User Reviews

Washington D.C. was notorious during the war years for being completely short on hotel rooms and apartments, and this is just one of at least three films on that subject, the others being "The More the Merrier" and "The Doughgirls". This is a surprisingly good forgotten comedy about this issue which leads two businessmen (Fred MacMurray and Edward Arnold) to end up as butlers to a businessman whom they are interested in dealing with. Of course, Arnold doesn't "buttle" until the end (he actually looks like "Downton Abbey's" Carson), and it is secretary Paulette Goddard who gets MacMurray into this mess.

It all starts when Goddard schemes her way into the position of secretary to MacMurray, a businessman all the factory workers (including Goddard) say "ooh la la" about every time he walks through. Goddard is sent upstairs, apparently to be fired, but when she sees the perfect situation to take on the job of MacMurray's secretary, she grabs it. Of course, she's not the brightest bulb in the secretarial pool, forgetting MacMurray's brief case in the cab on their way to Grand Central, then canceling their hotel room by mistake. She finds them a place to stay, but as live-in housekeeper and butler to a bizarre couple played by Roland Young and Anne Revere. Young is the stay-at-home husband and Revere is in the military, so their marriage is far from normal. MacMurray is anxious to meet with D.C. businessman Clarence Kolb who ends up being a guest at their employer, giving an in to making a deal with him.

This sprightly comedy is a fast moving romp with Goddard and MacMurray as memorable as they were in 1942's "The Forest Rangers". She's not a gold-digger or good time girl here, just a screwball romantic type that is also a bit of a klutz. He, of course, starts off as the serious type who lightens a lot as the film goes forward, finding fun in Goddard's silly scheme, which in spite of its implausibility, builds into a lot of fun comedy. The reversal of marital roles between Young and Revere is also delightfully fun, her imperiousness delightfully over-acting in a manner appropriate to the character.

Seldom do I laugh out loud when watching a movie--smile, chuckle, etc. but guffaw? This movie was hilarious. Loved every minute of it. Fred McM was so versatile in the parts he played--comedy, musical, drama, he did them all and very well. I won't give much of the plot away except to say Fred was good as a businessman AND a bumbling butler. The man who played "Topper" was so funny as the milquetoast little "house husband" who had a wondering eye but did not know how to act on it. Edward Arnold stepped right up in pretending to be a butler. And cute, saucy Paulette played her part to perfection. If you enjoy old b&w comedies you should love this one. At age 73 I don't know how I missed it through the years. I watch YouTube movies and listen to old radio shows on my iPod when I can't sleep or to get to sleep. So glad I learned about them.

Copyright 7 January 1944 by Paramount Pictures Inc. New York opening at Loew's Criterion: 22 February 1944. U.S. release: Not recorded. Australian release: 20 July 1944. Sydney opening at the Prince Edward: 7 July 1944 (ran 7 weeks). 7,496 feet. 83 minutes.

SYNOPSIS: Unable to find accommodation in war-time Washington, a man and a young lady take jobs as servants.

NOTES: The More the Merrier was not released in Australia until 4 May 1944. Standing Room Only easily outgrossed the original, coming in 15th at Oz ticket windows for the year, whereas The More the Merrier rated nowhere.

COMMENT: Although rushed into production to cash in on the success of George Stevens' The More the Merrier, this comedy about Washington's war-time housing shortage is at least ten times funnier. It is one of those rare treats in which the first half-hour is as funny as the second, and the second is as funny as the third. Under Sidney Lanfield's polished, beautifully-timed direction, MacMurray, Goddard, Arnold and Young give the best performances of their careers!

The screenplay by Darrell Ware and Karl Tunberg abounds in witty lines and amusing situations. We laughed so much it hurt. I fell off my chair at least three times!

Charles Lang Jr's photography is bright and crisp, whilst the sets by art directors Hans Dreier and Earl Hedrick are pleasingly attractive. On a third viewing, this outstanding comedy seemed as fresh and vibrant as ever - maybe because I had forgotten most of it. Goddard, a delight. MacMurray, the perfect butt. Arnold and Kolb stand-out in support.

