La joyeuse héritière

Madeleine Carroll is totally miscast in a role that cries out for Jean Arthur, in which the usual shenanigans ensue when she plays a mousy secretary nursing a secret crush on millionaire playboy Francis Lederer, who is led to believe all his inheritance has gone to her in order to "make a man of him".

Ho hum.

It's odd to have Czech actor and a British actress in the leads in a romantic comedy set in the States, but if you can look past that, "It's All Yours" is a very sweet film....and it's well worth your time.

When the story begins, you learn that Jimmy (Francis Lederer) is a playboy and has come from Europe to stay with his very rich uncle. However, Jimmy's crazy and lavish ways worry the uncle...so much so that an odd arrangement seems to have been worked out after the old man's death. So, instead of Jimmy inheriting everything, the fortune apparently goes to the secretary, Linda (Medeleine Carroll). She shocks Jimmy by becoming an even bigger spender with a very lavish lifestyle. What Jimmy doesn't know is that this is all for show, as she is trying to reform him and get him to grow up...and hopefully one day marry her. Gumming up the works are two folks pursuing each of them for their money. What's to become of all this?

While you wouldn't normally think of either of these folks in a comedy, it works out well...so well I nearly give the film an 8. Well made and clever.

When a wealthy American industrialist dies suddenly, his rakish nephew "Jimmy" (Francis Lederer) expects to inherit a substantial chunk of his late uncle's $4m fortune. It turns out, though, that he leaves him just $1, with most of the rest going to his loyal secretary "Linda Gray" (Madeleine Carroll). She is a little upset by this arrangement but together with his old business partner "Duncan" (Charles Waldron) decides that young "Jimmy" needs a lesson in hard knocks to make him grow up - so she takes the money and he has to become her assistant on the princely sum of $75 per week. She goes off on a spending spree and "Duncan" warns "Jimmy" that he had better pursue her and try to dissuade her from running through all the money before he has a chance to contest the will. What now ensues is quite a fun cat and mouse game, with the hapless "Jimmy" being quite effectively manipulated. Misha Auer is also on entertaining form as her pursuing admirer the "Baron Rene", and the comedic elements of this rather obvious, but still amusing, love triangle all play out quite amiably in this well paced drama. It's a fine example of a solid cast with some solid writing that still manages to raise the odd smile.

"It's All Yours" has a very unusual plot, but one with potential for a good comedy. But this film isn't it for a few reasons. First, the story and screenplay are just a little off - it needed better writing. Then, the leads don't work. Not only do they not mesh, but individually their performances fall way short.

Madeleine Carroll and Francis Lederer are both hit and miss with comedy - mostly miss. She's not very good - just can't carry it off. Another reviewer mentioned Jean Arthur, but Carol Lombard, Claudette Colbert, Irene Dunne, Paulette Goddard and a number of other actresses would have been splendid in the role, even without a rewrite. But that's all there would have been to the film unless Francis Lederer also were changed. He's nothing but a loud, obnoxious cad - most of the time. And his change in character toward the end just doesn't seem real.

No, this is one Melvyn Douglas, or William Powell, or maybe Dick Powell would have done quite well with. But we didn't have them, so this is a real yawner that's very hard to keep enough interest to even see to the end.

The film has a few lines that showed the comedy possibilities. But there were very few, and here they are.

Linda Gray, "You've been a dear. You know I'm grateful." Alexander Duncan, "Oh, nonsense. I haven't had so much fun since I defended that fan dancer."

Linda Gray, "You may serve tea now, uh, Celeste." Maggie, "Yes, mum." Jimmy Barnes, "Celeste?" Linda Gray, "Yes. I've always wanted a maid named Celeste, so I call her Celeste. Her name's Maggie." Jimmy Banes, "Maggie?" Linda Gray, "Celeste."

Jimmy Barnes, "Look, Gray, let's skip tea if you don't mind. I didn't come 3,00 miles for orange pekoe."

Jimmy Barnes, "Don't confide in... He's after your money." Linda Gray, "What are you after, Jimmy?" Jimmy Barnes, "My money."

Stewardess, "We're in Mountain Time now, you'd better change your watches." Constance Marlowe, "Oh, dear, I wish everybody had the same kinda time. I get all mixed up. It's really four, only we have to say it's five, and in New York everybody thinks its two." Baron Rene de Montigny, "No, no, no, no! In New York it is wh, uh, shaseeza... it is eight. In China it is two. But it is yesterday." Constance Marlowe, "But we're not going to China." Baron, "No." Constance, "And if we don't get to New York until yesterday, we might as well have taken the train." Baron, "Hmmm?"

Francis Lederer is the loved wastrel nephew of J. C. Nugent. Nugent is dying, so he works out a scheme with his partners to cut Lederer off with a dollar, and leave the bulk of his wealth to his secretary, Madeleine Carroll with instructions to reform the fellow. Carroll has loved Lederer hopelessly for years and no discernible reason. After Nugent kicks the bucket, Miss Carroll goes on a bad investment spree, which causes Lederer to follow her to keep an eye on her, until he can have a witness to his uncle's will thrown out. In the meantime, European fortune hunter Mischa Auer....

Well, it's actually pretty amusing, although listening to Lederer complain about foreigners is very odd. Auer, as usual, is very funny, and so is Victor Kilian in a small role. Elliott Nugent directs competently, although with those two holes in the movie, he has some issues. I kept hearing Fred MacMurray in the Lederer role, and that worked very well.