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The presence of Grant and Lombard drew me to this one on American Movie Classics, though I thought the script might a bit of a handkerchief-wringer. To my surprise the story was thoroughly absorbing and involving, as well as being a great study of the manners and mores of the era. And of course, Cary Grant and Carole Lombard carry the whole thing through with their wonderful performances. Well worth a see.

This is the perfect movie to curl up to on a winter day and get lost in a soap opera. The performances are very good and Lombard is just gorgeous. I think the best reason to see it is to see Kay Francis in a comeback performance. She had been relegated to the undesirable list by the studios at this point in her career. Her portrayal of Maida, Cary Grant's uncompromising wife, is great fun to watch. The movie is a little cornball in parts but overall it works. Lombard fans really won't be disappointed.

After watching this you will have seen why Kay Francis was such a good actress. I know this one is billed with Cary Grant and Carole Lombard but this one was Kay Francis' show.

Man does she put on a performance. She's not in it very much but she doesn't need to be. You'll get an idea what a gold digger really is and what they can do with her performance. She's just flat out evil.

In this film you'll see what a good supporting cast should look like. I wish they still made these melodramas like this. I'm grateful though that there are plenty to choose from on DVD from this time period.

I know this line is old and tired and said all the time but..."they just don't make em like this anymore."

This film is an old favorite and a crowd pleaser. I saw it recently and the amazing this is that even though 65 years have passed since its release, it still holds one's attention. Thanks to the direction of John Cromwell, this is a timeless classic.

The production of this film must have presented problems to the team involved in it. Films of the era stayed away from taboo themes because of the censorship, but this movie is an exception: an unhappily married man finds happiness with a widowed working mother. It is clear that there's nothing between Alec and Maida, a power couple living a life of luxury in the country.

Enter lovely Julie Eden. She is beautiful, talented, but with no desire to be a part of the country gentry around her. She's a free spirit who falls under the spell of a handsome Alec; who wouldn't? At the same time, Julie realizes this relationship has no future. She leaves the situation going back to Manhattan, trying to forget Alec.

The combination of Carole Lombard, playing Julie, against the Alec of Cary Grant, pays a great dividend. These two actors were meant to play opposite each other; they both bring enough charisma to fill a few other movies. Added to this mixture is the great Kay Francis, as Maida, the society wife who will not let go of her ticket to the life of luxury she is accustomed to.

The rest of the cast is excellent. Additional credit must go to Irene, the costume designer who had an eye for the clothes all the society types wore at the time.

A truly good time at the movies.

I watched `In Name Only' the other night after about 20 odd years since the last time I watched it. I didn't realise how lovely this film actually was…..maybe age has matured me to such delights, who knows!!! Carole Lombard and Cary Grant star together and their pairing does work. Though the performance from Kay Francis was extremely convincing, she showed a cold calculated woman determined to keep Grant's character in a loveless marriage, parading a pretense to family and friends she was the hard-done-by wife.

Lombard's character Julie Eden was of course the opposite of Kay Francis's character……two different women in the extreme. Both women are vying for the same man, but with definite distinctions between them to what their reasons are..... one for love and the other for wealth and power. Amongst all this is Grant's character Alec Walker…….he knows to well of his wife's ambition, to the point of utterly loathing her (I actually think he does in the film).

The cinematography was sharp, editing and sound was to a high standard. The dialogue was clear and the plot was satisfactory……I say this because watching this film today really has no relevance to our society anymore. Couples just live with each other, there's no stigma attached or judgements made against them. The era of the film depicts a very different society code and morals.

`In Name Only' certainly has a place in my film collection. 8/10