The Joan Crawford Experience 16/59
The film starts off the day before Mary (Joan Crawford) marries her childhood sweetheart Dillon "Dill" Todd (Robert Montgomery). She's getting a massage and a facial while her friends are elsewhere in the apartment celebrating the upcoming nuptials. Aunt Paula (The Fabulous Billie Burke) bursts in to fuss over Mary, and that leads to everyone else coming in with cocktails for a chaotic scene.
We understand that Mary and Dill are part of a very close-knit group of friends who are kind of wild and have a lot of history together. Mary, Dill, and Jeff Williams (Clark Gable) have known each other since they were eight years old!
At the same time, we see Jeff enthusiastically returning from an extended stay in Spain. He is met by his old buddy Shemp (Charles Butterworth), and head directly over to Mary's apartment. Jeff is ready to propose to Mary!
The gang is thrilled to see Jeff; but Mary drags him into her room for a private conversation, and that's when he finds out she's going to get married to Dill. But he keeps his cool ... even when she asks if he would be the one to give her away.
Since this is Dill's last night as a "free man" all the guys are to meet for the bachelor's dinner, so they all rush off. As Dill is home getting ready, he is visited by an old fling from a summer in Europe - Connie Barnes (Frances Drake). She knows that he is getting married but wants to reminisce about the good times they had over a drink (or seven) before parting ways.
The next morning we discover that Dill never made it to the bachelor's dinner; and boy he really missed a good time judging from the wreckage of Jeff and Shemp's hotel room and the chaos that caused. In fact, he doesn't show up at the wedding. Mary is left at the altar.
She finds out via telegram that Jeff has married Connie.
So instead of spending their honeymoon at Aunt Paula's cabin in upstate New York, she spends it -with- Aunt Paula trying to clear her head. Jeff and Shemp head up for moral support (and to bring Mary her mail) and find that Connie has invited Mary to a cocktail party.
Of course she's going to go! She takes Jeff along as her date, and they discover his new crowd of friends are a lot more sedate than the old gang. When Mary and Dill have a moment alone, she understands that he's not happy ... then Connie discovers them and almost causes a scene. Dill didn't know that Connie had invited her and tells her "Connie, you're being just a little bit cheap!"
A bit later Jeff and Mary have it out over her pining away for a married man and Mary slaps him! So, while Mary is off running around with Dill, Jeff figures he'll go back to Spain.
Or will he?
This is a fairly good comedy / romance set amongst New York Society. It's fast paced with lots of wisecracks being thrown around, and most of it is lighthearted fun. My only complaint is that I'd love to have seen more of the bridesmaid Eleanor (Rosalind Russell).
Next Up: No More Ladies (1935)
The film starts off the day before Mary (Joan Crawford) marries her childhood sweetheart Dillon "Dill" Todd (Robert Montgomery). She's getting a massage and a facial while her friends are elsewhere in the apartment celebrating the upcoming nuptials. Aunt Paula (The Fabulous Billie Burke) bursts in to fuss over Mary, and that leads to everyone else coming in with cocktails for a chaotic scene.
We understand that Mary and Dill are part of a very close-knit group of friends who are kind of wild and have a lot of history together. Mary, Dill, and Jeff Williams (Clark Gable) have known each other since they were eight years old!
At the same time, we see Jeff enthusiastically returning from an extended stay in Spain. He is met by his old buddy Shemp (Charles Butterworth), and head directly over to Mary's apartment. Jeff is ready to propose to Mary!
The gang is thrilled to see Jeff; but Mary drags him into her room for a private conversation, and that's when he finds out she's going to get married to Dill. But he keeps his cool ... even when she asks if he would be the one to give her away.
Since this is Dill's last night as a "free man" all the guys are to meet for the bachelor's dinner, so they all rush off. As Dill is home getting ready, he is visited by an old fling from a summer in Europe - Connie Barnes (Frances Drake). She knows that he is getting married but wants to reminisce about the good times they had over a drink (or seven) before parting ways.
The next morning we discover that Dill never made it to the bachelor's dinner; and boy he really missed a good time judging from the wreckage of Jeff and Shemp's hotel room and the chaos that caused. In fact, he doesn't show up at the wedding. Mary is left at the altar.
She finds out via telegram that Jeff has married Connie.
So instead of spending their honeymoon at Aunt Paula's cabin in upstate New York, she spends it -with- Aunt Paula trying to clear her head. Jeff and Shemp head up for moral support (and to bring Mary her mail) and find that Connie has invited Mary to a cocktail party.
Of course she's going to go! She takes Jeff along as her date, and they discover his new crowd of friends are a lot more sedate than the old gang. When Mary and Dill have a moment alone, she understands that he's not happy ... then Connie discovers them and almost causes a scene. Dill didn't know that Connie had invited her and tells her "Connie, you're being just a little bit cheap!"
A bit later Jeff and Mary have it out over her pining away for a married man and Mary slaps him! So, while Mary is off running around with Dill, Jeff figures he'll go back to Spain.
Or will he?
This is a fairly good comedy / romance set amongst New York Society. It's fast paced with lots of wisecracks being thrown around, and most of it is lighthearted fun. My only complaint is that I'd love to have seen more of the bridesmaid Eleanor (Rosalind Russell).
Next Up: No More Ladies (1935)