Let's Make It Legal

The two main male characters are both pursuing and fighting over the older woman (Claudette Colbert) and ignoring the charms of the young bombshell (Marilyn Monroe)! Surely that is a progressive and unusual story line for 1951, maybe for any era. Colbert and the two men do fine work, and Monroe looks great and does a few funny physical bits in her small role (it is absurd that the DVD is promoted as a Marilyn Monroe movie). Great period costumes, decor and language, too. This is an entertaining, sometimes funny '50s film with a strangely progressive bent, a strong older-woman lead, and some interesting character quirks (how can you not love a guy whose passions are horse betting and rose cultivation), plus a Marilyn Monroe cameo.

Pretty straightforward romantic comedy from the 1950's starring the wonderful Claudette Colbert and the new to me Macdonald Carey. They play Miriam and Hugh Halsworth who are in the process of getting a divorce. Miriam is still living in the family's home with their daughter, son-in-law and new born granddaughter. I was delighted to see Robert Wagner as the son-in-law who played off Barbara Bates who played his young wife. Another delightful surprise is the young Marilyn Monroe, who plays a bit part as a side character...I feel like she was under used in this film as a distraction.

A large part of the comedy is around Hugh constantly showing up uninvited to the family home...and his concern over his garden roses that at one point he shows up at night to move! Their divorce is proceeding when their high school friend and Miriam's former boyfriend shows up wanting to pursue her again...this reveals an ancient secret around some dice used to win Miriam.

Claudette Colbert is the best part of this film and if you are a fan you just get it. Cute and fun, I think fans of early 50's romantic comedies will enjoy this. The one downside is the whole divorce storyline. I hate the normalization of divorce that I see in this film.

I bought this DVD at cut price and only recently watched it. Had no ideas about it - Marilyn was on the front of the case but as has been mentioned before, that was dishonest marketing as she is a minor supporting actor. The main stars, Claudette Colbert in particular, shine and it's a lot of fun. Yes, the story is silly - it's a 1950s comedy - and the acting would not win Oscars, but it's a 77 minute smile that turns into a giggle now and again. The clothes are divine and the story swims along merrily, with a highly likely ending. Pity about Macdonald Carey, he was like an American Carey Grant, and could have done well in movies, but seems to have concentrated his career on TV.

This is probably one of Marilyn's least watched films. She didn't have much screen time but I thought it was a pretty cute movie. Claudette Colbert is almost unbelievable as a grandmother because she is still so beautiful. The ending is great. Too cute. 4 stars out of 5.

Poor Colbert.

She's surrounded by actors who couldn't stand in front of a camera with her, even if they had been in their prime. Her star power blows them right off the screen, one after the other. Looks, charm, stance, poise, physical condition, charisma, eyes, nose, mouth, voice, motions..... every aspect that goes into making an actress, she's ten times greater than anyone else in this film.

Even in scenes where the action takes place in the living room, with all the other actors talking and moving in the foreground, and Colbert standing in the kitchen door, she just dominates the shot. It's dazzling to see how great she is, but it saddens the heart that she couldn't get better treatment from a studio.

It's like watching a world record brook trout swimming in a school of grass carp.