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“The Talk of the Town” is a comic melodrama in the forms of fun, light suspense, and engaging action story which was directed by George Stevens and stars Cary Grant, Ronald Colman, and Jean Arthur. It is a pleasant watch for the time it takes.
The movie was notably successful during its release in 1942 and earned 7 Academy Awards which, in truth, have only served to increase critiques on this motion picture.
This is actually an educational documentary about a justice system designed to solely benefit the wealthy class in society and completely misses the “lump in the throat” pathos of Frank Capra or Preston Sturge’s films. However, it is still tight on the lack of emotional depth.
These accomplish the tasks of a screwball comedy. But Stevens, who is mostly recognized for his works in “Shane,” “Giant,” and “A Place in the Sun,” did not have “the (Ernst) Lubitsch touch,” which refers to the lack of timing and rat-a-tat dialogues found in a Howard Hawks film.
That makes its romance and lighthearted areas so comedic, but not as marvelous as some other films that portray similar feelings.
Just take a gander at how stiff the competition was at the Oscars back in March 1943. “Yankee Doodle Dandy”, “Now Voyager”, “Mrs. Miniver”, “To Be or Not to Be”, “The Magnificent Ambersons,” and “The Pride of the Yankees” all put up a good fight. It’s no wonder it didn’t win anything. I reckon the chances of winning anything were slim to none to begin with.
While watching this comedic piece, I kept pondering why I had not bumped into this movie at a film society, college class, or even some classic film channel. Its credits scream “classic.” However, the situation is rather ironic as one of the writers was Oscar winner Sidney Buchman, who originated “The Awful Truth,” “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,” and “Here Comes Mr. Jordan,” which was the inspiration for “Heaven Can Wait.”
He was one of the leading figures in dramatic Babylons. Stevens was completely out of his depth here. Pretty sure this is why “Talk of the Town” never quite hits the right comic, sentiment, or romance like it’s supposed to.
But what stands out after all these years is the commendable pairing of two leading men in a movie that gives Colman the chance to shine in a rare light-hearted, albeit sophisticated role.
He is a professor and a dean of a law school named Michael Lightcap who rents a farmhouse outside the New England mill town of Rochester. He plans on writing a variety of books based on the philosophy and history surrounding an obscure area known as The Law.
However, he shows up a day earlier and homeowner Nora Shelley, who has starred in Mr. Smith goes to Washington and Shane has yet to finish cleaning and furnishing the shack. Oh, and a convict that escaped has just stumbled onto her doorstep in the rain.
Leopold Dilg is a Lochester loudmouth, someone noted for taking on the self-serving ‘rule’ of the town ‘boss’, Andrew Holmes. A factory burned down and a fire watchman was killed in the fire. The provocateur Dilg is the most likely culprit and is promptly jailed.
His ‘escape’ only serves to confirm his guilt in the eyes of the public. “Miss Shelley, you do not think I could burn a factory down?” makes her convinced that he needs to protect him from exposure. Well, plus the fact that he is played by Cary Grant.
Dilg is “the only honest man I have run into in this town in twenty years,” said his lawyer. “They obviously want to hang him.”
The best moments of comedy here are the constant flow of interlopers cops, and lawyers Edgar Buchanan plays the true believer lawyer assigned to the case over the defendant’s Dilg objections. The relatives, bloodhounds, and even a senator who wants to inform the renowned professor that there is a supreme court seat available to him should this great legal mind choose to take it.
Dilg reveals his whereabouts on the farm field to head off the inevitable Nora passes him off, “Joseph the gardener.” But “Joseph” knows quite a lot about the law and America’s ‘two tier’ justice system and Joseph is quite talkative on these subjects. The not so “theoretical” professor is skillfully led into the “Rochester law” castle through this “gardener’s” perspective and manipulated in the process.
As for Lightcap, he has an amusing date at the local ballpark. Where he meets the judge who has made the decision already and his beaten helpful followers. He is sweet-talked to the scene of the crime where the showboating passively hostile capitalist is playing the endlessly victimized figure who is in hot pursuit of ‘justice’ and overly abundant ‘attention.’
Our legal eagle wasn’t prepared for the depth of this crime, their motive, this gardener, and the entire system as a whole. A lot more lies within this brave little flower fairy who guides and protects the charming Lightcap to the light while aiding and abetting him as well.
Lightcap’s “man” (manservant) makes an entry in the scene. He is played by Rex Ingram (“Green Pastures,” “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” Sahara, and “Your Cheatin’ Heart”). Ingram’s portrayal of the character is likely intended to be funnier than it comes off as. Ingram’s character serves as a “man” or “manservant,” which is the title meant to be less offensive than the enslaved roles that African Americans were obliged to take during the time period in which the films were produced.
As with much in a Capra picture, the democracy-in-action finale is jubilant but confusing in its politics. Stevens & Co. are more cynical than Capra which is a mess in itself. There’s a reason for the uncertainty. More straightforward than Capra, but not as direct as Americans would expect from “Casablanca.”
In one of his many lectures throughout the movie, Dilg asks, “What is the law? It’s a gun pointed at somebody’s head. All depends upon which end of the gun you stand, whether the law is just or not.” Such speeches demonstrate how pointless the law can be.
It’s always a delight to watch and listen to Colman, Grant gives an edge with his, seemingly reluctant to support his fellow actor. “Arthur” doesn’t come anywhere close to the best performances that ticked off her heart-touching pieces, which is good because occasionally, she does entertain.
This highlights the idea that all of the ‘Talk’ narratives put together are a bit disparate, a movie having all the elements of a classic but lacking the speed and the ‘touch’. This means they are left with less than they could have actually achieved.
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