A Stranger in Town

"A Stranger in Town" holds up very well after sixty-three years. The only part that seems curious and quaint today is the closing with Joe Grant (The Wizard of Oz, aka Frank Morgan) giving a rousing patriotic speech (remember this was made during the height of World War II). The court packing scheme of President Roosevelt was still fresh on the movie goer's mind, having been all over the news a short six years earlier. So having a Supreme Court justice go incognito was apropos in 1943. Today, few would recognize a Supreme Court justice if they tripped over one. So no need for a disguise. Changing times.

Associate Justice Josephus Grant attempting to get away from it all goes on a duck-hunting vacation to the small town of Crown Port. He no sooner arrives than he is arrested and tried for not having a local hunting license but in reality because he wouldn't pay off the local police official who caught him. It becomes obvious to Grant that he has chosen a corrupt town for his vacation. Enter a reform candidate for mayor, Bill Adams (Richard Carlson), who has virtually given up any hope of winning. Grant rallies Adams onward and upward by teaching him tricks of the trade in the court room. Fighting city hall becomes more fun when Grant's business-like, yet attractive and smart, secretary, Lucy Gilbert (Jean Rogers), comes to town to bring Grant important papers concerning a case the Court is hearing. Yes, it is love at first sight between Adams and Lucy. Much of the fun centers on Adams' clumsiness and shyness in trying to court Lucy. The election heats up with all sorts of humorous skulduggery until the showdown involving a free-for-all brawl on the street in front of Adams' campaign headquarters.

This film is so fast-paced with fine acting by all involved, including a gallery of character actors such as Chill Wills, Olin Howland, Donald MacBride, Porter Hall, and even Eddy Waller in a bit part, that it proves extremely entertaining with many a wry comment on the politics of the day, which are not unlike the politics of today.

"A Stranger in Town" turns out to be a pleasant surprise. I originally viewed it to see Frank (The Wizard of Oz) Morgan in a starring role, and did not have any grand expectations. But it turned out to be a droll little film, quite entertaining.

The whole plot is predicated on the general anonymity of Supreme Court justices. Does anyone know what they look like? Can anyone even name all 9? Along the way, we get a look and some commentary on small town American life in the 1940s, as well as a Capra-esque speech by Morgan near the end of the film.

Their is also some requisite romantic interest thrown in, which is quite incidental and was probably just added to stretch out the running time. The film also has Porter Hall, who played the heel in "Miracle on 34th St." and the heel in "The Thin Man", playing, you guessed it, a heel.

Overall, a very pleasant way to spend 70 minutes. Give it a view when you get the chance.

I have to admit that what initially drew me to watch A Stranger in Town was its 67 minute run time. I don't recall ever seeing such a short run time and I was curious. The result is that I'm very happy that I took the time to check it out because it's a very pleasant, humorous, and enjoyable film. Most of the performances are solid, the production values are decent, and it's a good story. I don't recall ever seeing John Carlson or Jean Rogers on film before, but I found them quite likeable here and may have to see what else they've done. A Stranger in Town is worth checking out.

Looking for something to watch on a Friday evening while feeling ill I ran across this wonderful little gem I had dvr'd earlier in the week solely because it had Frank Morgan AND Richard Carlson. My mind wanted to see The Wizard of Oz meets the man who fights The Creature from the Black Lagoon and how well they would be together! TCM had given it only 3 stars so I was not expecting much and the first 90% of the film was entertaining enough, a solid 3 star movie. Amusing to envision a time when a Supreme Court Justice would not be instantly recognized by the Mayberry-esque type town mayor and judge (even if the quaint town does have some shady goings on). No googling in that day and age! Then we reach the last 10 minutes of the film. Which if I could rate the film ONLY on those last 10 minutes it would be a solid 5 stars. Frank Morgan delivers a speech that will move and inspire you. Gave me chills to hear a monologue from a man written and spoken over 60 years ago that could be a headline of this evenings news. The problems he spoke about are exactly the problems our nation is facing today. Touched me so profoundly I played it over and over until I got every word written down and then posted it online to my friends. Bottom line, a nice enough little film from the early 40's with a magnificent ending. Worth watching with your children for not only does it address some current political problems but also bullying.

Oddly, this film stars Frank Morgan as a Supreme Court justice! He's on vacation and runs afoul of a small town's corrupt administration. The crooked judge, mayor and their henchmen don't realize who Morgan is, so he's able to see first-hand their under-handed tactics. Because of their abuse of political power, Morgan decides to stick around and assist a naive young lawyer (Richard Carlson) in his bid to become mayor. At first, they are pretty much ignored, though in time, when the race for mayor seems tight, the old mayor unleashed a wave of dirty tricks--not realizing that Morgan holds the ultimate trump card.

I had a hard time deciding whether to score this one a 7 or an 8. It was very good--particularly for a B-movie. Being a "B", it is a relatively short picture (only 67 minutes) but unlike many Bs it has excellent production values (especially the writing) and is very entertaining. About the only knock against it is that I thought the fight scenes were a bit too "slapsticky" and didn't exactly integrate well into the rest of the picture. Still, it's a dandy performance by Frank Morgan, as he's more restrained (i.e., less "hammy") than in most of his starring vehicles--well worth seeing and a lot of fun--as well as a decent civics lesson.