Mr. & Mrs. Smith
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Movie Reviews of Mr. & Mrs. Smith
Movie Review: Predictable Marital Farce Showcases Lombard at Her Most Luminous
Summary: 4 Stars
It's impossible to take your eyes off Carole Lombard. Not only was she among the most effervescent of screen comediennes during Hollywood's golden age, at 32, she was simply that beautiful in this 1941 film strikingly transferred onto DVD. This was her penultimate film, released less than a year before her tragic death in a plane crash, but it provides a nice, if not spectacular, showcase for her skills in both screwball and drawing room comedy. As Ann and David Smith, a volatile married couple who find out that their marriage is not legal due to a jurisdiction technicality, Lombard co-stars with Robert Montgomery, who excelled in light comedy but remains relatively forgotten today compared to his peers, Cary Grant and William Powell.
At first glance, it is amazing to believe that Alfred Hithcock directed this confection given the master of suspense was between two classics, "Rebecca" and "Shadow of a Doubt", but if you look closely enough, you will likely notice quite a few of his touches, including his cameo walk-on appearance in front of the Smiths' 72nd Street apartment building. There is an occasional odd close-up, for instance, of a lamp cord that Ann trips over, or subtly threatening scenes, such as when Ann shaves David with an open razor or when Ann and her suitor get stuck high above a crowd in a parachute ride - all these moments seem Hitchcokian in hindsight. However, it's really the clever though predictable script by Norman Krasna and the romantic sparring of the leads that dominates the film.
The bulk of the story is how David tries to win back Ann, who is smarting from the fact that David did not let her know they were not legally married. She finds out from the clerk who was assigned to inform the married couple of their illegal status since he is from her hometown. In the meantime, David is forced to stay at his men's club (the norm for thirties comedies), while Ann is courted by his law partner Jefferson, who is the epitome of Southern gentility. Plenty of shenanigans ensue until the inevitable ending, though the pacing of the film feels sluggish at times, which is a shame given its relatively short 95-minute running time. At the same time, I think this may have been intentional since it seems ultimately more a character-driven comedy than a situation-derived farce.
Montgomery lacks Grant's erudite manner and physical dexterity, but he has an easy, pugnacious charm. Playing the stock Ralph Bellamy, third-wheel role, Gene Raymond - perhaps best known for romancing Dolores Del Rio in the first Astaire-Rogers musical, "Flying Down to Rio" - is a surprisingly sturdy comic foil as Jefferson. Along with the original trailer, the DVD package includes an informative sixteen-minute documentary, "Mr. Hitchcock Meets the Smiths", produced just in 2004. It includes comments from directors Peter Bogdanovich and Richard Franklin; film historians Robert Osborne and Richard Schickel; Hitchcock's daughter Pat; and his granddaughter Mary. They all wax fondly on the master director's dry, sometimes caustic sense of humor and how it came in handy making this film. This comedy is not in the same league as other screwball comedies such as "Bringing Up Baby" or Lombard's cherished "My Man Godfrey". However, any time Lombard shows up, the screen simply lights up. What a tragedy that she didn't have a longer career.
Movie Review: Hitchcock and Lombard - an unmissable combination!
Summary: 4 Stars
Carole Lombard's second-last movie before her tragic death, MR. & MRS. SMITH (1941) saw her under the direction of Alfred Hitchcock and paired with the devilishly handsome Robert Montgomery.
After Ann and David Smith (Lombard and Montgomery) discover their wedding wasn't in fact legal, the obvious solution, to Ann at least, is to quickly get married again. But to her horror, David seems quite relaxed about the whole affair. Ann's mind tracks back to a recent conversation where she asked David about marriage and whether he'd do everything the same if he ever got a second chance. His reply was to remain a bachelor instead!
Ann storms out of the "marriage", takes up her maiden name and starts dating David's strait-laced business partner (Gene Raymond); whilst David tries every trick in the book in his quest to win her back.
While this was a real change-of-pace for Hitchcock, the comedy genre wasn't completely new territory for the director, having helmed some enjoyable silents in the comedy vein like "The Farmer's Wife" in 1928 (and when you think about it, most of his films had some degree of comedy or a knowing comic sensibility to them).
MR. & MRS. SMITH was directed as a favour to Carole Lombard, with whom Hitchcock had recently struck up a friendship. Professionally, Ms. Lombard was firing on all cylinders, delivering some of her finest work. She was beginning to find her feet in dramatic movies (like "They Knew What They Wanted" and "Vigil in the Night", both filmed in 1940); and was also preparing for what would be her last role, as Maria Tura in Ernst Lubitsch's comedy "To Be or Not to Be". In 1942, Lombard and her mother were both killed in a plane crash, on it's way back from a war-bonds drive.