"Standing Room Only" must be one of the funniest and best comedy films of all time. It has a wonderful cast who give us rollicking laughter in what they say, do and show. Fred MacMurray and Paulette Goddard star in this comedy-romance set during World War II in Washington, D.C. He is Lee Stevens and she is Jane Rogers. They are on a quest to clinch a contract to turn a toy company into a munitions factory in support of the war. How they came to be together in D.C. in the first place is hilarious.

A first-rate supporting cast adds much to the humor. The script has some funny quips, but much of the humor comes from situations. One might even find some satire nestled here and there with role reversals.

Roland Young is Ira Cromwell, a wealthy Washingtonian who keeps house while his wife goes off to do her part for the war. Young deserved a supporting actor nomination for his wonderful expressions of dismay, amazement and befuddlement in this film. I chuckle as I picture him now, while writing this. Anne Revere is his wife, Major Harriet Cromwell. She heads up a woman's organization, PLOPS (or something like that), that has adopted the American paratroopers. Her group is busy putting together candy packets.

Clarence Kolb is Glen Ritchie, coordinator of the operations division of the War Department. Isabel Randolph plays his wife, Jane, who is dismayed by the lackadaisical demeanor and attitudes of the new servants. Porter Hall is very funny as Hugo Farenhall. He owns a plant and is competing for a war contract with the Todd Toy Co. Edward Arnold, a wonderful leading man and supporting actor, plays T.J. Todd perfectly. Hillary Brooke plays T.J.'s daughter, Alice. A number of other actors in small roles add lines of humor in the film.

The plot for "Standing Room Only" is based on two premises. The first is that during World War II, hotel rooms were hard to come by in Washington, D.C. The second is that with so many of the younger people in uniform, many people left domestic work for the factories and service industries that supported the war effort. So, domestic servants were hard to find. And the upper crust – if they wanted to have servants at all, had to tolerate behavior and attitudes that otherwise would lead to dismissal of a maid, butler, valet, cook or chauffeur.

The screenwriters built a novel idea into a very funny and entertaining story. As I watched this film a second time, it seemed to me that most in the cast were having a lot of fun in the making of the movie.

The film has two dinner scenes that are the funniest that I've ever seen in movies. In the first, Lee is posing as a butler, "Rogers," and is serving the fruit cocktail at the Cromwell dinner table. A strawberry falls from the cocktail he is serving to Mrs. (Major) Cromwell. Every one sits in silence watching as he tries to retrieve the strawberry that rolls around the table and plops onto the major's lap. Of course, we in the audience aren't silent – we're howling with laughter.

The second one is even funnier at a larger dinner at the Ritchie house. T.J. and Lee are both butlers and Jane is the cook. One of the guests is Farenhall, the Todd competitor. The result is some hilarious havoc in the course of the dinner. The closing scene and line in this film are the funniest I have ever seen.

This is a wonderful comedy-romance that should tickle every one's funny bone. Its setting even adds a touch of history to the film. Here are some of the funny lines.

Alice, "But darling, don't you want to protect your daughter?" T.J. Todd, "Ha, ha, ha. That's like protecting a killer shark from a sardine."

Lee, "Can you suggest any place for us to go?" Waiter, "Yes, sir. But we are not allowed to talk to customers that way."

Mrs.(Major) Cromwell, "The servants you get nowadays are frightful. Really, Ira, I should think you could have found someone better." Ira, "It's easy for you to criticize, Harriet. You spend all your day in the office. Never give a thought to what it takes to keep your house running smoothly."

Glen Ritchie, "In my opinion, if you have a one-legged butler and a pyromaniac for a cook, you're fortunate."

Cromwell, "What will I tell the major?" Lee, "You can tell here that I've fallen in love with her and the only honorable thing for me to do is leave."

Ritchie: "I don't mind being called a birdbrain, but I'm not a bureaucrat."

Lee, "I think it's only fair to tell you that the cook next door has her eye on me." Jane, "Well, as long as we're being frank, I'd better tell you about the milkman. I can get all the whipping cream I want."

