Film Review
Having made audiences howl with hysterics in the premier screwball
comedy
The Awful Truth (1937), the
winning couple of Cary Grant and Irene Dunne are brought back together
to make the same audiences weep buckets with this no-holds-barred tear
jerker. The film is about as contrived as it is possible for a
piece of fiction to be and exploits every possible device in the
tear-maker's armoury to full lachrymosal effect, and yet it is crafted
with such sincerity and charm that you cannot help falling for it.
Hollywood weepies are often derided and looked down on (even dismissed as
women's pictures) but, if they are
well scripted, well directed and well acted, they can be highly
effective and provide a genuinely rewarding experience for the
spectator.
Penny Serenade
is an example of such a film which, despite its obvious sentimentality
and plot contrivances, engages the emotions and provokes tears, without
giving you the feeling that you are being manipulated.
George Stevens should receive his share of the credit for the film's
slick and subtle direction, but the greater part of the film's impact and
emotional truth derives from the well-judged performances from Cary Grant
and Irene Dunne. Grant is renowned for making us laugh, but here
he is just as effective at making us cry, and we end up loving him all
the more for it. This was only one of two roles for which he
earned an Oscar nomination - the other being
None But the Lonely Heart
(1944). If you are feeling hopelessly melancholic
there is probably no better therapy than
Penny Serenade. Just make
sure you have a well-stocked box of Kleenex beside you when you watch
it. After this shameless tear-jerker, George Stevens would unleash
one of Hollywood's greatest double acts, Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn,
in
Woman of the Year (1942),
before making such well-loved classics as
Shane (1953) and
Giant (1956).
© James Travers 2009
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Next George Stevens film:
The Talk of the Town (1942)
Film Synopsis
Julie Gardiner has decided to leave her husband. As she sorts
through her old record collection she remembers their life together and
the tragic events that have led to their inevitable separation. She met
Roger Adams, an ambitious young journalist, when he walked into the
record shop where she once worked. After a whirlwind
romance, they marry and move to Tokyo, where Roger has found work on a
newspaper. When Roger comes into a small inheritance they decide
to return to the United States, but before they leave they are
caught up in an earthquake which causes Julie to have a
miscarriage. Unable to have any children of her own, Julie
decides to adopt, but the adoption agency has strict rules, one of
which is that the parents must have a reasonable income. Since he
took over an ailing newspaper, Roger has made no money but he is
determined to make a living for his family. Miss Oliver, an
employee of the adoption agency, looks favourably on Julie and Roger
and allows them to take charge of a five-week old baby girl. The
new arrival changes the lives of the couple and they could hardly be
happier. But when the time comes for them to apply for adoption
Roger still doesn't have an income and, according to the rules, the
child must be returned to the orphanage...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.