Lady Behave! (1937) User Reviews

Cute movie full of funny performances

[csteidler · 7/10 · 7 March 2012]

Clarice comes home from a Mardi Gras party and announces that she's just been married; her sister Paula (Sally Eilers) quickly points out that, inconveniently, she's already married to somebody else. It's up to Paula and family lawyer Burton Williams (Grant Mitchell) to come up with a plan: noting that a person can get ten years for bigamy, they swiftly decide to work first on an annulment for marriage number one, and then to take on marriage number two.

Not surprisingly, all does not go as swiftly as planned, and soon Paula is posing as her sister and moving into a very ritzy new home, where she encounters the new hubby's two children, who do not exactly offer a warm welcome to the new stepmother they assume is just another gold digger.

When their dad (Neil Hamilton) eventually makes it home and meets his bride as if for the first time (which, of course, it actually is), the plot gets even thicker; meanwhile, Clarice's first husband (Joseph Schildkraut) is lurking, smelling a buck in this setup somewhere.

It's all very funny, and the actors have a field day with some pretty nutty roles. Schildkraut is especially hilarious as the would-be womanizer. Mitchell is also very funny as the quick thinking lawyer of practical mind but dubious morals. Hamilton is appropriately confused yet capable as the leading man; Sally Eilers is very good as the responsible older sister who is drawn into a crazy situation and finds herself unexpectedly falling for it all. The relationship between the two leads is never particularly surprising but they do carry if off with energy and style.

The two kids also do well—energetic do-it-yourselfers, they certainly are not hesitant to take a hand in managing family affairs. Their scenes with Schildkraut are super.

It's a cute movie that offers lots of easy laughs. Don't miss Robert Greig and Mary Gordon in small roles as—what else?—the butler and the cook.

An Amusing Comedy About Mistaken Identities

[zardoz-13 · 7/10 · 7 February 2012]

Director Lloyd Corrigan and scenarists Joseph Krumgold and Olive Cooper have created a snappy but predictable little screwball comedy about romance with "Lady Behave!" This modest, black & white movie about mistaken identities obliges its virtuous but uptight heroine to change from a spinster to a married woman when she collaborates with the family attorney to keep her bigamist sister out of jail. While the family lawyer struggles to annul an earlier marriage to keep the impulsive, younger sister out of jail, her older sister masquerades as her sibling to keep her new husband's attorney from filing divorce papers. A divorce would expose Clarice as a bigamist. Complicating the situation is the face that the older sister has never been married, and the prospect of sharing the same bed with a man frightens her. The deception has a better than average chance of succeeding because the attorney believes Paula is the woman who married his client, millionaire Stephen Cormack. This cute, clever, likable romantic comedy has enough of the right turns and twists to make the grade, and Corrigan maintains a fast pace throughout this 70-minute fracas. The cast headed by Sally Eilers, Neil Hamilton, Joseph Schildkraut, and Grant Mitchell is capable, believable, and sympathetic.

This one was surprisingly good!

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 3 January 2010]

This movie has slipped into the public domain. Often this is because the movie was so bad, no one bothered to renew the copyright. However, do NOT assume this is so with this film--it is surprisingly good.

A dopey lady goes out for a night on the town and returns married to a total stranger. To make things worse, she's ALREADY married! While she seems unconcerned (and drunk) when she returns to her sister's home, the sister is scared her wacky sister will be arrested for bigamy. To keep her from this, her nicer (and sober) sister, Paula, is convinced to pose as the new bride—after all, the groom was so drunk he probably wouldn't notice that she isn't the actual bride. Things become complicated, though, when Paula is expected to move in and be wife…and mother to his bratty kids from a previous marriage. And, they become even more complicated when Paula's opportunistic friend (Joseph Schildkraut) arrives at the home to shake down the children. In other words, he offers to woo Paula and take her away from their father IF they pay him $30,000! Paula is horrified by this scheming man but she can't say anything—as he knows the truth about Paula's sister. And, in an even more unbelievable twist, Paula helps the kids raise money to pay off Schildkraut to woo her! Truly this has one of the most complicated and convoluted plot setups I have ever seen—especially for a B-movie that is less than an hour long! However, it doesn't get any less complicated. That's because when the new husband (Neil Hamilton) arrives a bit later, he sees his new bride and is completely taken by her. And, believe it or not, the film gets even crazier with subplots involving Warren Hymer and others. Not surprisingly, Hamilton falls head over heels for his new bride and they are deliriously happy together. However, given that they really are NOT married, you know that it will get pretty crazy but, true to the formula for such romances of the day, it will all work out perfectly by the end.

