Goodbye Again

Goodbye Again (1933)

A rollicking, smartly written, snappily acted comedy farce. Yes, I loved it.

Joan Blondell is the famous leading woman here, but it is really the witty, sharp performance by Warren William that lifts this great comedy to a true high. Add the very canny direction by none other than Michael Curtiz and you can see why this is a must see. You might even call this a screwball comedy, though coming a year before screwball's more official inception with "It Happened One Night."

The first real scene here might lead you to think it was going to be one kind of comedy, filled with subtle playacting and a kind of mismatched couple sparring. Hugh Herbert is a quirky character actor at his subtle best here, with mannerisms that surprise every time I see him, and he plays the bewildered husband perfectly. His wife, played well by Genevieve Tobin, is a ditzy but not stupid woman with a crush on an old flame who is now a famous author.

But wait for the real wit and cleverness to begin when this very author (Warren William) comes to town and she goes to seduce him. William is a perfect cad. He's without scruples, which makes you love him even if you might (might) disagree with his actions. (No one is ever actually hurt in these matters.) Blondell plays his secretary, supremely capable and devoted and yet independent. You suspect they should be the real couple in the movie, but they aren't.

Things only compound and get more zany with each scene, ending with exactly the fast, laugh out loud conclusion you kind of wanted all along. This is true pre-Code comedy, with adultery barely veiled (or not veiled at all if you're awake), and with no required justice for "crimes" committed along the way. Which makes it all terribly fun and funny and just slightly naughty. For all these reasons this is a movie not to miss.

Warren William is a successful romance novelist with Joan Blondell his ever-loving secretary. Up pops Genevieve Tobin, who promised to wait for him and didn't, asking for his forgiveness. He has no clear memory of her, so he does, and now he has to explain to his Miss Blondell, Miss Tobin's husband Hugh Herbert, and then dodge Miss Tobin, who is intent on making up for his broken heart, all without giving offense to anyone.

It's an amusing pre-code comedy, and probably closer to William in reality than the satyr-like heels he was usually called on to play in this era. He was married to one woman for 25 years until his death. They avoided the Hollywood scene, and he was an amateur inventor when not playing Perry Mason or the Lone Wolf. Miss Blondell, as she so often was, is acerbically funny in her role. Keep an eye out for Jay Ward, long before he thought of Rocky and Bullwinkle.

Delightfully absurd comedy in which Joan Blondell is the long suffering secretary to a bestselling author (Warren William) who is being pursued by his ex girlfriend (Genevieve Tobin) who is convinced she is the model for the heroines of his books. To add to the confusion, her sister and brother-in-law turn up, determined to avert a scandal, and her hapless husband also gets dragged into the perplexing situation. It is all very funny with Warren William particularly amusing as the egotistical but charming author. A treat for anyone who enjoys screwball comedy.

The awesome Joan Blondell is assistant to popular writer Kenneth Bixby (Warren William). Bixby and Julie (Genevieve Tobin ) had dated way back when... which could be a problem, as Julie is now married to Harvey (vaudeville guy Hugh Herbert). William would probably best be known from the "Lone Wolf" films and the detective Philo Vance films. and the incredible Joan Blondell would go on to do How to Marry a Millionaire and Desk Set. The story is so-so. the picture and sound quality are quite good, for such an oldie. The plot is pretty lighweight and flimsy, but ah well. Herbert is quite understated in this one; in some of his films, he plays the mumbling, absent-minded cluck, and goes over the top. Not so much in this one. It's more of a love-triangle farce. must have been made JUST before the enforcement of the film production code... story of a married woman running after a single man wouldn't be considered proper pretty soon. and a son in addition! Blondell had started right about when the talkies were invented, but she's stuck in a light little caper here. Another Michael Curtiz production, but nothing on the level of Casablanca, which he would make ten years later.

About halfway through I realised I'd seen this before - only about a year ago but I'd instantly forgotten it. Kind of sums this nondescript nonsense.

Although we've got Michael Curtiz in the chair and Joan Blondell in full cuteness mode, what we haven't got is fun or drama or indeed entertainment.

Two problems: the studio and the cast.

Obviously WB made all sorts of movie genres back in the early 30s but those which stand the test of time are those in tune with the people struggling to get by as a result of the depression. This movie isn't about those people, it's about people we don't really care about. This type of movie needs more gloss so might have been better had it been made by Paramount etc. Who were used to that more superficial style.

Second problem - William Warren and Joan Blondell were the unlikely couple who just clicked a few months earlier in the fantastic Gold Diggers of 1933 - they're here again playing not too dissimilar roles but in this one they just don't click, there's zero chemistry between them. When we watch these types of romantic comedies (although this one isn't funny) we're hoping that the boy and the girl get together and live happily ever after. That doesn't happen in this, it just makes us annoyed that lovely Joan throwing herself someone whom we have no empathy for and clearly doesn't deserve her. There are quite a few underlying themes in this which, if better written, could have been explored more, maybe turning it into a more dramatic film rather than a weak comedy but as it is, it's a waste of everyone's talent.