house because he doesn't want her to spend xmas in jail and somehow knows that a writer is thinking about writing a script about juvenile delinquents and how she'd be the perfect girl for his story and that she could stay with him until after Xmas when she'd have to appear in court and then drop a romantic angle to it. This was based on a play? Who the heck would produce such a laughably bad implausible story.

Let's also take a look at our main players . Dick Powell who plays Mark the writer , Debbie Reynolds as Susan the juvenile delinquent and Anne Francis as Isabel(Mark's date mate) , the irritating Alvy Moore also plays a scheming little rat of an assistant hired by Mark. I just can't buy the Susan - Mark romantic angle that develops. He is supposed to be 35 and she 17 when we all know damn well that he looks much older and that she is older than 17 herself. In reality Powell was 50 and Reynolds was 22 and certainly with the way she swished around the room in some scenes was quite evident how far removed from 17 she was. Reynolds also overacts especially when she first appears on screen acting like a spoiled brat yelling and screaming doing the tomboy routine that is so bad its hard to watch. Powell doesn't fare much better , he simply looks bored half the time with this empty expression on his face - how could anyone be sexually attracted to him . Francis is nothing more than wasted eye candy and the only scene she really has a chance to act turns into a whining bitch scene -showing how bad the script is as well as her acting. Alvy Moore also overacts and really slimes it up on screen and to me never does anything more than sleepwalk through his lines. I was hoping he'd step into an elevator and have it fall 20 stories.

The movie sags and drags with a really anti climatic ending and talk about sugary sap - a birdcage swing ???. And this is supposed to be a rocom? More like a bombcom.

This is a favorite Holiday movie of mine, as a result I never miss playing it on Christmas Eve. It is sweet, and charming, even though there is a age gap between Powell and Reynolds. That is no stumbling block however to the story of the teen who is "given" to Powell for the Holiday, so she won't have to spend the day in jail. Powell who was about 50 at the time, still looks great and her falling in love with this man is truly believable. He is reluctant to let her go to the juvenile hall, and tells his lawyer he could marry her. She overhears the plot and tells him no. He runs after her and takes her to Vegas for a quickie marriage. He goes to the mountains so as not to consummate the marriage, and get an annulment later. He leaves her with his best friend and by error his lawyer thinks she is pregnant. But by who? He hasn't even been there. He is furious, and confronts the friend and asks her to sign the papers. It is only after she tells him that she loves pickles and strawberries for breakfast does he realize his mistake. It is a glorious romp with Powell so confused and Debbie so persistent that you will love the ride. Highly recommended piece of holiday candy.