So is the movie worth seeing? Well, despite its low budget and complicated premise, the film was very likable. The actors, though not top stars, did a fine job and the film, though predictable, is fun and has a satisfying ending. It's the sort of B-movie romance I like and you probably will too if you can just suspend disbelief, sit back and enjoy.

By the way, for viewers who are NOT fans of old time movies, you will probably recognize Neil Hamilton as Commissioner Gordon from the "Batman" TV series from the 1960s. However, in the early to mid-1930s he was a dashing leading man. By the time this movie was made, his career was on the decline and his appearances in films would be spotty over the next several decades.

Do you know about tropes?...

[AlsExGal · 7/10 · 6 December 2017]

because this film is full of commonly used themes from the 30s yet it turns out to be charming: There is the sister who's the goof-off, whose life is a mess and the older, proper but repressed sister who is called to bail her out. The sister returns the following morning married to a some millionaire after partying, then is sleeping it off under covers that remain unnoticed by a stranger in the room. There are the step-children who think they are smarter than the adults and are still clueless. There is an ex-husband who's sweet, charming, but loves the racehorses more than people. Finally there is the millionaire groom who must have been even more drunk than the bride.

Sally Eilers is part of this and more in this impostor identity romantic comedy with its share of confusion and "no good deed will go unpunished" bits slipping into slapstick now and then, as she tries to protect the reputation of erstwhile sister Patricia Farr. Grant Mitchell plays the meddling - but necessary to explain events - godfather to both women, and Neil Hamilton is the slightly befuddled bridegroom. Joseph Schildkraut is amazing as the pony-loving ex-to Farr, and it's hard to believe this movie was released at nearly the same time as "The Life of Emile Zola" in which Schildkraut gives his unforgettable performance as wrongfully convicted Dreyfus.

You Two Should Go to Bed - Totally Delightful

[jayraskin1 · 9/10 · 20 May 2017]

This is a fast-paced, enjoyable little family romantic comedy that has fine acting and direction. The plot is really clever. Sexually liberated sister Clarice Kindall (Patricia Farr) goes out partying, gets drunk and marries a millionaire. Since she is on vacation, awaiting a divorce from her first husband, she has committed bigamy, a crime punishable with ten years in jail. Her big sister, Paula (Sally Eilers)comes to the rescue. Since the millionaire was too drunk to know who he married, she will pretend to be her sister and get a divorce from the husband Stephen Cormack (Neil Hamilton), but only after sister Clarice annuls the first marriage.

A complication appears as millionaire Stephen Cormack has two young teenager children Patricia (Marcia Mae Jones) and Hank (George Ernest). They are none too happy about having a mother who they believe married their father for his money while "in a fog." The cast does a great job keeping this light and fluffy, with enough wink-like actions to remind the audience that its a comedy and not to take any of this too seriously. Eilers is a precursor to Doris Day in her late 50s sex comedies -- which this resembles. She's trying to stay a virgin, despite having to live with a new husband.

The kids are adorable. Marcia Mae Jones (the crippled girl in Shirley Temple's "Heidi") and George Ernest. They had each done dozens of film roles before this and they are very professional in their comic timing. Marcia had a long career, but George pretty much ended his career when he became an adult.

The husband/father, Neil Hamilton is quite sophisticated and comfortable.

