Bachelor Mother (1939)

This is a little gem starring none other than Ginger Rogers and David Niven. It revolves around Polly Parish (Rogers) being mistaken for the mother of an orphan baby boy. Niven plays David Merlin who is willing to help Polly with the child.

I have always enjoyed both Rogers' movies and Niven's. Especially Niven because he had a very easy and charming presence. Rogers was at her best when she got to show off her comedic talents (not to say she didn't have dramatic chops, she did win an Oscar for Kitty Foyle [1940] after all). But she'll always be immortalised by being Fred Astaire's best and most frequent partner, a bit of a shame when she was so good.

The film has it's weak points, the close ups are far too frequent and become a little tiresome. This is just my opinion, some people might not really care about close ups. Another flaw was that there were a few plot holes and here and there. Clearly it was no masterpiece. Just an enjoyable screwball comedy with mistaken identities and strange situations. Like most screwballs, why break awat from such a winning formula anyway?

Garson Kanin is the man whom we blame the close ups on, but otherwise he directed the film quite capably. The supporting cast kept the ball rolling with Charles Coburn as a brilliant wet blanket and Frank Albertson as a flimsy and slightly annoying character. Donald Duck is also featured throughout the film. That's right, well, he was there as a mechanical wind-up toy but he was there!

It's no Bringing up Baby (1938) or His Girl Friday (1940) but it was a charming little film. Nowadays we'd call it 'fun but not memorable'. Note that i said 'not memorable' rather than 'forgettable'. Because it's not forgettable, it's more unremarkable. But what would have been a tiresomely unremarkable film was lifted up by the chemistry of Niven and Rogers.

"I dont care who the father is- i'm the grandfather" J.B Merlin (Charles Coburn), Bachelor Mother

Everything i want to Say.....

Sorry to keep you guys waiting for new reviews, i really want to give you good ones. I rented Doctor Zhivago (1965) the same week i rented The Elephant Man (1980), but because Dr Z had such a long running time i couldn't find time in my busy schedule to watch it. My loss right? I watched the movie Fired Up! (2009) last night, which i found shallow but more enjoyable than what i expected it would be. But too predictable and boneheaded, i liked the two leads though so that's a plus and the humour though often crude will appeal to the teenage demographic (which is probably why i liked it).

I have recently added Stir Crazy (1980), Hyperdrive Series 2, some Carol Burnett Skits, Somewhere in Time (1980), The Kentucky Fried Movie (1977), The Major and The Minor (1942) and Tootsie (1982) to my already vast array of movies on my computer. i have yet to watch most of them but the ones i have watched are:

Tootsie (1982): which was terrific and Very, Very, Very funny. It features Dustin Hoffman in my personal favourite performance of his with Jessica Lange, Bill Murray and Teri Garr giving great support. Hoffman plays Michael Dorsey a struggling actor with a reputation for being difficult, in order to get a role he dresses up as Dorothy Michaels and gets a job on a soap opera, but (of course) problems arise when he begin to fall for his co-star (Lange).

The Major and The Minor (1942): charming, silly, funny and albeit slightly creepy movie starring Ginger Rogers and Ray Milland as Susan (Suzu) Applegate and Major Kirby respectively. I found the movie funny, the plot was paper thin but the dialogue and chemistry between the actors kept it going. The plot is: Susan only has enough money to afford the half (child) fare for the train home, so she dresses up as a 12 year old in order to make the cut, Major Kirby actually does think she's a twelve a year old. It's a romantic comedy. Creepy right? But look past that weirdness because it's really just an innocent movie with some very funny lines. Did i mention it is written by Billy Wilder (Some Like It Hot, The Apartment)?

Rocky (1976): The prototype of the underdog sporting movie still packs a punch (forgive the pun) today. Sylvester Stallone mumbles his way through the movie in way that Marlon Brando would be proud of, but i mean that in a good way. The one thing i don't like about some movies is that it's not very realistic to be able know exactly what people are saying. anyway as i was saying: Stallone created a lasting hero in Rocky Balboa (aka The Italian Stallion) a southpaw (left handed) boxer who has a shot at the big time. I loved the movie. (NOTE- i'd copied this off my brothers hard drive about a month before but i hadn't watched it yet).

To finish off: i know i'm no writer and i am awful at being subjective, but hey i still love movies. Don't forget to comment!

"He doesn't know it's a damn show! He thinks it's a damn fight!" Apollos Trainer (Tony Burton), Rocky.