Mrs. Ritchie, "Rogers, the guests are arriving. I imagine they might like some champagne too." Lee, "Yes, madam."

Hugo Farenhall, "Todd!" T.J., "Yes, sir." Hugo, "What are you up to?" T.J., "It's all very simple, Mr. Farenhall. I've figured it all out. That, with the high cost of living and the taxes, I can make more money as a butler than I could running a factory."

Mrs. Ritchie, "I'm afraid we'll have to go in. The cook wants to serve dinner now and we'd better let her have her way. That is, if we want any dinner."

Ritchie, "I'm sorry, but with the servant situation as it is, we must allow them some privileges."

Sidney Lanfield directed a series of light romantic comedies at Paramount in the 1940s. He had already directed Paulette Goddard in a previous film, so this was a reunion for them. It was also a reunion for Goddard and leading man Fred MacMurray who had worked together in Paramount's action drama THE FOREST RANGERS two years earlier. They shared excellent chemistry and it's no wonder the studio wanted to pair them up again.

STANDING ROOM ONLY is a frothier concoction. Goddard is employed at an Indiana toy factory. She toils on an assembly line putting wooden donkeys together (what else) when one of the top execs (MacMurray) makes an appearance. All the women swoon over MacMurray, though he is engaged to the owner's daughter (Hillary Brooke). After MacMurray returns to the front office, one of the foremen notices that Goddard is making mistakes and this is the third time she's received a warning. Goddard is sent to the office to be fired.

At the office, we see Brooke visiting her father (Edward Arnold). Brooke realizes that MacMurray, her fiance, has an attractive looking secretary and she prevails upon her father to sack the secretary. While this is happening, Goddard shows up to collect her pay. In the waiting area, she learns that MacMurray's secretary is getting the heave-ho, so she angles her way into that position, because she needs a new job.

There are some genuinely funny bits here as Goddard invents her own made-up shorthand and quickly joins MacMurray on a business trip to Washington D. C. And so the basic scenario is established. From here things become increasingly outlandish, in a good way, as motion picture comedies go. There's a housing shortage in the nation's capital. We are told that a million people in 1944 need accommodations there, but the city only has housing for 150,000.

This is worth noting, because Goddard fouls up the hotel reservations. Now that they cannot stay at the hotel and cannot even find a room to rent in D. C., they must sleep in the park during a massive rainstorm. In order to get out of the cold, Goddard finds accommodations for them the next morning by answering an ad for domestic help at a swanky mansion. The place is owned by Anne Revere and Roland Young, who have a field day playing a couple experiencing gender role reversals. While Revere is a Major off helping with the war effort, Young functions as the main housekeeper and he finds time to cozy up to Goddard.

Part of the fun during this sequence is MacMurray not realizing that Goddard has told Young and Revere he's a butler, and that Goddard is a cook and is also MacMurray's wife. When MacMurray realizes the terms under which they are staying in this nice warm dry home, he is incredulous. But then he realizes they don't have a choice and he actually admires Goddard for her resourcefulness.

At this point the story becomes a satire on class differences and social manners. And most of it is quite clever. Goddard is just as inept as a cook as she was at being a secretary and assembly line worker. But somehow, she is a good luck charm for MacMurray...the man (Clarence Kolb) he came to see in Washington to secure an important contract is coming over for dinner. This will give him a chance to try and pitch his ideas to Kolb.

Complicating matters, turning this into a grand farce, is the arrival of Arnold and Brooke who are shocked to learn that MacMurray is now employed as a servant. Of course, Brooke loses MacMurray to Goddard in the romantic sweepstakes, no surprise there, and miraculously, everything turns out okay in the end. The contract is secured, and we know that everyone will go back to the midwest better off.

As studio fluff with a wartime theme, STANDING ROOM ONLY delivers some amusing situations with considerable laughs. Working together, the characters are able to overcome the odds. Goddard is an unusual secret weapon MacMurray uses in obtaining victory.