"Dear Brigitte" is the third and final comedy that my favorite actor James Stewart made at 20th Century Fox in the 1960s under the direction of Henry Koster. Personally, I feel that this very strange movie is somewhat of a waste, although this is no fault of Mr. Stewart. He was the perfect choice for the role of Robert Leaf, a brilliant, highly admired, cantankerous, absentminded professor of English poetry, living with his wife and two children on a houseboat in the San Francisco Bay area. Prof. Leaf is a man whose life focuses strictly on the arts and humanities, a man who absolutely despises science, computers, and such. Among his family are his loving wife Vina (Glynis Johns), his annoyingly high-strung teenage daughter Pandora (Cindy Carol), who can be affectionate with her family as long as she gets her way, and his eight-year-old mathematical wonder boy Erasmus (Billy Mumy), who can mentally solve the most difficult arithmetic problems with the greatest of ease and speed. But Erasmus has a few other oddities about him, his severe tone-deafness and color-blindness notwithstanding; he is by far the best handicapper of horses in San Francisco, and his only dream in life is to meet the famous French actress Brigitte Bardot, for whom he has an indefatigable crush. One other addition to the Leaf family is the kindly, lovable sea captain played by Ed Wynn, who also serves as the narrator of the film.
Despite the fact that I consider it to be one of James Stewart's weaker films, "Dear Brigitte" still contains a handful of worthwhile moments. Prof. Leaf displays his ferocious temper right from his very first appearance in the picture when he expresses his disdain for science while storming off the university campus with books loaded in his arms. The Leaf family concert (featuring the professor on accordion, Vina on flute, Pandora on piano, and Erasmus on cello) would have been perfect had it not been for the boy's tone-deafness. Prof. Leaf literally runs off to give a lecture, his arms again loaded with books, when he suddenly realizes it would be faster by car! While Prof. Leaf and Erasmus are looking through a shop window, the professor reaches for his son's hand, only to discover that he is holding the hand of an astonished young woman. Erasmus' psychiatrist Dr. Volker (Jack Kruschen) tries to clear the boy's mind of Brigitte Bardot; when the doctor asks Erasmus what he bought during a shopping trip with his father, Erasmus tells him he bought a dress, after which the doctor gives a hilarious reaction, not realizing that the dress was merely for Erasmus' sister. And finally, Prof. Leaf displays his great rapport with his poetry students in his classroom as he tells them, with his dry sense of humor, how he feels about scientists taking over college campuses.
"Dear Brigitte" is a movie that has a lot of stuff crammed into it, a little something for everyone, as one critic put it. Brigitte Bardot herself appears near the end of this film with Prof. Leaf and Erasmus, and it is this particular lengthy scene that causes me a little embarrassment. On a positive note, James Stewart reportedly had more praise for Billy Mumy than for any other child actor with whom he ever worked, and the rapport between Stewart and Mumy off camera was quite pleasant. (As an example, they would rehearse their lines together while casually tossing a ball around.)
Despite the fact that I consider it to be one of James Stewart's weaker films, "Dear Brigitte" still contains a handful of worthwhile moments. Prof. Leaf displays his ferocious temper right from his very first appearance in the picture when he expresses his disdain for science while storming off the university campus with books loaded in his arms. The Leaf family concert (featuring the professor on accordion, Vina on flute, Pandora on piano, and Erasmus on cello) would have been perfect had it not been for the boy's tone-deafness. Prof. Leaf literally runs off to give a lecture, his arms again loaded with books, when he suddenly realizes it would be faster by car! While Prof. Leaf and Erasmus are looking through a shop window, the professor reaches for his son's hand, only to discover that he is holding the hand of an astonished young woman. Erasmus' psychiatrist Dr. Volker (Jack Kruschen) tries to clear the boy's mind of Brigitte Bardot; when the doctor asks Erasmus what he bought during a shopping trip with his father, Erasmus tells him he bought a dress, after which the doctor gives a hilarious reaction, not realizing that the dress was merely for Erasmus' sister. And finally, Prof. Leaf displays his great rapport with his poetry students in his classroom as he tells them, with his dry sense of humor, how he feels about scientists taking over college campuses.
"Dear Brigitte" is a movie that has a lot of stuff crammed into it, a little something for everyone, as one critic put it. Brigitte Bardot herself appears near the end of this film with Prof. Leaf and Erasmus, and it is this particular lengthy scene that causes me a little embarrassment. On a positive note, James Stewart reportedly had more praise for Billy Mumy than for any other child actor with whom he ever worked, and the rapport between Stewart and Mumy off camera was quite pleasant. (As an example, they would rehearse their lines together while casually tossing a ball around.)