A fun film for anyone who would like to see a lighter side of its two stars, Leslie Howard and Bette Davis.
Howard has never done much for me as an actor, but I liked him in this better than I've ever liked him in anything. He plays an arrogant stage star who decides, in a moment of self reflection, to intentionally sabotage a young fan's infatuation with him in order to clear the way for the fan's beau. This requires Howard to act like a pompous ass, but of course, in typical screwball comedy fashion, every time he tries to turn the fan off with his behavior, he ends up making her fall for him all the harder.
Olivia de Havilland plays the stagestruck lass, and it's refreshing to see her being both ditzy and contemporary. And Eric Blore steals many a scene as Howard's dresser, who's as infatuated with him as the young girl. But still the movie manages to belong to Davis, who has far less screen time than Howard, but asserts her magnificent effect on an audience by absolutely commanding the screen every time she appears. I don't care what movie it is, but if Davis is in the shot (she could be standing in a corner in soft focus, not doing anything and not uttering a word) I find that I just can't look anywhere else.
Grade: B+
Howard has never done much for me as an actor, but I liked him in this better than I've ever liked him in anything. He plays an arrogant stage star who decides, in a moment of self reflection, to intentionally sabotage a young fan's infatuation with him in order to clear the way for the fan's beau. This requires Howard to act like a pompous ass, but of course, in typical screwball comedy fashion, every time he tries to turn the fan off with his behavior, he ends up making her fall for him all the harder.
Olivia de Havilland plays the stagestruck lass, and it's refreshing to see her being both ditzy and contemporary. And Eric Blore steals many a scene as Howard's dresser, who's as infatuated with him as the young girl. But still the movie manages to belong to Davis, who has far less screen time than Howard, but asserts her magnificent effect on an audience by absolutely commanding the screen every time she appears. I don't care what movie it is, but if Davis is in the shot (she could be standing in a corner in soft focus, not doing anything and not uttering a word) I find that I just can't look anywhere else.
Grade: B+