MR. & MRS. SMITH is one of the screwiest (and most subversive) screwball comedies you'll ever have the pleasure of seeing. Highly recommended.
Movie Review: Kiss and make up -- not all that easy (recommended)
Summary: 4 Stars
The 2005 version with Brad Pitt about undercover spies is not a remake and is unrelated to the 1941 MR. & MRS. SMITH. In this Hitchcock comedy, Ann Smith (Carole Lombard) is the well-dressed romantic spoiled bride of wealthy lawyer, David Smith (Robert Montgomery -- father of famed BEWITCHED star Elizabeth Montgomery). Ann insists on David's honesty in their 3-year old marriage. Any arguments must be resolved before anyone is allowed to leave the bedroom.
An unexpected visitor to David's office reveals that the marriage is not legal. Unbeknownst to David, the gentleman later visits Ann with the same news. Ann assumes David will top off a romantic evening with a legal marriage ceremony so she squeezes into her original wedding dress. It appears, however, that David is not in a hurry to exchange vows, though he is willing to change into something more comfortable after a Champagne nightcap. An infuriated Ann, then amplifies her "singleness" by evicting David, obtaining employment, and looking for a new mate. The battle is on, as David is intent to sabotage Ann's plans.
This makes my tenth Lombard film viewing. As matriarch of the screwball comedy genre, she again demonstrates her talent to deliver smart lines and convey intense emotion. (She works those eyebrows!) The ending wasn't quite what one might expect and the largely Hitchcock British humor is more subtle than slapstick. Nevertheless, there are many funny situations and inuendos. Most of the vindictive actions are just plain crude and unreasonable, but make no mistake, MR. AND MRS. SMITH is enjoyable.
Movie quote: "I can't imagine anything hanging in the closet shrinking so much."
Movie Review: "If you had it all to do over again, would you still have married me?"
Summary: 4 Stars
MR AND MRS SMITH is an entertaining though not spectacular film. It is very easy to see this film and not realize that it was directed by Alfred Hitchcock because, frankly, it does not have that Hitchcock feel to it, to say the least. It is a silly little comedy, but it does star Carole Lombard as Mrs. Smith and that alone would make any film worth viewing. However, Robert Montgomery, in my opinion, even outshines Ms. Lombard in his role as Mr. Smith.
The plot if the story is very simple. Mrs. Smith adoringly asks her husband of three years, "If you had it all to do over again, would you still have married me?" When Mr. Smith answers "Honestly, no," he sets himself up for the doghouse. Remarkably, the very next day, it is revealed that through a geographical technicality, it turns out that Mr. and Mrs. Smith were never legally married at all. Mrs. Smith wastes no time in kicking Mr. Smith out on the curb. Hijinks ensue.
The humor in this movie feels a bit dated, but it still works. Mrs. Smith comes off as ludicrously capricious, but one is not expecting great art here. In fact, MR AND MRS SMITH, at times, feels like an extended episode of I LOVE LUCY at times. I would hardly consider this to be a classic, but it is worth a viewing, particularly if you want to see a different side of Hitchcock or just enjoy the comic stylings of Lombard and Montgomery.
Jeremy W. Forstadt
Movie Review: UNCHARACTERISTIC AND PLEASING COMEDY FROM MASTER OF SUSPENSE
Summary: 4 Stars
"Mr. & Mrs. Smith" (1941) is the most uncharacteristic film in Hitchcock's canon and, indeed, this box set - a featherweight romantic comedy with shifting undercurrents; all about a feuding husband (David/Robert Montgomery) and wife (Ann/Carol Lombard) who, after living together for three years, suddenly discover that they're not legally married. When David hesitates in legitimizing their union Ann bolts for the nearest quick fix - a stoic romance with her business partner, Jeff Custer (Gene Raymond). In keeping with the formulaic conventions of classic screwball comedies, this one employs a series of hopelessly inept, though nevertheless hilarious, bits of complicated mischief in which David plots to win Ann back. In exploring his comedic side, Hitchcock hints at diversity in his greatness. There are moments in this film which make one pine for more such examples from the director that, sadly, never materialized.
Warner's DVD transfer exhibits a balanced gray scale with deep, solid blacks and reasonably clean whites. Dirt, scratches and other age related artifacts are present but do not terribly distract. There's a complete lack of edge enhancement, pixelization and shimmering of fine details for a picture that is overall smooth and easy on the eyes. The audio is mono but very nicely cleaned up.