Piccadilly Jim

When the leading lady (Madge Evans) must explain why she likes her suitor (Ralph Forbes)and must contrast that attitude with her feelings for Robert Montgomery, you know the film is in trouble. Montgomery can say there's "electricity" between himself and Evans, but that spark is not transmitted to celluloid. And that is too bad, because the film is wittier -- per Wodehouse -- and better-acted than many films of the era. But Evans' loves and likings must be verbalized. The energy is simply not on the screen, only in the script. She is beautiful, though. She needed a different character -- more remote, more mysterious, more fearful of love. And then, maybe... Blore is wonderful, and lights up every scene he is in, as the butler who knows his Shakespere better than the ham, Frank Morgan. But this is one of Morgan's best roles. His only triumph, apparently, was as Osric, in Cedar Rapids. Now Osric is the foppish courtier at the end of 'Hamlet' -- hardly the role of a lifetime. But Morgan disguises himself as "Count Osric of Denmark" in order to infiltrate the family of his beloved (Billy Burke) and turns his failure as actor into personal success. It is a neat touch. Burke's flighty flutiness is hardly used in the film, but she does have a funny line about remembering how painful youth was. The Morgan-Burke romance is intended as a foil for the Montgomery-Evans courtship and that would have worked well had the main plot had more chemistry.

P.G. Wodehouse is best remembered for his creation of the unflappable butler Jeeves in those Bertie Wooster stories. In Piccadilly Jim, Wodehouse creates another butler character Bayliss here played by the slightly more flappable Eric Blore who does save the situation for his employer Robert Montgomery the notorious London cartoonist Piccadilly Jim. Of course not quite in the way he intended.

Piccadilly Jim is your very typical Wodehouse story, a comedy of manners and satire of the upper and middle classes. In this one however we Americans get a bit of a going over for our pretensions and crass commercialism in the persons of the Pett family.

With whom Montgomery and his father Frank Morgan get involved, Montgomery in an effort to help Morgan. It seems as though Frank would like to settle down and marry Billie Burke, but the grande dame of the family, aunt Cora Witherspoon won't hear of it. Montgomery dives into the situation and romances sister Madge Evans who is about to marry a title in the person of dull and dishwater Ralph Forbes. But his instincts as a cartoonist take over and he finds a lot of material for satire in the doings of the Pett family. So much so that they feel they have to leave London where they are vacationing and had back across the pond. Of course Montgomery, Morgan, and Blore follow along on the same ocean liner.

One thing about Piccadilly Jim is that it is so perfectly cast. Just the names of the cast and the roles described and you know exactly what you are in for. This film is a great example of the studio contract system at its best, the studio had all or most of these people under contract to MGM and they just got dropped into roles perfectly suited to the image that MGM had created for them.

Robert Montgomery though American with his stage training and diction fits right into a Wodehouse English role without missing a beat. And Wodehouse's wit and eye for characters and caricature is as sharp as ever. Piccadilly Jim holds up remarkably well after over 70 years and the film is a great introduction to P.G. Wodehouse.

Another great "gentleman's gentleman" role for Eric Blore, similar to his role in "It's Love I'm After," with Leslie Howard. He's hilarious!

I am becoming a Robert Montgomery fan as I see more of his movies. As an actor who made most of his films in the 30's he is largely forgotten today compared with actors who kept making films into the fifties like Cary Grant and Jimmy Stewart. However he is a fine natural actor, a very good comedian and an altogether charming leading man. His specialty is the warm-hearted, well-mannered and slightly tipsy gentleman in evening clothes and he doesn't disappoint in this film. He pursues the girl with an admirable single-mindedness and belief in the inevitability of her eventual reciprocation.

The film has other pleasures, most notably the presence of Eric Blore as the gentleman's gentleman. This delightful actor is one of the great funny-men of this era. Also in fine form are Frank Morgan, as the ham actor who impersonates a Hungarian Count, Cora Witherspoon as an overbearing society woman, Billy Burke, Grant Mitchell and Robert Benchley as, what else, a lush. Truly a smorgasbord of character acting.

The plot is interesting enough to hold our attention and the little snippets of caricature and thirties-style newspaper comic strip are fun.

The only slight disappointment is Madge Evans as the ingénue, who plays it straight and is no match for the sublime Montgomery. All in all an enjoyable interlude.

Robert Montgomery is smooth and snappy as the artist—er, newspaper cartoonist—known as "Piccadilly Jim." He introduces us to his father, unemployed actor Frank Morgan: "He does Shakespeare or nothing. In other words, nothing." Montgomery and Morgan lead a great cast in this very funny comedy of misunderstood motives and assumed identities.

Madge Evans is witty and lovely as the girl Montgomery spots in a restaurant and then pursues from England to America. Their romance is, of course, full of bumps and misunderstandings; Evans and Montgomery make a great pair, both of them slightly less nutty than their families, and both completely beautiful and lovable.

Madge's two aunts are also splendid. Cora Witherspoon is loud, bossy and funny as the social climber trying to prevent her female relatives from falling in love with the wrong men; and Billie Burke, who carries on a rather secretive affair with old smooth talker Morgan, is just about perfect—funny, sweet, slightly ditzy yet quietly knowing in her own way. The scenes between Burke and Morgan are really delightful—two great character actors at their absolute best.

Eric Blore is hilarious as Montgomery's faithful and eminently correct valet; he completely refuses to be discouraged when his repeated attempts to tell an anecdote about Robert the Bruce are rebuffed.

Besides the great cast, the direction is crisp and the script is excellent—a plot that is silly but holds together, packed with characters who are full of foibles but never really wicked. Lots of fun.