This tries too hard to be amusing; the humour feels forced, the characters false and the script too wordy. There was a lot of talent involved in this but it was hardly a labour of love - more of a 'let's try and make a load of coin.'
For some reason, this was very popular at the time. Maybe that was simply because of the presence of Clarke Gable and maybe Constance Bennett? There is however no chemistry at all between the two stars. Any romance between their diametrically opposed characters, those lazily written stereotypes would just not happen, it's not believable and clearly Gable and Bennett don't believe it either.
This is meant to be a comedy but Constance Bennett is utterly unsuited to making this character remotely amusing. She is just so "Paramount." Every so often you feel you should watch a Constance Bennett film. That's because since she was was the highest paid female star in the early thirties, you figure that she must have been utterly fantastic and that that last really boring thing you saw her in must have just been a rare dud. You'll watch this and think, ok, this is just yet another rare dud and the next film I see her in will be better.
That's actually unfair, she did give a few outstanding performances and despite being as funny as a European Directive on cement manufacture in this, she was hilariously funny, delightful and totally engaging in TOPPER and a few other pictures made by the comedian's' director Norman Z. McCleod rather than by over-rated Robert Z. Leonard who made this.
For some reason, this was very popular at the time. Maybe that was simply because of the presence of Clarke Gable and maybe Constance Bennett? There is however no chemistry at all between the two stars. Any romance between their diametrically opposed characters, those lazily written stereotypes would just not happen, it's not believable and clearly Gable and Bennett don't believe it either.
This is meant to be a comedy but Constance Bennett is utterly unsuited to making this character remotely amusing. She is just so "Paramount." Every so often you feel you should watch a Constance Bennett film. That's because since she was was the highest paid female star in the early thirties, you figure that she must have been utterly fantastic and that that last really boring thing you saw her in must have just been a rare dud. You'll watch this and think, ok, this is just yet another rare dud and the next film I see her in will be better.
That's actually unfair, she did give a few outstanding performances and despite being as funny as a European Directive on cement manufacture in this, she was hilariously funny, delightful and totally engaging in TOPPER and a few other pictures made by the comedian's' director Norman Z. McCleod rather than by over-rated Robert Z. Leonard who made this.