I was sad to learn that Patricia Farr who charmingly played sister Clarice tragically died of cancer at age 35, eleven years after this film. This turned out to be the height of her career. She only had a couple of small roles after this film. She handles her part well and showed talent. She was apparently hanging out modeling with another startlet at the time of this film. That was Rita Hayworth and her career took off while Farr's career went nowhere.

Eilers was in the middle of a 15 year - 50 picture career when she made this film. She is quite professional with wonderful comic timing.

I watched this picture just after watching Frank Capra's Oscar winning "You Can't Take it With You"(1939). I liked that film, but I thought this one was minute to minute funnier.

Which Mrs. Cormack?

[boblipton · 8/10 · 9 February 2019]

Sally Eilers is in New Orleans for Mardi Gras before she goes off to do medical relief work in Haiti. Her sister, Patricia Farr, comes to the hotel. She has just married Neil Hamilton while they are both sozzled. However, she is already married to penniless adventurer Joseph Schildkraut. To keep her sister out of jail for bigamy, Sally goes to Hamilton's home, pretending to be his wife, where his two children want to get rid of her. They hire Schildkraut to lure their 'new mother' to the ends of the earth.

It's the last movie that Lloyd Corrigan directed and it moves at a French Farce pace; with perpetual Long Island Butler Robert Greig lurking behind doors for lightning entrances, it is terrifically funny. Of course censor Joe Breen had problems with it. What they cut to get it past him is a mystery to me; perhaps Preston Sturges lent Corrigan those dirty pictures of Breen that he would later use to get his scripts past him. Whatever it was, Corrigan gave up directing, and spent the rest of his career acting and writing.

Cute story performed by great cast

[morrisonhimself · 9/10 · 23 May 2019]

Joseph Schildkraut made a career playing villains, including the most villainous of villains, Judas, betrayer of Christ.

In "Lady Behave!" he is a flamboyantly likable bad guy, giving one of his most charming and enjoyable performances.

Sally Eilers is the nominal star, and usually she is adorable and lovely. Here, though, there is something lacking. She looks more frazzled than the role calls for, and in her earliest scenes she is not quite believable.

On the other hand, her "sister," played by a mostly unknown (these days) Patricia Farr, is not only adorable but believable as the under-the-influence madcap.

Neil Hamilton, who had a long career, was another smooth and very good-looking leading man, and his performance here helps explain just why he was in demand from silent days through TV series.

As his two children, Marcia Mae Jones and George Ernst were simply outstanding, carrying off the not-entirely-believable roles with charm and energy.

There seem to be some holes in the script, and not all the attitude changes are well explained, but, so what? It's fun.

There is a fair print at YouTube and I do recommend "Lady Behave!" for an enjoyable hour.

Promising Premise Partially Realized

[dougdoepke · 11 August 2019]

Fitfully funny slice of madcap. Movie picks up steam as it goes along, especially when the kids come in. Seems only way Paula can keep sister Clarice from jail for bigamy is to get her sister's first marriage annulled. But to do that Paula has to pretend to be wife Clarice in first husband Cormack's wealthy household. Seems Cormack was too foggy to remember the real Clarice, so the trick might work, that is, if his two rambunctious teens will accept their new mom. If this sounds complicated, it is, so you may need a scorecard.

I wish there were more snappy lines to go with the fast-paced hijinks, but apparently the censors were active- (IMDB)- given the.touchy premise of fake marriage. As a result, the dialogue doesn't help the potential, leaving the chuckles to various antics instead.

Anyway, Eilers does well as the sober-sided Paula who centers the film; then too, I think I notice a faint facial resemblance to Joan Crawford, of all people. At the same time,1960's Batman- helper, Neil Hamilton, shows a handsome younger face as Cormack, combining both looks and straight-man deadpan. There's also a good look at peppy teenager Marcia Mae Jones who does keep things moving. In fact, she almost takes over the film in its latter stages.

All in all, if you're not expecting polished madcap in the 30's style of MGM or TCF, the antics are mildly amusing, even if no thanks to the Breen office (IMDB).