(Review originally written at 22 September 2008)

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

Cary Grant is absolutely brilliant in this movie and lets it work out as a fun romantic comedy. He is great as a man who is giving his ex-wife to be a hard time, when she gets engaged to a rich southern oil man. In the end the roles get turned around and the Irene Dunn character gets to give the Grant character a hard time. It makes this a rather fun movie to watch, though I wouldn't call it Leo McCarey's finest movie but that says something more about his qualities than that of this actual movie.

It has a fun typical 1930's genre story and the movie can be seen as a screwball comedy, though its not the best genre example of it, since the movie besides its screwball elements also feature many other, more subtle, comedy styles. It sort is too bad though that the actors obviously had to improvise at times. It gives the movie a sort of a realistic look into how Cary Grant and Irene Dunn worked as actors but it doesn't always provide the movie with some much needed great witty dialog and fine written comedy moments. Sometimes the directing and editing feels like it was done too hasty, with at times as a result an end result that isn't quite what it should had and could had been. Nevertheless Leo McCarey still received an Oscar for his directing of this movie. It was the only Oscar the movie won as well but it was nominated in 5 more categories though, including best picture of the year.

But no I don't want to let this movie sound bad, for it really is a movie which I enjoyed watching. Its characters, its story and its actors simply make sure that this is a movie to enjoy.

8/10

(Review originally written at 15 April 2008)

The movie features all kinds of different comedy. Slapstick, comical dialog, subtle humor, exaggerated staged humor, funny musical numbers tons of sexual innuendo. It's a broad mixture of high class comedy elements that were common and know back in the '30's. It basically makes this movie fun to watch for everyone, no matter what your referenced type of humor is. This movie has it all and knows to combine it into one big successful comical style for this movie.

The movie features the four Marx brother's but this truly still is mostly a Groucho Marx. He really plays the lead role of the movie, which perhaps sort of goes at the expense of the talent of his brothers but he perhaps also was the best of the bunch, so it's not as if the movie suffers from his central presence. Also the rest of the supporting actors are good and are definitely comfortable with the genre. The movie for instance also features Edgar Kennedy, who is best know for his roles in the Laurel & Hardy movies, often as a cop.

What also mostly surprised me about the movie was its look. Back in the '30's most money was not spend on comedies and they were often simple and cheap made movies. But this movie has the same good and expensive look as an '30's swashbuckler, so to speak. It has good big looking sets and some nice costume design.

Well, of course the movie its story is rather simple and predictable. It also isn't truly original and so aren't the situations and characters really. It all had been done before in past comedies, for instance by Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton and this is the only reason why I just can't really give this movie a perfect 10 out of 10 rating. However the execution of it all still makes this an highly original and effective genre movie to watch.

9/10

(Review originally written at 22 December 2006)

Not sure if you can actually regard this movie as being a 'Laurel & Hardy' movie. Yes, sure they are both in the movie and act together in most of the sequences but they don't really act together as a comedy duo yet in this one. Guess its also fair to say that the real main character of the movie is James Finlayson.

But even though they're not really a comedy duo in this movie yet the quality of the movie itself is great and makes this movie rank among their best of the '20's.
The movie has a great variety of comical moments and slapstick comedy. The movie begins at the Finlayson residence. When he wakes up he is informed by his butler (Oliver Hardy) that he got married to a woman, in a drunk mood, no doubt. After this, his lawyer (Stan Laurel) is called to straighten things. Unfortunately for them, the brides brother, who steals and kills for pleasure only wants his sister to divorce if Finlayson pays her $50.000, as a financial settlement. Finlayson refuses and hides in a hotel with Laurel & Hardy, until they are of course are found by the brother and the rest of the family. What follows is an hilarious chase on a carnival, that was later redone again in the movie "On the Loose", also starring Laurel & Hardy in a small cameo appearance.

In between the movie has some great comical moments, that are original and brought well to the screen. Some of the camera-work is quite experimental at times. It works different and in a way also makes this movie distinct itself from other Laurel & Hardy movies. For most part of the movie Finlayson is hidden under Stan's dress, who is piggyback riding him and is dressed as Olie's wife to fool the in-laws. It's not the last time they used this simple comical premise in a movie and it works just as hilarious as always. It guarantees some great comical moments and big laughs.

The pace is very high. The movie never takes a rest, with as a result that the movie is an almost non-stop laugh-fest, that you don't want to end.

Even though they don't act together as a comedy duo yet, the performances from the boys is outstanding. It shows that they were great actors and could be funny, even when they were acting independently from each other. James Finlayson was great as always and so was Noah Young as the brother in-law, who also acted in several other Laurel & Hardy shorts, in similar like roles.

A surprisingly good and creative early silent Laurel & Hardy comedy short.

8/10