One More Tomorrow

Just wondering if anyone noticed the dark Buick convertible driven by the hero in this film. It's not conspicuous. It's a 1941 Buick Super convertible. I'm wondering if it's that same one Gary Grant drove during his 1948 film, Mr Blandings Builds his Dreamhouse. If this was a car on the Warner lot, the it might have gotten into other films, and might have survived to this day in some collectors collection. I'd love to know the story of this car, and its present whereabouts, if it still exists. Very nice car for the time. It's an exceptional car of the era. Buick had the most powerful engines of the day, and this model had a 125 HP engine with dual carburetors, that jazzed up its performance considerably.

Warner Bros. apparently tried to buy up and/or surpress all existing prints of the zingy pre-code classic THE ANIMAL KINGDOM (1932) when they decided to remake it as ONE MORE TOMORROW (1946). And no wonder--this turgid remake definitely suffers the comparison. While adding a bit of the Warner Bros. panache and moving a bit more quickly (the earlier version was more faithful to the original stage play, and thus more talky), ONE MORE TOMORROW takes out all the zing, bite, and--most disturbingly--the very real human grappling with opposite desires--that THE ANIMAL KINGDOM managed to transpose so successfully to the screen from Philip Barry's equally successful play. Barry, the author of such gems as HOLIDAY and THE PHILADELPHIA STORY, seemed fascinated with the moral dilemmas faced by the rich and the not so rich as they struggle to come to terms with who--and what--is the most important guiding force in their lives. Unfortunately, the production code forced Warner Bros. to temper the life out of Barry's still timely ideas about the perils of "selling out" in love and business. The result is, sadly, a film that plays as a standard Warner Bros. soaper, with little emotional or mental involvement involved. If you're a fan of stars Smith, Morgan, and Sheridan (who all do the best they can with the material), you'll want to see this one. If you're more interested in the idea behind it, or in Philip Barry, check out the infinitely superior THE ANIMAL KINGDOM--an unjustly forgotten precode classic guaranteed to appeal to both the heart and mind.

Warner Brothers studio apparently had little confidence in this picture and apparently shelved it for three years before ultimately releasing it. Interesting, as it's one of the better Warner films of the era! I think the studio was uncertain about the film because the film does question conventional morality...even pushing the Production Code about as far as anyone did at the time. The other reason I think they sat on the film is that the movie starred many of the second-tier actors-- Jack Carson, Dennis Morgan, Alexis Smith and Ann Sheridan. Had it starred bigger names, I doubt if it would have sat as long...and I don't think the film would have been quite as good. It's hard to imagine Cagney, Bogart or Bette Davis in this film!

When the film begins, you learn that although Tom Collier (Morgan) is from a very wealthy family, he's not content to live the indolent life of the rich or go into the family business. He wants to make it on his own and soon buys a struggling magazine that is considered liberal and on the fringe. It's NOT what the family wants but his father loves him and doesn't press Tom too often to change jobs. But Cecelia (Smith) has every intention of changing him and making him exactly what sort of rich man she demands. Fortunately, Tom has instead fallen for a less conniving and more loving lady, Christie (Sheridan). But when Sheridan rejects Tom, he is easy pickings for Cecelia and they soon marry. However, problems clearly are looming as she's intent on breaking Tom and Tom is determined to be his own man. What's to become of them?

This is a very good film and brings up some great moral quandaries. However, the movie has one problem...Cecelia is just too obviously a horrible person. Had she been a bit more subtle in her machinations, the film would have been even better. Despite this, the acting is excellent, direction quite good and the story quite original and challenging. Well worth seeing.

This film is a lovely find. The story line is not particularly original: selfish-wife-tangles-with-selfless-rival. Ann Sheridan is beautiful and performs wonderfully as the woman who regrets having turned down Dennis Morgan's marriage proposal at the start of the film. Alexis Smith certainly holds her own as the cold, haughty and spoiled woman who stalks and marries the wealthy Dennis Morgan soon after. The story line has Morgan as the publisher of a "liberal" magazine - in the olden days "liberal" had as illustrious a reputation in the U.S. as it continues to maintain in the rest of the world today. Sheridan researches a story involving wartime graft among industrialists which Morgan feels compelled not to publish in his progressive magazine after his wife, anxious to maintain her social standing, lies to him about his own father's involvement and certain prison sentence if the story is exposed. Comic relief in the storyline is provided by Jack Carson as the oft-inebriated pal of Dennis Morgan - who "buttles" for the upper class couple. Well worth a watch!

This was a surprisingly good film. I expected a tear jerker but instead found a pleasent, entertaining story. Although, I must confess what makes the movie so entertaining for me is the role of Jack Carson. Jack Carson and Dennis Morgan made several movies together, and they were never better. I am a big Jack Carson fan. He can play a villain or a buffoon and make the character believable. He usually played, as in this film, second banana to the star of the movie, and like all great second bananas, he steals every scene he's in.